Lithuania (2004) | Marshall Islands (2001) | |
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Administrative divisions | 10 counties (apskritys, singular - apskritis); Alytaus, Kauno, Klaipedos, Marijampoles, Panevezio, Siauliu, Taurages, Telsiu, Utenos, Vilniaus | 33 municipalities; Ailinginae, Ailinglaplap, Ailuk, Arno, Aur, Bikar, Bikini, Bokak, Ebon, Enewetak, Erikub, Jabat, Jaluit, Jemo, Kili, Kwajalein, Lae, Lib, Likiep, Majuro, Maloelap, Mejit, Mili, Namorik, Namu, Rongelap, Rongrik, Toke, Ujae, Ujelang, Utirik, Wotho, Wotje |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 16.7% (male 309,736; female 294,129)
15-64 years: 68.4% (male 1,202,603; female 1,262,784) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 184,145; female 354,502) (2004 est.) |
0-14 years:
49.29% (male 17,808; female 17,101) 15-64 years: 48.61% (male 17,573; female 16,853) 65 years and over: 2.1% (male 707; female 780) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | grain, potatoes, sugar beets, flax, vegetables; beef, milk, eggs; fish | coconuts, tomatoes, melons, cacao, taro, breadfruit, fruits; pigs, chickens |
Airports | 102 (2003 est.) | 16 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 28
over 3,047 m: 4 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 7 914 to 1,523 m: 2 under 914 m: 14 (2003 est.) |
total:
4 1,524 to 2,437 m: 3 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 74
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 5 under 914 m: 67 (2003 est.) |
total:
12 914 to 1,523 m: 9 under 914 m: 3 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 65,200 sq km
land: NA sq km water: NA sq km |
total:
181.3 sq km land: 181.3 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the atolls of Bikini, Enewetak, and Kwajalein |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than West Virginia | about the size of Washington, DC |
Background | Independent between the two World Wars, Lithuania was annexed by the USSR in 1940. On 11 March 1990, Lithuania became the first of the Soviet republics to declare its independence, but Moscow did not recognize this proclamation until September of 1991 (following the abortive coup in Moscow). The last Russian troops withdrew in 1993. Lithuania subsequently restructured its economy for integration into Western European institutions; it joined both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. | After almost four decades under US administration as the easternmost part of the UN Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, the Marshall Islands attained independence in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association. Compensation claims continue as a result of US nuclear testing on some of the islands between 1947 and 1962. |
Birth rate | 8.49 births/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 45.07 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $5.427 billion
expenditures: $5.742 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2003 est.) |
revenues:
$80.1 million expenditures: $77.4 million, including capital expenditures of $19.5 million (FY95/96 est.) |
Capital | Vilnius | Majuro |
Climate | transitional, between maritime and continental; wet, moderate winters and summers | wet season from May to November; hot and humid; islands border typhoon belt |
Coastline | 99 km | 370.4 km |
Constitution | adopted 25 October 1992 | 1 May 1979 |
Country name | conventional long form: Republic of Lithuania
conventional short form: Lithuania local long form: Lietuvos Respublika local short form: Lietuva former: Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic |
conventional long form:
Republic of the Marshall Islands conventional short form: Marshall Islands former: Marshall Islands District (Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands) |
Currency | litas (LTL) | US dollar (USD) |
Death rate | 11.03 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 6.23 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $7.671 billion (2003 est.) | $125 million (FY96/97 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Stephen D. MULL
embassy: 2600 Akmenu 6, Vilnius mailing address: American Embassy, Vilnius, PSC 78, Box V, APO AE 09723 telephone: [370] (5) 266 5500 FAX: [370] (5) 266 5510 |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Joan M. PLAISTED embassy: Oceanside, Mejen Weto, Long Island, Majuro mailing address: P. O. Box 1379, Majuro, Republic of the Marshall Islands 96960-1379 telephone: [692] 247-4011 FAX: [692] 247-4012 |
Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador Vygaudas USACKAS
chancery: 2622 16th Street NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5860 FAX: [1] (202) 328-0466 consulate(s) general: Chicago and New York |
chief of mission:
Ambassador Banny DE BRUM chancery: 2433 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 234-5414 FAX: [1] (202) 232-3236 consulate(s) general: Honolulu |
Disputes - international | in May 2003, the Russian Parliament ratified the 1997 land and maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, which ratified the treaty in 1999, legalizing limits of former Soviet republic borders; both states also implement a simplified transit regime for Russian nationals transiting Lithuania to and from the Russian Kaliningrad coastal enclave; the Latvian Parliament has not ratified its 1998 maritime boundary treaty with Lithuania, primarily due to concerns over oil exploration rights | claims US territory of Wake Island |
Economic aid - recipient | $228.5 million (1995) | approximately $65 million annually from the US |
