The Baltic Sea

At the most general level, Baltic countries are countries that border the Baltic Sea. However, further meaning of the term depends upon the context in which it is used.

• In matters of politics, the term Baltic countries usually refers to three specific countries that border the Baltic, the Baltic states: Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.
• In matters of ecology, biology, or geography, Baltic countries usually refers to all of the countries around the Baltic Sea: Sweden, Norway, Finland, Russia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Russia's Kaliningrad District, Poland, Germany and Denmark.
• In a strict sense, the following countries, sometimes called the Baltic Sea countries, have access to the Baltic Sea: Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Germany, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Russia and Sweden.

The Baltic Sea countries, together with Norway, Iceland and the European Union form the Council of the Baltic Sea States.