Chapter XLVIII: Front Matter (48)

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Jacques CHIRAC of France (since 17 May
1995), represented by Prefect Laurent CAYREL (since 16 July 2005)
head of government: President of the General Council Jean-Luc
POUDROUX (since NA March 1998) and President of the Regional Council
Paul VERGES (since NA March 1993)
cabinet: NA
elections: French president elected by popular vote for a five-year
term; prefect appointed by the French president on the advice of the
French Ministry of the Interior; the presidents of the General and
Regional Councils are elected by the members of those councils

Legislative branch:
unicameral General Council (49 seats; members are elected by
direct, popular vote to serve six-year terms) and a unicameral
Regional Council (45 seats; members are elected by direct, popular
vote to serve six-year terms)
elections: General Council - last held 15 and 22 March 1998 (next to
be held NA); Regional Council - last held 28 March 2004 (next to be
held NA 2010)
election results: General Council - percent of vote by party - NA%;
seats by party - various right-wing candidates 13, PCR 10, PS 10,
UDF 8, RPR 6, other left-wing candidates 2; Regional Council (second
round) - percent of vote by party - PCR 44.9%, UMP 32.8%, PS-Greens
22.3%; seats by party - PCR 27, UMP 11, PS-Greens 7
note: Reunion elects three representatives to the French Senate;
elections last held NA 2001 (next to be held NA 2006); results -
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Reunion also
elects five deputies to the French National Assembly; elections last
held 9 June-16 June 2002 (next to be held NA 2007); results -
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - UMP-RPR 1, UMP 1,
PCR 1

Judicial branch:
Court of Appeals or Cour d'Appel

Political parties and leaders:
Communist Party of Reunion or PCR [Paul VERGES]; Rally for the
Republic or RPR [Andre Maurice PIHOUEE]; Socialist Party or PS
[Jean-Claude FRUTEAU]; Union for French Democracy or UDF [Gilbert
GERARD]; Union for a Popular Movement or UMP [leader NA]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
InOC, UPU, WFTU

Diplomatic representation in the US:
none (overseas department of France)

Diplomatic representation from the US:
none (overseas department of France)

Flag description:
the flag of France is used

Economy Reunion

Economy - overview:
The economy has traditionally been based on agriculture, but
services now dominate. Sugarcane has been the primary crop for more
than a century, and in some years it accounts for 85% of exports.
The government has been pushing the development of a tourist
industry to relieve high unemployment, which amounts to one-third of
the labor force. The gap in Reunion between the well-off and the
poor is extraordinary and accounts for the persistent social
tensions. The white and Indian communities are substantially better
off than other segments of the population, often approaching
European standards, whereas minority groups suffer the poverty and
unemployment typical of the poorer nations of the African continent.
The outbreak of severe rioting in February 1991 illustrates the
seriousness of socioeconomic tensions. The economic well-being of
Reunion depends heavily on continued financial assistance from
France.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$4.57 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
2.5% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $6,000 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 8%
industry: 19%
services: 73% (2000 est.)

Labor force:
309,900 (2000)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 13%, industry 12%, services 75% (2000)

Unemployment rate:
36% (1999 est.)

Population below poverty line:
NA%

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
NA%

Budget:
revenues: $1.26 billion
expenditures: $2.62 billion, including capital expenditures of NA
(1998)

Agriculture - products:
sugarcane, vanilla, tobacco, tropical fruits, vegetables, corn

Industries:
sugar, rum, cigarettes, handicraft items, flower oil extraction

Industrial production growth rate:
NA%

Electricity - production:
1.166 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 55.5%
hydro: 44.5%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
1.084 billion kWh (2002)

Electricity - exports:
0 kWh (2002)

Electricity - imports:
0 kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
0 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - consumption:
18,000 bbl/day (2001 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Exports:
$214 million f.o.b. (1997)

Exports - commodities:
sugar 63%, rum and molasses 4%, perfume essences 2%, lobster 3%,
(1993)

Exports - partners:
France 74%, Japan 6%, Comoros 4% (2000)

Imports:
$2.5 billion c.i.f. (1997)

Imports - commodities:
manufactured goods, food, beverages, tobacco, machinery and
transportation equipment, raw materials, and petroleum products

Imports - partners:
France 64%, Bahrain 3%, Germany 3%, Italy 3% (2000)

Debt - external:
$NA

Economic aid - recipient:
NA; note - substantial annual subsidies from France (2001 est.)

