MOSCOW, May 24 (RIA Novosti) - Russia's Foreign Ministry said Wednesday it would insist on the need to defend the rights of ethnic Russian minorities in Latvia and Estonia at a summit with the EU starting Thursday.
The position of the two Baltic states' ethnic Russian minorities - many of whom are classed as "non-citizens" - has been a bone of contention for some years in relations with Moscow, and has contributed to a deterioration of relations.
"Russia will draw the EU's attention to the necessity to ... ensure the rights of ethnic Russian minorities in Latvia and Estonia," ministry spokesman Mikhail Kamynin said.