Economy - overview | Lithuania, the Baltic state that has conducted the most trade with Russia, has slowly rebounded from the 1998 Russian financial crisis. Unemployment remains high, still 10.7% in 2003, but is improving. Growing domestic consumption and increased investment have furthered recovery. Trade has been increasingly oriented toward the West. Lithuania has gained membership in the World Trade Organization and has moved ahead with plans to join the EU. Privatization of the large, state-owned utilities, particularly in the energy sector, is nearing completion. Overall, more than 80% of enterprises have been privatized. Foreign government and business support have helped in the transition from the old command economy to a market economy. | US Government assistance is the mainstay of this tiny island economy. Agricultural production is concentrated on small farms, and the most important commercial crops are coconuts, tomatoes, melons, and breadfruit. Small-scale industry is limited to handicrafts, fish processing, and copra. The tourist industry, now a small source of foreign exchange employing less than 10% of the labor force, remains the best hope for future added income. The islands have few natural resources, and imports far exceed exports. Under the terms of the Compact of Free Association, the US provides roughly $65 million in annual aid. Negotiations were underway in 1999 for an extended agreement. Government downsizing, drought, a drop in construction, and the decline in tourism and foreign investment due to the Asian financial difficulties caused GDP to fall in 1996-98. |
Electricity - consumption | 8.683 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - exports | 6.3 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - imports | 1.389 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production | 14.62 billion kWh (2001) | - |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
NA% hydro: NA% nuclear: NA% other: NA% |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Baltic Sea 0 m
highest point: Juozapines/Kalnas 292 m |
lowest point:
Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Likiep 10 m |
Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with petroleum products and chemicals at military bases | inadequate supplies of potable water |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Air Pollution, 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: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol |
Ethnic groups | Lithuanian 80.6%, Russian 8.7%, Polish 7%, Belarusian 1.6%, other 2.1% | Micronesian |
Exchange rates | litai per US dollar - 3.0609 (2003), 3.677 (2002), 4 (2001), 4 (2000), 4 (1999) | the US dollar is used |
Executive branch | chief of state: President Valdas ADAMKUS (since 12 July 2004)
head of government: Premier Algirdas Mykolas BRAZAUSKAS (since 3 July 2001) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the nomination of the premier elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 13 June 2004 and 27 June 2004; premier appointed by the president on the approval of the Parliament election results: Valdas ADAMKUS elected president; percent of vote - Valdas ADAMKUS 52.2%, Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE 47.8% |
chief of state:
President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Kessai Hesa NOTE (since 3 January 2000); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet selected by the president from among the members of Parliament elections: president elected by Parliament from among its own members for a four-year term; election last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: Kessai Hesa NOTE elected president; percent of Parliament vote - 100% |
Exports | NA (2001) | $28 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) |
Exports - commodities | mineral products 23%, textiles and clothing 16%, machinery and equipment 11%, chemicals 6%, wood and wood products 5%, foodstuffs 5% (2001) | fish, coconut oil, trochus shells |
Exports - partners | Switzerland 11.6%, Russia 10.1%, Germany 9.9%, Latvia 9.7%, UK 6.4%, France 5.1%, Denmark 4.7%, Estonia 4.3%, Sweden 4% (2003) | US, Japan, Australia |
Fiscal year | calendar year | 1 October - 30 September |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of yellow (top), green, and red | blue with two stripes radiating from the lower hoist-side corner - orange (top) and white; there is a white star with four large rays and 20 small rays on the hoist side above the two stripes |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $40.88 billion (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $105 million (1998 est.), supplemented by approximately $65 million annual US aid |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 6.1%
industry: 31.3% services: 62.6% (2003 est.) |
agriculture:
15% industry: 13% services: 72% (1995) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $11,400 (2003 est.) | purchasing power parity - $1,670 (1998 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 9% (2003 est.) | -5% (1998 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 56 00 N, 24 00 E | 9 00 N, 168 00 E |
Geography - note | fertile central plains are separated by hilly uplands that are ancient glacial deposits | two archipelagic island chains of 30 atolls and 1,152 islands; Bikini and Enewetak are former US nuclear test sites; Kwajalein, the famous World War II battleground, is now used as a US missile test range |
Highways | total: 75,243 km
paved: 68,697 km (including 417 km of expressways) unpaved: 6,546 km (2000) |
total:
NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: paved roads on major islands (Majuro, Kwajalein), otherwise stone-, coral-, or laterite-surfaced roads and tracks |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: 3.1%
