11 March 1990 (declared); 6 September 1991 (recognized by Soviet Union)
26 July 1847
Religions
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)
Christian 40%, Muslim 20%, indigenous beliefs 40%
Languages
Lithuanian (official) 82%, Russian 8%, Polish 5.6%, other and unspecified 4.4% (2001 census)
English 20% (official), some 20 ethnic group languages, of which a few can be written and are used in correspondence
Exports
mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001)
rubber, timber, iron, diamonds, cocoa, coffee
External Debt
$31,030,000,000 $
$228,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
litai (LTL) per US dollar - 2.3251 (2008 est.), 2.5362 (2007), 2.7498 (2006), 2.774 (2005), 2.7806 (2004)
Liberian dollars (LRD) per US dollar - NA (2007), 59.43 (2006), 53.098 (2005), 54.906 (2004), 59.379 (2003)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
0.900%
1.300%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
5
0
Location
Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia
Western Africa, bordering the North Atlantic Ocean, between Cote d'Ivoire and Sierra Leone
Area
65,300 km sq
111,369 km sq
Coastline
90 km
579 km
Climate
transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers
tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool to cold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers
