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This was reported by LRT, Ukrinform reports.
The Latvian legislature has already sent proposed amendments to the tourism law to a committee. According to the bill's initiators, this is intended to reduce the risks of human rights violations and prevent recruitment by intelligence agencies.
The ban will apply to all travel service providers registered in Latvia and will be implemented as part of a package of sanctions against Russia and Belarus.
"Travel to Russia and Belarus is currently a security issue. We cannot allow ourselves to continue organizing vacation trips and sending buses with our citizens to countries that openly express a desire to occupy Latvia," Politico quotes a statement from Gatis Liepins, a member of parliament from the New Unity party that initiated the law.
Liepins noted that Russia arrested 30 Latvian citizens in 2024, and the capabilities of Latvian institutions to provide assistance in such cases are "very limited."
Lithuania has also banned officials and employees with state secret clearance from visiting these two countries.
Vilnius also urged citizens to refrain from traveling to Russia and Belarus, as there have been repeated attempts to force travelers to cooperate with the two countries' intelligence services.
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