Lithuania

## Basic Information

Lithuania is a Northern European country in the Baltic region. It’s bordered by, in a clockwise order, Latvia, Belarus, Poland, Russia’s Kaliningrad Oblast, and the Baltic Sea. It’s a member of the European Union. It takes up 25,200 square miles, and has a population of roughly 2,793,694 as of 2020. The largest ethnic group in Lithuania are ethnic Lithuanians at 84.2% of the population, followed by small numbers of Poles, Russians, Belarusians and Ukrainians. Lithuanian is the country’s official language, but other languages, notably those belonging to the previously listed ethnic minorities, are also spoken. The country is made up of 93% Christians according to the 2019 census, with 75% of those being Catholics, making Lithuania the only Baltic state consisting of primarily Catholics. Lithuania is led by it’s Head of State, President Gitanas Nausėda, and it’s Head of Government, Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė. It’s climate is temperate and its land is mostly large meadows and forests, as well as an abundance of lakes. Early on in its history, the land currently known as Lithuania was occupied by various Baltic groups, and developed into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania starting in the 12th century, being the largest European country in the 14th century. Lithuania and Poland were a two-state union for a few centuries during this time Lithuania’s union with Poland was dissolved and much of Lithuania was annexed in the 1700’s by Russia, and this remained the case until Lithuania declared its independence in 1918. This independence was short-lived, as the Soviet Union once again occupied Lithuania. Lithuania regained independence in 1990, roughly a year before the dissolving of the Soviet Union.

## LGBT perception

Lithuania’s perception of same-gender relationships is quite rocky. There is a clear divide in Europe, specifically between Western Europe and Eastern Europe, as to how accepting people are of the LGBT community. According to the Economist, “gay people [who reside in Western Europe] enjoy a quality of life better than anywhere on the planet,” whereas gay people residing in Eastern Europe still face oppression from both their governments as well as society at large. While Lithuania’s Catholic majority could logically be a reason why they aren’t accepting of their gay community, a study done by Pew Research Center revealed that Catholics in WesternEurope more often support the legalization of gay marriage, while the opposite can be said of Eastern and Central Europe. The data gathered on Lithuania noted that only 11% of Lithuanian Catholics supported the idea of legalizing gay marriage, while 87% did not support it. As of now, Lithuania has not legalized either gay marriage or civil unions between same-gender couples. That being said, Tomas Raskevicius, the leader of the Freedom Party, states that he is “...confident, however, that registered partnerships for same-sex couples will become law before the next parliamentary election due in 2024.” Prime Minister Ingrida Šimonytė, who took power in 2020, has also stated her lack of opposition to same-gender civil unions, something that gained her the support of many gay rights activists. Same-gender marriage is unlikely to become legal anytime soon, though.