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Anthem | "Dievs, svētī Latviju!" | ||||||
Capital (and largest city) | Daugavpils | ||||||
Other cities | Liepāja, Jūrmala, Ventspils, Jelgava and others | ||||||
Language official | Latvian | ||||||
others | Russian, Belarusian, Ukranian and others | ||||||
Religion main | Lutheranism | ||||||
others | Christianity, Orthodox, Atheism and others | ||||||
Ethnic Groups main | Latvians | ||||||
others | Russians, Belarusians, Ukrainians and others | ||||||
Demonym | Latvian | ||||||
Government | Unitary parliamentary republic | ||||||
legislature | Saeima | ||||||
President | Raimonds Vējonis | ||||||
Prime Minister | Māris Kučinskis | ||||||
Area | 64.589 km² | ||||||
Population | 1,953,200 | ||||||
Currency | Baltic Krone | ||||||
Organizations | IL, BU and others |
History
Pre-war
Prior to the Great Nuclear War, Latvia was governed by the Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic, one of fifteen constituent republic of the Soviet Union.
Post-War
As with the other Baltic states, the Latvian capital of Riga was hit and destroyed in the war. However, immediately two stable City States rose in Daugavpils and Jelgava, the second and third largest cities. As these states began to consolidate their power, they began to come into conflict, reaching a height in 1974 when Daugavpils invaded Jelgava, prompting mass-unrest. The two sides battled out for two years with little gains on either side, until a cease-fire was reached in 1975. Seeing a better future together, rather than apart, in 1978 the two States united, forming the Republic of Latvia, expanding as far north as the Gauja River, Westwards as the Venta river, and reaching several kilometers into Russian territory.
Contact with Estonia, Lithuania and Moonsund began in the late 80's, in in 1982 the leaders of the four states met in the Latvian capital city of Jēkabpils to begin discussions of trade, resource pooling and the settlement of borders. From 1987 contact was made with Belarus. In 1991 Estonian, Latvian and Lithuanian leaders met in the latter's capital, Vilnius, and soon discussions turned to a formal union for trade purposes. As negotiations continued, it was announced that a Baltic Union would be formed out of the four states, and was officially created in 1992. Belarus, financially invested primarily in Lithuania, as well as the other states, joined in 1994, and Moonsund reunited with Estonia in 1996.
in 2005, the International League was formed by various nations as a solely democratic successor to the United Nations, and in 2007 the Baltic Union issued a joint application, and acceded in 2008, with a single state (though individual states of the Union reserve the right to send their own representative without withdrawing from the Union).
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