Latvia:
Geography

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Background	The name "Latvia" originates from the ancient Latgalians, one of four eastern Baltic tribes that formed the ethnic core of the Latvian people (ca. 8th-12th centuries A.D.). The region subsequently came under the control of Germans, Poles, Swedes, and finally, Russians. A Latvian republic emerged following World War I, but it was annexed by the USSR in 1940 - an action never recognized by the US and many other countries. Latvia reestablished its independence in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union. Although the last Russian troops left in 1994, the status of the Russian minority (some 30% of the population) remains of concern to Moscow. Latvia joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004.

Location	Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Estonia and Lithuania
Geographic coordinates	57 00 N, 25 00 E
Map references	Europe
Area	total: 64,589 sq km land: 63,589 sq km water: 1,000 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries	total: 1,368 km border countries: Belarus 167 km, Estonia 343 km, Lithuania 576 km, Russia 282 km
Coastline	531 km
Maritime claims	territorial sea: 12 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate	maritime; wet, moderate winters
Terrain	low plain
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m highest point: Galzina Kalns 312 m
Natural resources	peat, limestone, dolomite, amber, hydropower, wood, arable land
Land use	arable land: 28.19% permanent crops: 0.45% other: 71.36% (2005)
Irrigated land	200 sq km note: land in Latvia is often too wet, and in need of drainage, not irrigation; approximately 16,000 sq km or 85% of agricultural land has been improved by drainage (2003)
Natural hazards	NA
Environment - current issues	Latvia's environment has benefited from a shift to service industries after the country regained independence; the main environmental priorities are improvement of drinking water quality and sewage system, household, and hazardous waste management, as well as reduction of air pollution; in 2001, Latvia closed the EU accession negotiation chapter on environment committing to full enforcement of EU environmental directives by 2010
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note	most of the country is composed of fertile, low-lying plains, with some hills in the east