Lithuania Passport

【 Country Name 】 The Republic of Lithuania

【 Area 】 65300 square kilometers.

Population: 2.895 million (as of October 2024). Lithuanian ethnicity accounts for 83.6%, Polish ethnicity accounts for 6.3%, and Russian ethnicity accounts for 5.0% (2023). In addition, there are ethnic groups such as Belarus, Ukraine, and Jews. The official language is Lithuanian, and most residents understand Russian. Mainly adhering to Roman Catholicism, in addition to Eastern Orthodoxy, Protestant Lutheranism, and others.

Vilnius, the capital, covers an area of 401 square kilometers and has a population of 581000. The average temperature in January is -1.3 ℃, and the average temperature in July is 17.7 ℃.

【 Head of State 】 President Gitanas NAUSEDA, who took office in July 2024 for a term of 5 years.

National Reconstruction Day (National Day): February 16th (February 16th, 1918, Lithuania declared national reconstruction and established the Republic of Lithuania); Restoration of Independence Day: March 11th (Lithuania issued the Declaration of Restoration of Independence on March 11th, 1990); National Day: July 6th (July 6th, 1253, Lithuanian King Mintokas was crowned).

【 Overview 】 Located on the east coast of the Baltic Sea, it borders Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east, Poland to the south, and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast in Russia to the west. The total length of the border is 1644 kilometers, and the coastline is 90 kilometers long. It belongs to the transitional climate from oceanic to continental. The highest point has an elevation of 293.6 meters. The average temperature in January is -1 ℃, and the average temperature in July is 19 ℃.

In 1009, Lithuania was first mentioned in historical records. The unified Grand Duchy of Lithuania was established in 1240. After 1385, Lithuania and Poland united three times, and in 1387, Catholicism was accepted as the state religion. During the reign of Grand Duke Vytautas (1392-1430), it was a period of great prosperity and became one of the largest countries in Europe at that time. After 1795, it was gradually annexed by Tsarist Russia. During World War I, Li was once occupied by Germany. On February 16, 1918, Li declared independence and established a bourgeois republic. On October 9, 1920, Poland occupied Vilnius and the eastern region of Lithuania, and the second largest city, Kaunas, became the temporary capital. In August 1939, the Soviet Union and Germany signed a secret treaty, which placed them within the Soviet sphere of influence. The following year, Soviet troops entered the territory of Lithuania. After the outbreak of the Soviet German War in 1941, it was immediately occupied by Germany. In 1944, the Soviet army entered Lithuania, and the Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic was established and joined the Soviet Union. On March 11, 1990, Li passed the Declaration of Restoration of Independence and declared independence from the Soviet Union. On September 6, 1991, the Soviet State Council recognized independence and on September 17, Japan joined the United Nations. Hitachi joined NATO on March 29, 2004 and became a member of the European Union on May 1. Joined the Eurozone in January 2015.

The political situation in Lithuania is generally stable. In the October 2020 parliamentary elections, six parties including the Fatherland Alliance Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party (referred to as the "Zuki Party") entered the parliament. In December, the ruling coalition was formed by the Zuki Party, the Free Movement Party, and the Liberal Party.

The Constitution was passed by a national referendum on October 25, 1992 and came into effect on November 2. It has been revised multiple times since then. The current constitution consists of 15 chapters and 154 articles. Lithuania is an independent democratic republic, with sovereignty belonging to all its people and equal civil rights. Establish a parliamentary system of government. The parliament is the highest legislative body of the country, approving or rejecting the prime minister candidate nominated by the president; Appointing and dismissing national leaders from their positions; Has the power to impeach the President, but requires the support of at least 3/5 of the members of parliament. The president is elected by direct citizen voting, with a term of 5 years and a maximum of two terms. Citizens who are over 40 years old and have resided continuously in Taiwan for the past 3 years are eligible to run for president. In the event of the President's death, resignation, impeachment, or inability to perform his duties due to health reasons, his duties shall be exercised by the Speaker on his behalf. The President is the supreme commander of the national armed forces, making decisions on major diplomatic issues, appointing and replacing the Prime Minister with the consent of the Parliament, and appointing and replacing ministers based on the Prime Minister's recommendation.

The highest legislative body of the country, implementing a unicameral system, has a total of 141 seats (including the Speaker) (currently 138 people), with a term of 4 years. All citizens who have reached the age of 25 and are settled in Taiwan have the right to run for parliament. Among them, 71 members of parliament are directly elected from 71 constituencies across the country, while the remaining 70 are elected by political parties that enter parliament. Political parties that receive more than 5% of the votes and political party alliances that receive more than 7% of the votes can enter parliament and be allocated seats according to their respective proportions of votes received. The current parliament was elected in October 2020. The main party groups and their respective seats are: Motherland Alliance - Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party 49 seats, Farmers and Green Alliance Party 17 seats, "For Lithuania" Democratic Party 16 seats, Social Democratic Party 14 seats, Freedom Movement Party 12 seats, Freedom Party 10 seats, Regional Party 9 seats, and a parliamentary group composed of other party factions and independent members 10 seats. The current Speaker Viktorija Č MILYT Ė - Nielsen was elected in October 2020.

