Lithuania

total:

3.33 cu km/yr (78%/15%/7%)

per capita:

971 cu m/yr (2003)

noun:

Lithuanian(s)

adjective:

Lithuanian

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.06 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

0.97 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.53 male(s)/female

total population:

0.89 male(s)/female (2011 est.)

degree of risk:

intermediate

food or waterborne diseases:

bacterial diarrhea

vectorborne diseases:

tickborne encephalitis (2009)

conventional long form:

Republic of Lithuania

conventional short form:

Lithuania

local long form:

Lietuvos Respublika

local short form:

Lietuva

former:

Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic

name:

Vilnius

geographic coordinates:

54 41 N, 25 19 E

time difference:

UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

• 11 March 1990 (declared);
• 6 September 1991 (recognized by the Soviet Union);
• notable earlier dates: 6 July 1253 (coronation of MINDAUGAS, traditional founding date), 1 July 1569 (Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth created)

• Independence Day, 16 February (1918);
• note - 16 February 1918 was the date Lithuania declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood;
• 11 March 1990 was the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union

chief of state:

President Dalia GRYBAUSKAITE (since 12 July 2009)

head of government:

Prime Minister Algirdas BUTKEVICIUS (since 22 November 2012)

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the prime minister and approval of the Parliament; (For more information visit theWorld Leaders website)

elections:

• president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term);
• election last held on 17 May 2009 (next to be held in May 2014);
• prime minister appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament

election results:

• Dalia GRYBAUSKAITE elected president;
• percent of vote - Dalia GRYBAUSKAITE 69.1%, Algirdas BUTKEVICIUS 11.8%, Valentinas MAZURONIS 6.2%, others 12.9%;
• Algirdas BUTKEVICIUS approved by Parliament 90-40

• Constitutional Court;
• Supreme Court;
• Court of Appeal;
• judges for all courts appointed by the president, with Seimas approval required for judges on the Constitutional Court and Supreme Court

• Christian Party or KP [Gediminas VAGNORIUS];
• Civil Democracy Party or PDP [Algimantas MATULEVICIUS];
• Democratic Labor and Unity Party or DDVP [Kristina BRAZAUSKIENE];
• Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles or LLRA [Valdemar TOMASEVSKI];
• Emigrants Party or EP [Juozas MURAUSKAS];
• Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats or TS-LKD [Andrius KUBILIUS];
• Labor Party or DP [Viktor USPASKICH];
• Liberal and Center Union or LCS [Algis CAPLIKAS];
• Liberal Movement or LS or LRLS [Eligijus MASIULIS];
• Lithuanian People's Party or LLP [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE];
• Lithuanian People's Party or LZP [Joana SIMANAUSKIENE];
• Lithuanian Russian Union or LRS [Sergejus DMITRIJEVAS];
• Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP [Algirdas BUTKEVICIUS];
• Nationalist Union or TS [Gintaras SONGAILA];
• Order and Justice Party or TT [Rolandas PAKSAS];
• Peasant and Greens Union or LVZS [Ramunas KARBAUSKIS];
• Republican Party or RP [Valdemaras VALKIUNAS];
• Russian Alliance or RA [Tamara LOCHANKINA];
• Socialist People's Front or SLF [Algirdas PALECKIS];
• Way of Courage or DK [Jonas VARKALA];
• YES-Homeland Revival and Perspective or YES Union or TAIP Union or TAIP [Arturas ZUOKAS];
• Young Lithuania Party or PJL [Stanislovas BUSKEVICIUS]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Zygimantas PAVILIONIS

chancery:

2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009

telephone:

[1] (202) 234-5860

FAX:

[1] (202) 328-0466

consulate(s) general:

Chicago, New York

chief of mission:

Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Anne HALL

embassy:

Akmenu gatve 6, Vilnius, LT-03106

mailing address:

American Embassy, Akmenu Gatve 6, Vilnius LT-03106

telephone:

[370] (5) 266-5500

FAX:

[370] (5) 266-5510

• three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red;
• yellow symbolizes golden fields, as well as the sun, light, and goodness;
• green represents the forests of the countryside, in addition to nature, freedom, and hope;
• red stands for courage and the blood spilled in defense of the homeland

name:

"Tautiska giesme" (The National Song)

lyrics/music:

Vincas KUDIRKA

note: adopted 1918, restored 1990; the anthem was written in 1898 while Lithuania was a part of Russia; it was banned during the Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1990

agriculture:

14%

industry:

29.1%

services:

56.9% (2005)

lowest 10%:

2.6%

highest 10%:

29.1% (2008)

• grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables;
• beef, milk, eggs;
• fish

general assessment:

adequate; being modernized to provide improved international capability and better residential access

domestic:

• rapid expansion of mobile-cellular services has resulted in a steady decline in the number of fixed-line connections;
• mobile-cellular teledensity stands at about 140 per 100 persons

international:

• country code - 370;
• major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite;
• landline connections to Latvia and Poland

• public broadcaster operates 3 channels with the third channel - a satellite channel - introduced in 2007;
• various privately-owned commercial TV broadcasters operate national and multiple regional channels;
• many privately-owned local TV stations;
• multi-channel cable and satellite TV services available;
• publicly-owned broadcaster operates 3 radio networks;
• many privately-owned commercial broadcasters, many with repeater stations in various regions throughout the country (2007)

total:

1,767 km

country comparison to the world: 76

broad gauge:

1,745 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified)

standard gauge:

22 km 1.435-m gauge (2011)

total:

82,131 km

country comparison to the world: 56

paved:

72,048 km (includes 309 km of expressways)

unpaved:

10,083 km (2010)

total:

38

country comparison to the world: 77

by type:

cargo 20, container 1, passenger/cargo 6, refrigerated cargo 9, roll on/roll off 2

foreign-owned:

8 (Denmark 8)

registered in other countries:

22 (Antigua and Barbuda 3, Belize 1, Comoros 1, Cook Islands 1, Norway 1, Panama 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 9, unknown 3) (2010)

males age 16-49:

890,074

females age 16-49:

875,780 (2010 est.)

males age 16-49:

669,111

females age 16-49:

724,803 (2010 est.)

male:

20,425

female:

19,527 (2010 est.)

• Lithuania and Russia committed to demarcating their boundary in 2006 in accordance with the land and maritime treaty ratified by Russia in May 2003 and by Lithuania in 1999;
• Lithuania operates a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals traveling from the Kaliningrad coastal exclave into Russia, while still conforming, as a EU member state having an external border with a non-EU member, to strict Schengen border rules;
• boundary demarcated with Latvia and Lithuania;
• as of January 2007, ground demarcation of the boundary with Belarus was complete and mapped with final ratification documents in preparation

• transshipment and destination point for cannabis, cocaine, ecstasy, and opiates from Southwest Asia, Latin America, Western Europe, and neighboring Baltic countries;
• growing production of high-quality amphetamines, but limited production of cannabis, methamphetamines;
• susceptible to money laundering despite changes to banking legislation