A statue of Russian-US actor, director, author and theatre practitioner Mikhail Chekhov (1891-1955), is pictured at The Mikhail Chekhov Riga Russian Theatre in Riga on January 3, 2025. The city council of Riga has prohibited the Riga Russian Theatre from advertising its shows in Russian -- the language of the Baltic state's biggest minority. The use of the language and more generally the rights of ethnic Russians living in Latvia have become hot-button issues in a country that fervently backs Ukraine against Russia. (Photo by Gints Ivuskans / AFP)