COUNTRY INFORMATION
Official name
Republic of Latvia
Capital
Riga
Coordinates
57°00’ N, 25°00’ E
Location
Latvia is located in Eastern Europe and shares borders with Estonia on the north, Russia on the east, Belarus on the southeast and Lithuania on the south.
Area
Total area: 64 589 sq km
Land area: 63 589 sq km
Water area: 1 000 sq km
Land boundaries
1 382 km
Coastline
498 km
Administrative division
Latvia is divided into 26 counties and 7 municipalities.
Political system
Latvia is a parliamentary democracy. President is the chief of state and is elected by Parliament for a four-year term. Prime Minister, who is the head of government, is appointed by President and confirmed by Parliament. Parliament (Saeima) is unicameral and has 100 members.
Population
2 231 503
Ethnic groups
Latvian 58%, Russian 30%, Belarusian 4%, Ukrainian 3%, Polish 2%, Lithuanian 1%, other 2%
Religions
Lutheran 20%, Orthodox 15%, other 65%