Currency (code):
euro (EUR)

Currency code:
EUR

Exchange rates:
euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002),
1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Reunion

Telephones - main lines in use:
300,000 est (2001)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
489,800 (2002)

Telephone system:
general assessment: adequate system; principal center is Saint-Denis
domestic: modern open-wire and microwave radio relay network
international: country code - 262; radiotelephone communication to
Comoros, France, Madagascar; new microwave route to Mauritius;
satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean); fiber optic
submarine cable (SAT-3/WASC/SAFE) provides connectivity to Europe
and Asia

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 2, FM 55, shortwave 0 (2001)

Radios:
173,000 (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
35 (plus 18 low-power repeaters) (2001)

Televisions:
127,000 (1997)

Internet country code:
.re

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
1 (2000)

Internet users:
150,000 (2002)

Transportation Reunion

Highways:
total: 1,214 km (including 88 km of four-lane roads) (2001)

Ports and harbors:
Le Port

Merchant marine:
total: 1 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 28,264 GRT/44,885 DWT
by type: chemical tanker 1
foreign-owned: 1 (France 1)
registered in other countries: 1 (2005)

Airports:
2 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 2
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2004 est.)

Military Reunion

Military branches:
no regular indigenous military forces; French forces (includes
Army, Navy, Air Force, and Gendarmerie)

Military service age and obligation:
18 years of age (2004)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 183,421 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 142,578 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 7,339 (2005 est.)

Military - note:
defense is the responsibility of France

Transnational Issues Reunion

Disputes - international:
none

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

======================================================================

@Romania

Introduction Romania

Background:
The principalities of Wallachia and Moldavia - for centuries under
the suzerainty of the Turkish Ottoman Empire - secured their
autonomy in 1856; they united in 1859 and a few years later adopted
the new name of Romania. The country gained recognition of its
independence in 1878. It joined the Allied Powers in World War I and
acquired new territories following the conflict. In 1940, it allied
with the Axis powers and participated in the 1941 German invasion of
the USSR. Three years later, overrun by the Soviets, Romania signed
an armistice. The post-war Soviet occupation led to the formation of
a Communist "people's republic" in 1947 and the abdication of the
king. The decades-long rule of dictator Nicolae CEAUSESCU, who took
power in 1965, and his Securitate police state became increasingly
oppressive and draconian through the 1980s. CEAUSESCU was overthrown
and executed in late 1989. Former Communists dominated the
government until 1996, when they were swept from power by a
fractious coalition of centrist parties. In 2000, the center-left
Social Democratic Party (PSD) became Romania's leading party,
governing with the support of the Democratic Union of Hungarians in
Romania (UDMR). The opposition center-right alliance formed by the
National Liberal Party (PNL) and the Democratic Party (PD) scored a
surprise victory over the ruling PSD in December 2004 presidential
elections. The PNL-PD alliance maintains a parliamentary majority
with the support of the UDMR, the Humanist Party (PUR), and various
ethnic minority groups. Although Romania completed accession talks
with the European Union (EU) in December 2004, it must continue to
address rampant corruption - while invigorating lagging economic and
democratic reforms - before it can achieve its hope of joining the
EU, tentatively set for 2007. Romania joined NATO in March of 2004.

Geography Romania

Location:
Southeastern Europe, bordering the Black Sea, between Bulgaria and
Ukraine

Geographic coordinates:
46 00 N, 25 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 237,500 sq km
land: 230,340 sq km
water: 7,160 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Oregon

Land boundaries:
total: 2,508 km
border countries: Bulgaria 608 km, Hungary 443 km, Moldova 450 km,
Serbia and Montenegro 476 km, Ukraine (north) 362 km, Ukraine (east)
169 km

Coastline:
225 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog; sunny
summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms

Terrain:
central Transylvanian Basin is separated from the Plain of Moldavia
on the east by the Carpathian Mountains and separated from the
Walachian Plain on the south by the Transylvanian Alps

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Black Sea 0 m
highest point: Moldoveanu 2,544 m

Natural resources:
petroleum (reserves declining), timber, natural gas, coal, iron
ore, salt, arable land, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 40.82%
permanent crops: 2.25%
other: 56.93% (2001)

Irrigated land:
28,800 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
earthquakes, most severe in south and southwest; geologic structure
and climate promote landslides

Environment - current issues:
soil erosion and degradation; water pollution; air pollution in
south from industrial effluents; contamination of Danube delta
wetlands

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate
Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
controls most easily traversable land route between the Balkans,
Moldova, and Ukraine

People Romania

Population:
22,329,977 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 15.9% (male 1,818,488/female 1,727,598)
15-64 years: 69.5% (male 7,726,903/female 7,801,441)
65 years and over: 14.6% (male 1,342,827/female 1,912,720) (2005
est.)