The current government is the 18th government after independence, formed in December 2020 by the Motherland Union - Lithuanian Christian Democratic Party, Free Movement Party, and Freedom Party, with 14 departments under its umbrella. Prime Minister Ingrida SIMONYTE, along with other cabinet members including Environment Minister Simonas GENTVILAS, Energy Minister Dainius KREIVYS, Economy and Innovation Minister Ausrine ARMONAITE, Finance Minister Gintare SKAISTE, Defense Minister Laurynas KASCIUNAS, Culture Minister Simonas KAIRYS, Social Security and Labor Minister Vytautas SILINSKAS Minister of Transport and Communications Marius Skuodis, Minister of Health Aurimas Pechikoskas PE Č KAUSKAS, Minister of Education, Science and Sports Radvile MORKUNAIE-MIKULENIENE, Minister of Justice Evelina DOBROVOLSKA, Minister of Foreign Affairs Gabrielius LANDSBERGIS, Minister of Interior Agne BILOTAITE, and Minister of Agriculture Kazys STARKEVI Č IUS.

[Main URL] Presidential Office: https://lrp.lt/lt Parliament: https://www.lrs.lt/ Government: https://lrv.lt/lt/ Ministry of Foreign Affairs: https://www.urm.lt/ .

In June 2011, Lithuania carried out administrative division reform, abolishing the county system and transforming the country into a total of 60 local administrative units consisting of 7 cities, 43 districts, 8 autonomous institutions, and 2 sanatoriums, with over 100 small and large towns. The main cities include Vilnius, Kaunas, Klaipeda, and Š iaoli.

Gintaras GODA, the President of the Constitutional Court, will take office in April 2023 for a term of 9 years. The President of the Supreme Court, Danguole Bubliene, will take office in March 2023 for a term of 9 years. Prosecutor General Nida GRUNSKIENE took office in 2020 for a term of 5 years.

As of March 2024, there are over 20 political parties registered with the Ministry of Justice, with the main ones being:

(1) Homeland Union - Lithuanian Christian Democrats "LITHUANIAN CONSERVATIVES": a coalition ruling party. Established in May 1993, it currently has over 12000 party members. Party Chairman Lantzbergis, grandson of former President Lantzbergis, and current Foreign Minister.

(2) Liberals' Movement: a coalition government party. Established on February 25, 2006, it is mainly composed of members who have withdrawn from the Free Middle Alliance, and currently has nearly 7000 party members. Chairman Viktorija Č milyt ė - Nielsen, current Speaker.

(3) Freedom Party: a coalition government party. Established on June 1, 2019, it is mainly composed of members who have withdrawn from the Free Movement Party, with more than 3000 current party members. Its chairman is Au š rin ț Armonait ț, and it is currently the Minister of Economy and Innovation.

(4) Lithuanian Farmers and Greens Union: opposition party. Established in 2001, the current number of party members is nearly 4000. It has been renamed multiple times in history, which once affected its political party image and popularity. Since 2012, the current name has been used. Party Chairman: Ramunas Karbauskis.

(5) Social Democratic Party of Lithuania: opposition party. Founded in 1896, it is the oldest political party in the country. It was rebuilt on August 12, 1989 and merged with the Lithuanian Labor Democratic Party (formerly known as the Lithuanian Communist Party) on January 27, 2001. There are currently over 14000 party members. Chairman Vilija Blinkevi č i ū t ė.

(6) The Lithuanian Labour Party: an opposition party. Established in October 2003. There are nearly 10000 party members currently, with the chairman Andrius Mazuronis and the current vice chairman.

(7) Lithuanian Regions Party: An opposition party that was renamed the Regions Party from the Social Democratic Labor Party in 2021. Established in April 2018, the main members come from former members of the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party who insisted on continuing to cooperate with the Agrarian Green Party and withdrew from the party after the split of the ruling coalition in 2017. There are nearly 6000 members currently, with Jonas Pinskus as the chairman.

(8) The Electoral Action of Poland in Lithuania, founded on August 28, 1994, currently has over 2000 members. Chairman Valdemar Tomasevski.

(9) Union of Democrats "For Lithuania": an opposition party founded on January 29, 2022, mainly composed of members who withdrew from the Farmers and Green Alliance Party. It currently has nearly 4000 members and its chairman, Saulius Skvernelis, was the former Prime Minister of the government.

