Except for a brief period of German occupation during World War II, Latvia remained Soviet territory until reforms in Soviet communism such as glasnost stimulated the Latvian independence movement, and Latvia regained its independence on 21 August1991. It has since followed a course to reinforce its links with the West, and became a member of both NATO and the European Union in 2004.
The 100-seat unicameral Latvian parliament, the Saeima, is elected by direct, popular vote every four years. The presidential elections are held separately, also every four years. The president is elected by Saeima. The president appoints a prime minister who, together with his cabinet, forms the executive branch of the government.
Large parts of Latvia are covered by forests, and the country has over 12,000 small rivers and over 3,000 lakes. Most of the country consists of fertile, low-lying plains with some hills in the east, the highest point being the Gaizinkalns at 312 m.
An inlet of the Baltic Sea, the shallow Gulf of Riga is situated in the northwest of the country. The capital city Riga is located on the shores of this inlet, where the Daugava river flows into it. Other major cities include Daugavpils further upriver and Liepaja along the Baltic coast.
The Latvian climate is maritime and temperate in nature, with cool summers and wet, moderate winters.
Latvia's transitional economy recovered from the 1998Russian financial crisis, largely due to the previous government's budget stringency and a gradual reorientation of exports toward EU countries, lessening Latvia's trade dependency on Russia. The majority of companies, banks, and real estate have been privatised. Latvia officially joined the World Trade Organisation in February 1999 and the European Union in May 2004. The high current account deficit remains a major concern.
Less than 60% of the population of Latvia are ethnic Latvians. About 30% is Russian, whose wellbeing is a continuing concern for Russia. Sizeable minorities from other countries such as Belarus, Ukraine and Poland also live in Latvia.
Latvian, a member of the Baltic languages, is the country's only official language, but Russian is also widely spoken. The population is almost entirely Christian, but divided between the Lutheran, Catholic and Russian Orthodox Churches. Another religion is Dievturi (The Godkeepers), which has historical roots based on prechristianity era mythology.
The Latvian Institute - official government site with various factual materials about Latvia in several languages (en, de, fr, fi, se, ru - depending on the material)
