A UCSJ Report Introduction Latvia is one of the three tiny Baltic republics that were independent between the world wars and part of the Soviet Union from 1939 to 1991. After a brief period of post-independence uncertainty, Latvia's economy has grown steadily since 1994, and the private sector is slowly blossoming. Consequently, Latvian foreign policy is more oriented toward Europe than toward its former Soviet neighbors.
Democratic institutions are relatively strong in Latvia.
Elections have been freely and fairly contested, although the Communist and hard-line parties, following an attempted coup in 1991, have been banned. Riga, the capital, houses a synagogue, two Jewish day schools, a community center, a matzoh factory, and the only Jewish hospital in the former Soviet Union. The cities of Resekne, Kraslava, Ludza, and Daugavpils support smaller Jewish populations, but these communities have shrunk considerably recently due to emigration. The Council of Jewish Communities organizes Jewish life and interaction throughout Latvia. State television broadcasts Israeli programs once a month, and a bi-weekly Jewish Hour is aired on state radio.