Median age:
total: 36.39 years
male: 35.04 years
female: 37.77 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
-0.12% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
10.7 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:
11.74 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:
-0.13 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.7 male(s)/female
total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 26.43 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 29.6 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 23.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 71.35 years
male: 67.86 years
female: 75.06 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.36 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
less than 0.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
6,500 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
350 (2001 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Romanian(s)
adjective: Romanian

Ethnic groups:
Romanian 89.5%, Hungarian 6.6%, Roma 2.5%, Ukrainian 0.3%, German
0.3%, Russian 0.2%, Turkish 0.2%, other 0.4% (2002 census)

Religions:
Eastern Orthodox (including all sub-denominations) 86.8%,
Protestant (various denominations including Reformate and
Pentecostal) 7.5%, Roman Catholic 4.7%, other (mostly Muslim) and
unspecified 0.9%, none 0.1% (2002 census)

Languages:
Romanian (official), Hungarian, German

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 98.4%
male: 99.1%
female: 97.7% (2003 est.)

Government Romania

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Romania
local long form: none
local short form: Romania

Government type:
republic

Capital:
Bucharest

Administrative divisions:
41 counties (judete, singular - judet) and 1 municipality*
(municipiu); Alba, Arad, Arges, Bacau, Bihor, Bistrita-Nasaud,
Botosani, Braila, Brasov, Bucuresti (Bucharest)*, Buzau, Calarasi,
Caras-Severin, Cluj, Constanta, Covasna, Dimbovita, Dolj, Galati,
Gorj, Giurgiu, Harghita, Hunedoara, Ialomita, Iasi, Ilfov,
Maramures, Mehedinti, Mures, Neamt, Olt, Prahova, Salaj, Satu Mare,
Sibiu, Suceava, Teleorman, Timis, Tulcea, Vaslui, Vilcea, Vrancea

Independence:
9 May 1877 (independence proclaimed from the Ottoman Empire;
independence recognized 13 July 1878 by the Treaty of Berlin;
kingdom proclaimed 26 March 1881); 30 December 1947 (republic
proclaimed)

National holiday:
Unification Day (of Romania and Transylvania), 1 December (1918)

Constitution:
8 December 1991; revision effective 29 October 2003

Legal system:
former mixture of civil law system and communist legal theory; is
now based on the constitution of France's Fifth Republic

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Traian BASESCU (since 20 December 2004)
head of government: Prime Minister Calin Popescu-TARICEANU (since 29
December 2004)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister
elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term;
election last held 28 November 2004, with runoff between the top two
candidates held 12 December 2004 (next to be held 28 November 2009
and 12 December 2009); prime minister appointed by the president
election results: percent of vote - Traian BASESCU 51.23%, Adrian
NASTASE 48.77%

Legislative branch:
bicameral Parliament or Parlament consists of the Senate or Senat
(137 seats; members are elected by direct, popular vote on a
proportional representation basis to serve four-year terms) and the
Chamber of Deputies or Adunarea Deputatilor (332 seats; members are
elected by direct, popular vote on a proportional representation
basis to serve four-year terms)
elections: Senate - last held 28 November 2004 (next to be held 28
November 2008); Chamber of Deputies - last held 28 November 2004
(next to be held 28 November 2008)
election results: Senate - percent of vote by alliance/party -
PSD-PUR 37.1%, PNL-PD 31.8%, PRM 13.6%, UDMR 6.2%; seats by party -
PSD 46, PNL 28, PD 21, PRM 21, PUR 11, UMDR 10; Chamber of Deputies
- percent of vote by alliance/party - PSD-PUR 36.6%, PNL-PD 31.3%%,
PRM 12.9%, UDMR 6.2%; seats by party - PSD 113, PNL 64, PD 48, PRM
48, UDMR 22, PUR 19, ethnic minorities 18

