The mutual dependence of human resources and the development of
the state has been one of the most important geopolitical questions discussed from the
times of Ancient Greece. The article analyses the growth of the population and human
resources of Lithuania, their change and influence on the state’s development, the
possible consequences of the decline of the population on international policies and the
state’s geopolitical situation. Reflecting the changes in the number of inhabitants and their
structure five possible scenarios of the state’s development in the future are constructed:
1) a small, but economically strong national state; 2) more pensioners than grandchildren;
3) a multinational and multicultural state; 4) the end of the national state (?); 5) a strong
economic and cultural state.