highest 10%: 25.6% (1996) |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for opiates and other illicit drugs from Southwest Asia, Latin America, and Western Europe to Western Europe and Scandinavia; limited production of methamphetamine and ecstasy; susceptible to money laundering despite changes to banking legislation | - |
Imports | NA (2001) | $58 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.) |
Imports - commodities | mineral products 21%, machinery and equipment 17%, transport equipment 11%, chemicals 9%, textiles and clothing 9%, metals 5% (2001) | foodstuffs, machinery and equipment, fuels, beverages and tobacco |
Imports - partners | Russia 22%, Germany 16.1%, Poland 5.2%, Italy 4.3%, France 4.2% (2003) | US, Japan, Australia, NZ, Guam, Singapore |
Independence | 11 March 1990 (independence declared from Soviet Union); 6 September 1991 (Soviet Union recognizes Lithuania's independence) | 21 October 1986 (from the US-administered UN trusteeship) |
Industrial production growth rate | 16.1% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Industries | metal-cutting machine tools, electric motors, television sets, refrigerators and freezers, petroleum refining, shipbuilding (small ships), furniture making, textiles, food processing, fertilizers, agricultural machinery, optical equipment, electronic components, computers, amber | copra, fish, tourism, craft items from shell, wood, and pearls, offshore banking (embryonic) |
Infant mortality rate | total: 7.13 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 8.61 deaths/1,000 live births female: 5.57 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.) |
39.82 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | -1.2% (2003 est.) | 5% (1997) |
International organization participation | ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, CBSS, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO (correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NIB, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO | ACP, AsDB, ESCAP, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFC, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, ITU, OPCW, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, WHO |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 1 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 90 sq km (1998 est.) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Court of Appeal; judges for all courts appointed by the President | Supreme Court; High Court |
Labor force | 1.642 million (2003 est.) | NA |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 20%, industry 30%, services 50% (1997 est.) | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 1,273 km
border countries: Belarus 502 km, Latvia 453 km, Poland 91 km, Russia (Kaliningrad) 227 km |
0 km |
Land use | arable land: 45.22%
permanent crops: 0.91% other: 53.87% (2001) |
arable land:
0% permanent crops: 60% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 40% |
Languages | Lithuanian (official), Polish, Russian | English (universally spoken and is the official language), two major Marshallese dialects from the Malayo-Polynesian family, Japanese |
Legal system | based on civil law system; legislative acts can be appealed to the constitutional court | based on adapted Trust Territory laws, acts of the legislature, municipal, common, and customary laws |
Legislative branch | unicameral Parliament or Seimas (141 seats, 71 members are directly elected by popular vote, 70 are elected by proportional representation; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 10 and 24 October 2004 (next to be held October 2008) election results: percent of vote by party - Labor 28.6%, Working for Lithuania (Social Democrats and Social Liberals) 20.7%, Homeland Union (Conservatives) 14.6%, For Order and Justice (Liberal Democrats and Lithuanian People's Union) 11.4%, Liberal and Center Union 9.1%, Union of Farmers and New Democracy 6.6%; seats by faction - Labor 39, Homeland Union 25, Social Democrats 20, Liberal and Center Union 18, Social Liberals 11, Union of Farmers and New Democracy Parties 10, Liberal Democrats 10, Electoral Action 2, independents 6 |
unicameral Parliament or Nitijela (33 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 15 November 1999 (next to be held NA November 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA note: the Council of Chiefs is a 12-member body that advises on matters affecting customary law and practice |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 73.46 years
male: 68.22 years female: 79 years (2004 est.) |
total population:
65.84 years male: 64.04 years female: 67.73 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6% male: 99.7% female: 99.6% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 100% female: 88% (1980 est.) |
Location | Eastern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, between Latvia and Russia | Oceania, group of atolls and reefs in the North Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from Hawaii to Papua New Guinea |
Map references | Europe | Oceania |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm | contiguous zone:
24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 296,856 GRT/317,731 DWT
by type: cargo 20, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 8, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea/passenger 4 foreign-owned: Denmark 12, Netherlands 1 registered in other countries: 11 (2004 est.) |
total:
