Latvia: Small but Extremely Alert and Prickly

Latvia, has a population of 1.8 million. In area, it is a little smaller than Tasmania: 62,200 square kilometres versus 68,400. Facing the Baltic Sea on its west, it is wedged between Estonia to its north and Lithuania to the south. Along its eastern flank, Latvia shares a 280-kilometre fortified border with Russia and a guarded 173-kilometre border with Belarus. Latvia, like Finland, was part of…