(10) Dawn of the Nemunas Party: Founded in November 2023, named after the largest river in Lithuania, Nemunas, and the first newspaper, The Dawn, it currently has over 3000 members. Remigijus Zemaitaitis, the party chairman and founder, was terminated from his membership in the Freedom and Justice Party in May 2023 due to anti Semitic speech. He ran for the presidency in 2024.

Other political parties include: Freedom and Justice Party, Green Party, etc.

[Important Person] President: Gitanas NAUSEDA, born in Klaipeda, Lithuania in 1964, is an economist and part-time professor at Vilnius University Business School. Graduated from the Department of Industrial Economics at Vilnius University. He has successively held positions at the Institute of Economics and Privatization, the Competition Commission, the Monetary Policy Department of the Central Bank, and the Bank of Sweden. Elected as the President in May 2019, won re-election in May 2024, and was sworn in on July 12th.

Prime Minister: Ingrida Shimonit, born in Vilnius, Lithuania in 1974, obtained a Bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Vilnius University in 1996 and a Master's degree in Economics from Vilnius University in 1998. Long term employment at the Lithuanian Ministry of Finance and Vilnius University. Appointed as Minister of Finance in 2009. Elected as a member of the Lithuanian Parliament in 2016 and re elected in 2020. Appointed as Prime Minister in December 2020. Unmarried and childless.

Speaker: Viktoria Chimilit Nielsen, born in 1983 in Š iauliai, Lithuania, received a Bachelor's degree in English Language and Literature from the University of Latvia in 2007. Former famous professional chess player. In 2011, she won the European Women's Chess Championship. In 2015, he bid farewell to the chess world and entered politics, and joined the Liberal Movement Party. Elected as a member of the Legislative Assembly in 2016. Appointed as the Chairman of the Liberal Movement Party in September 2019. Appointed as Speaker in October 2020. Married with four children.

In 2023, Lithuania's main economic data are as follows:

Gross Domestic Product: 72 billion euros.

Per capita Gross Domestic Product: 25065 euros.

Gross Domestic Product Growth Rate:- 0.3%.

Unemployment rate: 6.8%

【 Resources 】 Forests and water resources are abundant. The forest area is 2.177 million hectares, with a coverage rate of 33.4%. There are 722 rivers, with 21 rivers exceeding 100 kilometers in length. The longest river, the Nemunas River, has a total length of 937 kilometers and a length of 475 kilometers within the territory. There are numerous lakes within the jurisdiction, with a water area exceeding 880 square kilometers. There are 2834 lakes with an area of over 0.5 hectares, among which the largest, Druckshay Lake, has an area of 4479 hectares (42.26 square kilometers). In addition, there are resources such as peat and mineral building materials.

In 2023, the industrial output value was 28.84 billion euros, a year-on-year decrease of 6.4%.

In 2023, the agricultural output value was 3.66 billion euros, a year-on-year decrease of 20.1%.

In 2023, Lithuanian hotels, inns, sanatoriums and other tourism institutions received a total of 3.992 million domestic and foreign tourists, including 1.37 million foreign tourists, accounting for 34.3%, mainly from countries such as Latvia, Poland and Germany. In 2022, there were 739000 Chinese citizens traveling abroad, a year-on-year increase of 143.2%, with the main destinations being Latvia, the United Kingdom, Poland, and Belarus. As of the end of 2023, there are 4793 hotels and resorts of various types, with 43185 guest rooms. Main tourist attractions: Vilnius Old Town, Tragai Castle, Kaelnavi Ruins, Nida Dunes, Palanga, Š iauliai Cross Mountain, Drusninggai, etc.

Transportation: The transportation system is complete, and the railway network is connected to Europe and the Commonwealth of Independent States, allowing direct or transfer transportation to relevant countries; The road network is well-developed, with six major European highways including E28, E67, E77, E85, E262, and E272 passing through; Klaipeda Port is the largest seaport in the world, with access to over 200 ports. Domestic transportation is mainly based on highways and railways.

In 2023, the total freight volume for the year will be 165 million tons, an increase of 10.5% compared to the previous year. The total passenger volume was 329 million, a year-on-year increase of 6.7%.

Main international airports: Vilnius Airport, Kaunas Airport, Palanga Airport.

According to data from the Lithuanian National Bureau of Statistics, in 2023, the government's fiscal revenue will be 26.926 billion euros, a year-on-year increase of 11.9%, and expenditures will be 27.498 billion euros, a year-on-year increase of 12.4%.

In 2023, the total import and export volume was 84.24 billion euros, of which the export volume was 39.44 billion euros, a year-on-year decrease of 11.0%, and the import volume was 44.8 billion euros, a year-on-year decrease of 14.7%.

The main export commodities are mineral products, mechanical and electrical equipment, electrical equipment, wood, etc. The main import commodities are mineral products, mechanical and electrical equipment, electrical equipment, chemical products, vegetables and fruits, etc. The import and export trade volume in recent years is as follows (in billions of euros):