"text":"Lithuanian lands were united under MINDAUGAS in 1236; over the next century, through alliances and conquest, Lithuania extended its territory to include most of present-day Belarus and Ukraine. By the end of the 14th century Lithuania was the largest state in Europe. An alliance with Poland in 1386 led the two countries into a union through the person of a common ruler. In 1569, Lithuania and Poland formally united into a single dual state, the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. This entity survived until 1795 when its remnants were partitioned by surrounding countries. Lithuania regained its independence following World War I but was annexed by the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. On 11 March 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions; it joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. In January 2014, Lithuania assumed a nonpermanent seat on the UN Security Council for the 2014-15 term; in January 2015, Lithuania joined the euro zone."
"text":"fairly even population distribution throughout the country, but somewhat greater concentrations in the southern cities of Vilnius and Kaunas, and the western port of Klaipeda"
"text":"-6.2 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2016 est.)"
},
"Population distribution":{
"text":"fairly even population distribution throughout the country, but somewhat greater concentrations in the southern cities of Vilnius and Kaunas, and the western port of Klaipeda"
"text":"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), 16 February 1918 (independence from Soviet Russia)"
"text":"Independence Day, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 was the date Lithuania established its statehood and its concomitant independence from Soviet Russia and Germany; 11 March 1990 was the date it declared the restoration of Lithuanian statehood and its concomitant independence from the Soviet Union"
"text":"several previous; latest adopted by referendum 25 October 1992, entered into force 2 November 1992"
},
"amendments":{
"text":"proposed by at least one-fourth of all Parliament members or by petition of at least 300,000 voters; passage requires two-thirds majority vote of Parliament in each of two readings three months apart and a presidential signature; amendments to constitutional articles on national sovereignty and constitutional amendment procedure also require three-fourths voter approval in a referendum; amended 1996, 2003, 2006 (2016)"
"text":"Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, appointed by the president, and approved by Parliament"
},
"elections/appointments":{
"text":"president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 11 and 25 May 2014 (next to be held in May 2019); prime minister appointed by the president, approved by Parliament"
"text":"Dalia GRYBAUSKAITE reelected president; percent of vote - Dalia GRYBAUSKAITE (independent) 59%, Zigmantas BALCYTIS (LSDP) 41%; Saulius SKVERNELIS (LVZS) approved as prime minister by Parliament vote - 90 to 4"
"text":"unicameral Parliament or Seimas (141 seats; 71 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by absolute majority vote and 70 directly elected in a single nationwide constituency by proportional representation vote; members serve 4-year terms)"
"text":"percent of vote by party - LVLS 22.5%, TS-LKD 22.6%, LSDP 15%, LS 9.5%, LCP-LPP 6.3%, LLRA 5.7%, TT 5.6%, DP 4.9%, LZP 2%, Lithuanian List 1.8%, other 4.1%; seats by party - LVLS 54, TS-LKD 31, LSDP 17, LS 14, LLRA 8, TT 8, DP 2, LCP-LPP 1, LZP 1, Lithuanian List 1, independent 4"
"text":"Supreme Court judges nominated by the president and appointed by the Seimas; judges serve 5-year renewable terms; Constitutional Court judges selected by the Seimas from among nominations by the president, by the Seimas chairperson, and Supreme Court chairperson; judges serve 9-year, nonrenewable terms; one-third of membership reconstituted every 3 years"
"text":"Anti-Corruption Coalition or LCP-LPP ++ Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles or LLRA [Valdemar TOMASEVSKI] ++ Homeland Union-Lithuanian Christian Democrats or TS-LKD [Gabrielius LANDSBERGIS] ++ Labor Party or DP [Valentinas MAZURONIS] ++ Liberal Movement or LS or LRLS [Eligijus MASIULIS] ++ Lithuanian Green Party or LZP [Linas BALSYS] ++ Lithuanian List ++ Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP [Algirdas BUTKEVICIUS] ++ Order and Justice Party or TT [Rolandas PAKSAS] ++ Peasant and Greens Union or LVZS [Ramunas KARBAUSKIS] ++ Way of Courage or DK [Jonas VARKALA]"
"text":"Ambassador Rolandas KRISCIUNAS (since 17 September 2015)"
},
"chancery":{
"text":"2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009"
},
"telephone":{
"text":"[1] (202) 234-5860"
},
"FAX":{
"text":"[1] (202) 328-0466"
},
"consulate(s) general":{
"text":"Chicago, Los Angeles, New York"
}
},
"Diplomatic representation from the US":{
"chief of mission":{
"text":"Ambassador Deborah A. MCCARTHY (since 5 February 2013)"
},
"embassy":{
"text":"Akmenu gatve 6, Vilnius, LT-03106"
},
"mailing address":{
"text":"American Embassy, Akmenu Gatve 6, Vilnius LT-03106"
},
"telephone":{
"text":"[370] (5) 266-5500"
},
"FAX":{
"text":"[370] (5) 266-5510"
}
},
"Flag description":{
"text":"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"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"mounted knight known as Vytis (the Chaser), white stork; national colors: yellow, green, red"
},
"National anthem":{
"name":{
"text":"\"Tautiska giesme\" (The National Song)"
},
"lyrics/music":{
"text":"Vincas KUDIRKA"
},
"note":{
"text":"adopted 1918, restored 1990; written in 1898 while Lithuania was a part of Russia; banned during the Soviet occupation from 1940 to 1990"
"text":"Lithuania gained membership in the WTO in May 2001 and joined the EU in May 2004. Lithuania's trade with the EU and CIS countries accounts for approximately 87.3% of total trade. Foreign investment and EU funding have aided in the transition from the former planned economy to a market economy. The three former Soviet Baltic republics were severely hit by the 2008-09 financial crisis, but Lithuania has rebounded and become one of the fastest growing economies in the EU. Lithuania’s ongoing recovery hinges on export growth, which is being hampered by economic slowdowns in the EU and Russia. Lithuania joined the euro zone on 1 January 2015 and is under review for membership in the OECD."
"text":"official data; data cover general government debt, and includes debt instruments issued (or owned) by government entities other than the treasury; the data include treasury debt held by foreign entities, debt issued by subnational entities, as well as int"
"text":"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 145 per 100 persons"
"text":"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 (2015)"
"text":"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-cha (2007)"
"text":"Lithuanian Armed Forces (Lietuvos Ginkluotosios Pajegos): Land Forces (Sausumos Pajegos), Naval Forces (Karines Juru Pajegos), Air Forces (Karines Oro Pajegos), Special Forces (Specialiuju Operaciju Pajegos); Volunteer Forces (Savanoriu Pajegos) (2015)"
"text":"18 years of age for military service; 9-month service obligation; Lithuania converted to a professional military in the fall of 2008, although the decision continues under judicial review; a new law passed in March 2015 restored conscription on a limited, 5-year basis; in March 2016, Lithuania's National Security and Defense Council recommended permanently restoring conscription service (2016)"
"text":"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"
"text":"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"
