Corruption remained considerably lower in Estonia than in Latvia and Lithuania in 2025, according to Transparency International’s Corruption Perceptions Index, ERR reports. Estonia ranked 12th on the index, which was up from 13th place in 2024, BNS reported. Meanwhile, Lithuania came in on 28th (32nd) and Latvia on 37th (38th) place, LSM reported. Estonia scored 76…
The water level in the Baltic Sea has fallen to one of the lowest levels in recorded history, ELTA reports. On the Latvian coast, the sea level has dropped to around 65 cm below zero level, according to the Latvian Environment, Geology and Meteorology Centre (LVGMC). In Liepaja and Ventspils, the sea level is close…
Authorities in Latvia and Lithuania have opened investigations into information in documents related to the convicted US sex trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein. The documents contain hundreds of references to Latvia and Lithuania, including indications that Epstein’s associates had recruited young women and children for sexual exploitation through local modelling agencies, LETA and LRT reported. Latvia’s State…
The number of foreign travellers visiting Lithuania totalled 1.5 million in 2025, which was 4.4% more than in 2024, according to the State Data Agency (VDA), BNS reports. Foreign tourists stayed an average of four nights in Lithuania, which was the main travel destination for 77% of all arrivals. According to state-run tourism promotion agency…
Police in Estonia have registered over 1,000 violations of a law banning symbols of state aggression since April 2022, ERR reports. The law prohibits the public display of symbols supporting international crimes, including Russia’s wars of aggression. Erik Kalda, managing editor of local daily Põhjarannik, said that everyone in the majority Russian-speaking Ida-Virumaa county now…
Newly released documents connected to the convicted US human trafficker, Jeffrey Epstein, include numerous mentions related to the Baltic States. Several documents refer to travel arrangements to Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania, Estonian World reports. Many messages refer, often in sexualised context, to women that Epstein or his associates had met in the Baltic States. Latvia…
More Lithuanian citizens moved back to Lithuania than emigrated for the sixth consecutive year in 2025, according to the State Data Agency (VDA), BNS reports. A total of 18,155 Lithuanian citizens returned to the country in 2025, which was down from 18,934 in 2024. At the same time, 9,669 Lithuanian citizens emigrated, which was up…
The number of housing transactions in Latvia increased by around 20% in the first three quarters of 2025, compared to the same period of 2024, according to real estate agency Latio, LETA reported. The data showed that it took an average of 47 days to sell a home at market price in December 2025, which…
Life satisfaction in the Baltic States was highest in Lithuania in 2024, according to Eurostat data, LSM reports. Lithuanian residents said that their overall satisfaction with life stood at 7.2 out of 10 points, which was the same as the EU average and unchanged from 2023. Meanwhile, life satisfaction was 7.1 (7.2) in Estonia and…