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the president on
the recommendation of the Superior Council of Magistrates, a board
of eleven judges and six prosecutors elected by parliament)

Political parties and leaders:
Conservative Party [Dan VOICULESCU], formerly Humanist Party or
PUR; Democratic Party or PD [Emil BOC]; Democratic Union of
Hungarians in Romania or UDMR [Bela MARKO]; National Liberal Party
or PNL [Calin Popescu TARICEANU]; Romania Mare Party (Greater
Romanian Party) or PRM [Corneliu Vadim TUDOR]; Social Democratic
Party or PSD [Mircea Dan GEOANA], formerly Party of Social Democracy
in Romania or PDSR

Political pressure groups and leaders:
various human rights and professional associations

International organization participation:
ACCT, Australia Group, BIS, BSEC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, EU
(applicant), FAO, G- 9, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU,
ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU,
LAIA (observer), MIGA, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS
(observer), ONUB, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UN Security Council
(temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNOCI, UPU,
WCL, WCO, WEU (associate affiliate), WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO,
WTO, ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Sorin Dumitru DUCARU
chancery: 1607 23rd Street NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 332-4846, 4848, 4851
FAX: [1] (202) 232-4748
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, and New York

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Dr. Jack Dyer CROUCH II
embassy: Strada Tudor Arghezi 7-9, Bucharest
mailing address: American Embassy Bucharest, Department of State,
5260 Bucharest Place, Washington, DC 20521-5260 (pouch)
telephone: [40] (21) 210-4042
FAX: [40] (21) 210-0395
branch office(s): Cluj-Napoca

Flag description:
three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red;
the national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow
band has been removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, also
resembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova

Economy Romania

Economy - overview:
Romania began the transition from Communism in 1989 with a largely
obsolete industrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to the
country's needs. The country emerged in 2000 from a punishing
three-year recession thanks to strong demand in EU export markets.
Despite the global slowdown in 2001-02, strong domestic activity in
construction, agriculture, and consumption have kept growth above
4%. An IMF standby agreement, signed in 2001, has been accompanied
by slow but palpable gains in privatization, deficit reduction, and
the curbing of inflation. The IMF Board approved Romania's
completion of the standby agreement in October 2003, the first time
Romania has successfully concluded an IMF agreement since the 1989
revolution. In July 2004, the executive board of the IMF approved a
24-month standby agreement for $367 million. The Romanian
authorities do not intend to draw on this agreement, however,
viewing it simply as a precaution. Meanwhile, recent macroeconomic
gains have done little to address Romania's widespread poverty,
while corruption and red tape continue to handicap the business
environment.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$171.5 billion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
8.1% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $7,700 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 13.1%
industry: 33.7%
services: 53.2% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
9.66 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 31.6%, industry 30.7%, services 37.7% (2004)

Unemployment rate:
6.3% (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:
28.9% (2002)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 2.4%
highest 10%: 27.6% (2003)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
28.8 (2003)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
9.6% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
23.3% of GDP (2004 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $22.1 billion
expenditures: $23.2 billion, including capital expenditures of $2.2
billion (2004 est.)

Public debt:
23.6% of GDP (2004 est.)

Agriculture - products:
wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, sunflower seed, potatoes, grapes;
eggs, sheep

Industries:
textiles and footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining,
timber, construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food
processing, petroleum refining

Industrial production growth rate:
4% (2004 est.)

Electricity - production:
56.53 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 62.5%
hydro: 27.6%
nuclear: 9.9%
other: 0% (2001)

Electricity - consumption:
57.5 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
3.046 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
962 million kWh (2003)

Oil - production:
128,000 bbl/day (2004 est.)

Oil - consumption:
253,800 bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
NA

Oil - imports:
NA

Oil - proved reserves:
1.055 billion bbl (1 January 2002)

Natural gas - production:
12.6 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
18.5 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
5.4 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
111.1 billion cu m (1 January 2002)

Current account balance:
$-3.631 billion (2004 est.)

Exports:
$23.54 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
textiles and footwear, metals and metal products, machinery and
equipment, minerals and fuels, chemicals, agricultural products

Exports - partners:
Italy 21.4%, Germany 15%, France 8.5%, Turkey 7%, UK 6.6% (2004)

Imports:
$28.43 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, fuels and minerals, chemicals, textile and
products, basic metals, agricultural products

Imports - partners:
Italy 17.2%, Germany 14.9%, France 7.1%, Russia 6.8%, Turkey 4.2%
(2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$16.21 billion (2004)

Debt - external:
$24.59 billion (2004 est.)

