Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania was annexed by the USSR in 1940. 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.
Full Name: Republic of Lithuania
Area: 65,200 sq km
Population: 3,555,179 (July 2009 est.)
Capital City: Vilnius
People: Lithuanian 83.4%, Polish 6.7%, Russian 6.3%, other or unspecified 3.6% (2001 census)
Language: Lithuanian (official) 82%, Russian 8%, Polish 5.6%, other and unspecified 4.4% (2001 census)
Religion: Roman Catholic 79%, Russian Orthodox 4.1%, Protestant (including Lutheran and Evangelical Christian Baptist) 1.9%, other or unspecified 5.5%, none 9.5% (2001 census)
Government Type: Parliamentary democracy
Chief of State President Dalia GRYBAUSKAITE (since 12 July 2009)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Andrius KUBILIUS (since 27 November 2008)
GDP: $US 47.3 billion (2008 est.)
GDP per Capita: $US 17,800 (2008 est.)
Inflation: 10.9% (2008 est.)
Unemployment: 5.8% (2008 est.)
Industries: Metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers, amber
Currency: litas (LTL)
Member of EU: Yes
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