Lithuania, officially the Republic of Lithuania, is a sovereign nation located in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of the three Baltic states, situated on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. The country is bordered by Latvia to the north, Belarus to the east and south, Poland to the south, and the Russian semi-exclave of Kaliningrad Oblast to the southwest, with a maritime border to the west. With an area of 65,300 km² and a population of approximately 2.88 million people, its capital and largest city is Vilnius. The nation's history is marked by its role as a cultural crossroads, maintaining a strong connection to its Baltic heritage.