Currency (code):
leu (ROL)

Currency code:
ROL

Exchange rates:
lei per US dollar - 32,637 (2004), 33,200 (2003), 33,055 (2002),
29,061 (2001), 21,709 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Romania

Telephones - main lines in use:
4.3 million (2003)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
6.9 million (2003)

Telephone system:
general assessment: poor domestic service, but improving
domestic: 90% of telephone network is automatic; trunk network is
mostly microwave radio relay, with some fiber-optic cable; about
one-third of exchange capacity is digital; roughly 3,300 villages
have no service
international: country code - 40; satellite earth station - 1
Intelsat; new digital, international, direct-dial exchanges operate
in Bucharest; note - Romania is an active participant in several
international telecommunication network projects (1999)

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 40, FM 202, shortwave 3 (1998)

Radios:
7.2 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
48 (plus 392 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions:
5.25 million (1997)

Internet country code:
.ro

Internet hosts:
50,807 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
38 (2000)

Internet users:
4 million (2003)

Transportation Romania

Railways:
total: 11,385 km (3,888 km electrified)
standard gauge: 10,898 km 1.435-m gauge
broad gauge: 60 km 1.524-m gauge
narrow gauge: 427 km 0.760-m gauge (2004)

Highways:
total: 198,755 km
paved: 100,173 km (including 113 km of expressways)
unpaved: 98,582 km (2002)

Waterways:
1,731 km (2004)

Pipelines:
gas 3,508 km; oil 2,427 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Braila, Constanta, Galati, Tulcea

Merchant marine:
total: 34 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 395,350 GRT/510,232 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 5, cargo 20, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 2,
petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 4
foreign-owned: 2 (Italy 2)
registered in other countries: 39 (2005)

Airports:
61 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 25
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 9
1,524 to 2,437 m: 12 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 36
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 10
under 914 m: 24 (2004 est.)

Heliports:
1 (2004 est.)

Military Romania

Military branches:
Land Forces, Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces (AMR),
Special Operations, Civil Defense (2005)

Military service age and obligation:
20 years of age for compulsory military service, 18 in wartime;
conscript service obligation - 12 months; 18 years of age for
voluntary military service (2004)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 20-49: 5,061,984 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 20-49: 3,932,579 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 172,093 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$985 million (2002)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
2.47% (2002)

Transnational Issues Romania

Disputes - international:
Romania and Ukraine have taken their dispute over
Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy (Snake) Island and Black Sea
maritime boundary to the ICJ for adjudication; Romania also opposes
Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border
through Ukraine to the Black Sea; Hungary amended the status law
extending special social and cultural benefits to ethnic Hungarians
in Romania, to which Romania had objected

Illicit drugs:
major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the
Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for
Western Europe; although not a significant financial center, role as
a narcotics conduit leaves it vulnerable to laundering which occurs
via the banking system, currency exchange houses, and casinos

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Russia

Introduction Russia

Background:
Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy, was able
to emerge from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th
centuries) and to gradually conquer and absorb surrounding
principalities. In the early 17th century, a new Romanov Dynasty
continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific.
Under PETER I (ruled 1682-1725), hegemony was extended to the Baltic
Sea and the country was renamed the Russian Empire. During the 19th
century, more territorial acquisitions were made in Europe and Asia.
Repeated devastating defeats of the Russian army in World War I led
to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and
to the overthrow in 1917 of the imperial household. The Communists
under Vladimir LENIN seized power soon after and formed the USSR.
The brutal rule of Josef STALIN (1928-53) strengthened Russian
dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of
lives. The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following
decades until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91)
introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an
attempt to modernize Communism, but his initiatives inadvertently
released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into 15
independent republics. Since then, Russia has struggled in its
efforts to build a democratic political system and market economy to
replace the strict social, political, and economic controls of the
Communist period. While some progress has been made on the economic
front, recent years have seen a recentralization of power under
Vladimir PUTIN and an erosion in nascent democratic institutions. A
determined guerrilla conflict still plagues Russia in Chechnya.

