Lithuania: Scope affirms A+ credit rating with stable outlook
European credit rating agency Scope Ratings has affirmed Lithuania’s long-term credit rating at A+ with…
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Welcome to Via Baltica, your “information superhighway” for news from the three Baltic tigers of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania! Our founder and editor-in-chief is Kerkko Paananen, senior news analyst with more than two decades of professional expertise in covering and reporting on current affairs in the Baltic States. We aim to do one thing well:…
Lithuania: Scope affirms A+ credit rating with stable outlook
European credit rating agency Scope Ratings has affirmed Lithuania’s long-term credit rating at A+ with a stable outlook, the Finance Ministry announced, BNS reports. The agency pointed to Lithuania’s resilient and increasingly diversified economy, sound public finances, and strong institutional framework. Also, rapid economic growth and greater macroeconomic resilience were raising income levels in Lithuania,…
Latvia: Alcohol, drug use up: report
Latvia has failed to reach targets set in the country’s addiction prevention plan for 2023-2025, the Ministry of Health announced, LETA reported. The ministry’s evaluation report attributed the incomplete implementation of the plan to the lack of government budget funding. The plan included 35 measures to reduce alcohol and drug use, of which 19 were…
Estonia: Ruling coalition loses majority in parliament
Estonia’s two-party ruling coalition has lost its majority in the parliament, the Riigikogu, after two MPs resigned from their parties, ERR reports. Meelis Kiili of the Estonian Reform Party and Kalev Stoicescu of Estonia 200 (E200) announced that they were leaving their respective parties. As a result, the coalition now has 50 votes in the…
Lithuania: Parties discussing new defence pact
Political parties in Lithuania are discussing the possibility of signing a new cross-party agreement on national defence, LRT reports. Opposition parties are pushing for a commitment to maintain defence spending above 5% of GDP after 2030. However, the ruling Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) insists that there is no need for such an agreement….
Latvia: National Alliance embroiled in racism row
Latvia’s National Alliance party, which is part of the current coalition government, has been embroiled in controversy due to accusations of racist messaging, LSM reports. First, a woman claimed that she was sexually assaulted by people of Indian or Pakistani origin, after which National Alliance representatives, including Interior Minister Janis Dombrava and Riga deputy mayor…
Estonia: Justice Chancellor confirms interest in presidency
Estonia’s Chancellor of Justice, Ülle Madise, said that she would “seriously consider” running for president if there was sufficient support for her candidacy in parliament, ERR reports. Madise noted that as head of an independent constitutional institution, she cannot put herself forward as a candidate. The chancellor of justice “does not and cannot associate herself…
Lithuania: Opposition conservatives still on top in July 2026: poll
Lithuania’s conservative opposition party, Homeland Union (TS-LKD), remained clearly the country’s most popular political party in July 2026, according to Spinter Tyrimai’s new poll for DELFI. Support for Homeland Union stood at 16.2%, which was down slightly from 16.5% in the previous poll in June 2026. The ruling Social Democratic Party of Lithuania (LSDP) came…
Latvia: Children are 18% of population in 2026
The number of children aged 0-17 years in Latvia totalled 334,233 in the beginning of 2026, which was down 2.7% from 343,555 a year earlier, according to the Central Statistical Bureau’s (CSP) data, LSM reported. Children accounted for 18.1% (18.5%) of Latvia’s population. The number of boys amounted to 171,836 (176,322) and girls to 162,486…
Estonia: Consumer prices up 2.2% in July 2026
Estonia’s consumer price index (CPI) rose by 2.2% on year in July 2026, according to Statistics Estonia, ERR reported. The annual increase in prices was the smallest since April 2021. The average price of goods went up by 1% and services by 3.9%. Compared to June 2026, the CPI rose by 0.5%. Lauri Veski, consumer…