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Latvia–United States relations

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{{Infobox bilateral relations|Latvia – United States|Latvia|USA|mission1 = Embassy of Latvia, Washington, D.C.|mission2 = Embassy of the United States, Riga|filetype=svg}}

File:Embassy of Latvia, Washington, D.C..jpg ]]

The United States established diplomatic relations with Latvia on July 28, 1922. The U.S. Legation in Riga was officially established on November 13, 1922, and served as the headquarters for U.S. representation in the Baltics during the interwar era. The Soviet invasion forced the closure of the legation on September 5, 1940, but Latvian representation in the United States has continued uninterrupted for 85 years. The United States never recognized the forcible incorporation of Latvia into the U.S.S.R. and views the present government of Latvia as a legal continuation of the interwar republic.

Latvia and the United States have signed treaties on investment, trade, intellectual property protection, extradition, mutual legal assistance, and avoidance of double taxation. Latvia has enjoyed most-favored-nation treatment with the United States since December 1991.

According to the 2012 U.S. Global Leadership Report, 30% of Latvians approve of U.S. leadership, with 30% disapproving and 39% uncertain.[http://www.gallup.com/file/poll/161309/US_Global_Leadership_Report_03-13_mh2.pdf U.S. Global Leadership Project Report - 2012] Gallup

Principal U.S. Embassy Officials include:

  • Ambassador{{mdash}} Nancy Bikoff Pettit
  • Deputy Chief of Mission{{mdash}} Sharon Hudson-Dean

The U.S. Embassy in Latvia is located in Riga.

Country comparison

class="wikitable mw-collapsible mw-open"
! 25px Latvia

! 25px United States

Flag

| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|Latvia|size=135px}}

| style="text-align:center" | {{Flagicon|United States|size=135px}}

Coat of Arms

| style="text-align:center" | 140px

| style="text-align:center" | 140px

Population

| 1,953,200{{cite web|url=http://www.csb.gov.lv/en/notikumi/number-population-decreasing-mark-has-dropped-below-2-million-39639.html|title=The number of population is decreasing – the mark has dropped below 2 million|date=Nov 2015|publisher=Central Statistical Bureau of Latvia|access-date=6 May 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171014091418/http://www.csb.gov.lv/en/notikumi/number-population-decreasing-mark-has-dropped-below-2-million-39639.html|archive-date=2017-10-14|url-status=dead}}

| {{formatnum:{{data United States | Poptoday }}}}

Area

| {{convert|64,589|km²|abbr=on}}

| {{convert|9,526,468|km²|abbr=on}} {{cite web|url=http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/616563/United-States|title=United States|publisher=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=31 January 2010}}

Population density

| 34.3/km2 (88.9/sq mi)

| 31/km2 (80/sq mi)

Capital

| Riga

| Washington, D.C.

Largest city

| Riga - 641,423 (1,018,295 Metro)

| New York City – 8,175,133 (19,006,798 Metro)

Government

| Unitary parliamentary constitutional republic

| Federal presidential constitutional republic

First Leader

| Jānis Čakste

| George Washington

Current Leader

| Edgars Rinkēvičs

| Donald Trump

Official languages

| Latvian

| English (de facto)

Main religions

| 80% Christianity (34.3% Lutheranism, 25.1% Catholicism, 19.4% Eastern Orthodoxy/Old Believers, 1.2% other Christian), 20% non-Religious

| 70.6% Christianity (46.5% Protestantism, 20.8% Catholicism, 1.6% Mormonism, 1.7% Other Christianity), 22.8% non-Religious, 1.9% Judaism, 0.9% Islam, 0.7% Buddhism, 0.7% Hinduism{{cite web|title=America's Changing Religious Landscape|url=http://www.pewforum.org/2015/05/12/americas-changing-religious-landscape/|website=Pew Research Center|publisher=Pew Research Center|access-date=September 4, 2016|date=2015-05-12}}

Ethnic groups

| 62% Latvian, 25.4% Russian, 3.3% Belarusian, 2.2% Ukrainian, 2.1% Polish, 1.2% Lithuanian, 3.8% other[http://data.csb.gov.lv/Selection.aspx?px_path=Sociala__Ikgad%C4%93jie%20statistikas%20dati__Iedz%C4%ABvot%C4%81ji__Iedz%C4%ABvot%C4%81ji%20skaits%20un%20t%C4%81%20izmai%C5%86as&px_tableid=IS0191.px&px_language=lv&px_db=Sociala&rxid=992a0682-2c7d-4148-b242-7b48ff9fe0c2] {{dead link|date=November 2017}}

| 74% White American, 13.4% African American,
6.5% Some other race, 4.4% Asian American, 2% Two or more races,
0.7% Native American or Native Alaskan, 0.14% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander

GDP (nominal)

| $30.176 billion ($15,403 per capita)

| $14.4 trillion ($47,440 per capita)

GDP (PPP)

| $53.467 billion ($27,291 per capita)

| $18.558 trillion ($57,220 per capita)

Real GDP growth rate

| 2.00%

| 1.60%

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

{{StateDept|url=https://2009-2017.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/5378.htm}}

Further reading

  • Andersons, Edgars, and M. G. Slavenas. "The Latvian and Lithuanian Press." in The Ethnic Press in the United States: A Historical Analysis and Handbook, edited by Sally M. Miller. (Greenwood Press, 1987).
  • Kārklis, Maruta, Līga Streips, and Laimonis Streips. The Latvians in America, 1640–1973: A Chronology and Fact Book (Oceana Publications, 1974).
  • Straumanis, Andris. "Latvian Americans." in Gale Encyclopedia of Multicultural America, edited by Thomas Riggs, (3rd ed., vol. 3, Gale, 2014), pp. 65–78. [https://link.gale.com/apps/doc/CX3273300112/GPS?u=wikipedia&sid=GPS&xid=7afe56c7 Online]
  • "Latvians" in Stephan Thernstrom, Ann Orlov and Oscar Handlin, eds. Harvard Encyclopedia of American Ethnic Groups (1980) [https://archive.org/details/harvardencyclope00ther Online]
  • {{Cite book|title=American Latvians : Politics of a Refugee Community|last=Zake|first=Ieva|publisher=Routledge|year=2017|isbn=9781351532563}}

External links

  • {{Commons category-inline|Relations of Latvia and the United States}}
  • [https://history.state.gov/countries/latvia History of Latvia - U.S. relations]

{{Foreign relations of Latvia}}

{{Foreign relations of the United States |expanded=Bilateral}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Latvia-United States relations}}

Category:Bilateral relations of the United States

United States