Geography Russia

Location:
Northern Asia (that part west of the Urals is included with
Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the North
Pacific Ocean

Geographic coordinates:
60 00 N, 100 00 E

Map references:
Asia

Area:
total: 17,075,200 sq km
land: 16,995,800 sq km
water: 79,400 sq km

Area - comparative:
approximately 1.8 times the size of the US

Land boundaries:
total: 20,017 km
border countries: Azerbaijan 284 km, Belarus 959 km, China
(southeast) 3,605 km, China (south) 40 km, Estonia 294 km, Finland
1,340 km, Georgia 723 km, Kazakhstan 6,846 km, North Korea 19 km,
Latvia 217 km, Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast) 227 km, Mongolia 3,485
km, Norway 196 km, Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast) 206 km, Ukraine 1,576
km

Coastline:
37,653 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much
of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the
polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid
in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along
Arctic coast

Terrain:
broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest
and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border
regions

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Gora El'brus 5,633 m

Natural resources:
wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural
gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder
exploitation of natural resources

Land use:
arable land: 7.33%
permanent crops: 0.11%
other: 92.56% (2001)

Irrigated land:
46,630 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to
development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and
earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula; spring floods and
summer/autumn forest fires throughout Siberia and parts of European
Russia

Environment - current issues:
air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric
plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal,
and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and seacoasts;
deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper
application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes
intense radioactive contamination; groundwater contamination from
toxic waste; urban solid waste management; abandoned stocks of
obsolete pesticides

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol,
Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic
Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes,
Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship
Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulfur 94

Geography - note:
largest country in the world in terms of area but unfavorably
located in relation to major sea lanes of the world; despite its
size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either
too cold or too dry) for agriculture; Mount El'brus is Europe's
tallest peak

People Russia

Population:
143,420,309 (July 2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 14.6% (male 10,704,617/female 10,173,313)
15-64 years: 71.3% (male 49,429,716/female 52,799,740)
65 years and over: 14.2% (male 6,405,027/female 13,907,896) (2005
est.)

Median age:
total: 38.15 years
male: 34.99 years
female: 41.03 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
-0.37% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
9.8 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:
14.52 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:
1.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.94 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.46 male(s)/female
total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 15.39 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 17.7 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 12.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 67.1 years
male: 60.55 years
female: 74.04 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:
1.27 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.1% (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
860,000 (2001 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
9,000 (2001 est.)

Nationality:
noun: Russian(s)
adjective: Russian

Ethnic groups:
Russian 79.8%, Tatar 3.8%, Ukrainian 2%, Bashkir 1.2%, Chuvash
1.1%, other or unspecified 12.1% (2002 census)

Religions:
Russian Orthodox, Muslim, other

Languages:
Russian, many minority languages

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.6%
male: 99.7%
female: 99.5% (2003 est.)

Government Russia

Country name:
conventional long form: Russian Federation
conventional short form: Russia
local long form: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya
local short form: Rossiya
former: Russian Empire, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic

Government type:
federation

Capital:
Moscow

Administrative divisions:
49 oblasts (oblastey, singular - oblast), 21 republics (respublik,
singular - respublika), 10 autonomous okrugs (avtonomnykh okrugov,
singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 6 krays (krayev, singular - kray), 2
federal cities (singular - gorod), and 1 autonomous oblast
(avtonomnaya oblast')
: oblasts: Amur (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'sk, Astrakhan',
Belgorod, Bryansk, Chelyabinsk, Chita, Irkutsk, Ivanovo,
Kaliningrad, Kaluga, Kamchatka (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy),
Kemerovo, Kirov, Kostroma, Kurgan, Kursk, Leningrad, Lipetsk,
Magadan, Moscow, Murmansk, Nizhniy Novgorod, Novgorod, Novosibirsk,
Omsk, Orenburg, Orel, Penza, Perm', Pskov, Rostov, Ryazan', Sakhalin
(Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samara, Saratov, Smolensk, Sverdlovsk
(Yekaterinburg), Tambov, Tomsk, Tula, Tver', Tyumen', Ul'yanovsk,
Vladimir, Volgograd, Vologda, Voronezh, Yaroslavl'
: republics: Adygeya (Maykop), Altay (Gorno-Altaysk), Bashkortostan
(Ufa), Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude), Chechnya (Groznyy), Chuvashiya
(Cheboksary), Dagestan (Makhachkala), Ingushetiya (Magas),
Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik), Kalmykiya (Elista),
Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk), