Latvia, Republic of, a country in eastern Europe that was once a part of the Soviet Union. Latvia is bounded by Estonia. Russia, Belarus, Lithuania, the Baltic Sea, and the Gulf of Riga.
Latvia is situated on the eastern shore of the Baltic sea, sharing borders with Lithuania to the south, Estonia to the north, Russia to the east and Belarus to the southeast.
According to the Constitution (Satversme), Latvia is a parliamentary republic in which the sovereign power belongs to the people, who are represented by a unicameral parliament (Saeima), with 100 members elected in general, equal, direct, secret and proportional elections for a four-year period.