212 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 9,768,406 GRT/16,242,699 DWT ships by type: bulk 63, cargo 9, chemical tanker 10, combination ore/oil 2, container 29, liquefied gas 10, multi-functional large-load carrier 1, petroleum tanker 87, vehicle carrier 1 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Cyprus 1, Germany 1, Japan 1, US 6 (2000 est.) |
Military - note | - | defense is the responsibility of the US |
Military branches | National Defense Volunteer Forces (SKAT), Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force | no regular military forces (a coast guard may be established); Police Force |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $230.8 million (FY01) | $NA |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 1.9% (FY01) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | males age 15-49: 943,063 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - fit for military service | males age 15-49: 738,602 (2004 est.) | - |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | males: 28,300 (2004 est.) | - |
National holiday | Independence Day, 16 February (1918); note - 16 February 1918 is the date Lithuania declared its independence from Soviet Russia and established its statehood; 11 March 1990 is the date it declared its independence from the Soviet Union | Constitution Day, 1 May (1979) |
Nationality | noun: Lithuanian(s)
adjective: Lithuanian |
noun:
Marshallese (singular and plural) adjective: Marshallese |
Natural hazards | NA | occasional typhoons |
Natural resources | peat, arable land | phosphate deposits, marine products, deep seabed minerals |
Net migration rate | -0.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.) | 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | gas 1,696 km; oil 331 km; refined products 109 km (2004) | - |
Political parties and leaders | Electoral Action of Lithuanian Poles [Valdemar TOMASZEVSKI, chairman]; Homeland Union/Conservative Party or TS [Andrius KUBILIUS, chairman]; Labor Party [Viktor USPASKICH, chairman]; Liberal and Center Union [Arturas ZUOKAS, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party [Valentinas MAZURONIS, chairman]; Lithuanian Christian Democrats or LKD [Valentinas STUNDYS, chairman]; Lithuanian People's Union for a Fair Lithuania; Lithuanian Social Democratic Coalition [Algirdas BRAZAUSKAS, chairman] consists of the Lithuanian Democratic Labor Party or LDDP and the Lithuanian Social Democratic Party or LSDP; New Democracy and Farmer's Union or VNDPS [Kazimiera PRUNSKIENE, chairman]; Social Liberals (New Union) [Arturas PAULAUSKAS, chairman]; Social Union of Christian Conservatives [Gediminas VAGNORIUS, chairman]; Young Lithuania and New Nationalists | traditionally there have been no formally organized political parties; what has existed more closely resembles factions or interest groups because they do not have party headquarters, formal platforms, or party structures; the following two "groupings" have competed in legislative balloting in recent years - Kabua Party [Imata KABUA] and United Democratic Party or UDP [Litokwa TOMEING] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | NA |
Population | 3,607,899 (July 2004 est.) | 70,822 (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA | NA% |
Population growth rate | -0.33% (2004 est.) | 3.88% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Butinge, Kaunas, Klaipeda | Majuro |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 29, FM 142, shortwave 1 (2001) | AM 3, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) |
Radios | - | NA |
Railways | total: 1,998 km
broad gauge: 1,807 km 1.524-m gauge (122 km electrified) standard gauge: 22 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 169 km 0.750-m gauge (all service suspended) (2003) |
0 km |
Religions | Roman Catholic (primarily), Lutheran, Russian Orthodox, Protestant, Evangelical Christian Baptist, Muslim, Jewish | Christian (mostly Protestant) |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.95 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.52 male(s)/female total population: 0.89 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.91 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate, but is being modernized to provide an improved international capability and better residential access
domestic: a national, fiber-optic cable, interurban, trunk system is nearing completion; rural exchanges are being improved and expanded; mobile cellular systems are being installed; access to the Internet is available; still many unsatisfied telephone subscriber applications international: country code - 370; landline connections to Latvia and Poland; major international connections to Denmark, Sweden, and Norway by submarine cable for further transmission by satellite |
general assessment:
telex services domestic: Majuro Atoll and Ebeye and Kwajalein islands have regular, seven-digit, direct-dial telephones; other islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes) international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); US Government satellite communications system on Kwajalein |
Telephones - main lines in use | 824,200 (2003) | 3,000 (1996) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,169,900 (2003) | 365 (1996) |
Television broadcast stations | 27
note: Lithuania has approximately 27 broadcasting stations, but may have as many as 100 transmitters, including repeater stations (2001) |
3 (of which two are US military stations) (1997) |
Terrain | lowland, many scattered small lakes, fertile soil | low coral limestone and sand islands |
Total fertility rate | 1.17 children born/woman (2004 est.) | 6.55 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 10.3% (2003 est.) | 16% (1991 est.) |
Waterways | 600 km (2004) | none |