According to Rinkēvičs, there's no talk of blacklisting the members of the ensemble, but it should be understood that "it's not just an ensemble, it's a unit of the [Russian] armed forces." The Latvian side has informed the Russian Embassy that the participants' entry to Latvia would have to comply with Latvian law.
More precisely, the Russian side is awaited to make an official request for allowing this unit of the army to enter Latvia. Upon receiving such a request, it'd be evaluated by the responsible authorities.
Personally, the minister thinks that in the current circumstances a visit by the army choir is undesirable. Though people shouldn't fear that the choir will just enter Latvia and start performing - "There won't be such a thing," said Rinkēvičs.
Elsewhere, reported LETA, Rinkēvičs has called the ideological conception of the concert provocative and unacceptable, as the ideological conception of the art underlines the might of the Soviet army, and that goes against the history of the Baltic states and is an undesirable event due to the annexation of Crimea by the Russian army, according to Rinkēvičs.
Interestingly enough, a historical connection can also be made between the Baltic states and the utterances of Sergey Melnikoff, the author of the controversial 'People of Maidan' exhibition set to be shown in the city of Bauska on November 3 and 4 after its stint in Jelgava. Melnikoff has advocated "sending back the 300,000 Russian-speaking people loaded in cattle trains" - in a tragically obvious parallel to deportations from the Baltics in the 20th century.
Unlike the Russian choir performance, this exhibition seems to be enjoying the support of the Foreign Ministry and Speaker of Saeima Ināra Mūrniece (National Alliance).
While the Russian Embassy has expressed surprise about the 'unhealthy bustle' about the ensemble's scheduled concerts, timed to the 70th anniversary of the victory against the Nazis.
In Latvia the ensemble had planned to perform at the Moscow house for a veteran-only audience, so the concert would have been invite-only and not advertised. The Russian Embassy considers the visit to be a completely cultural enterprise.
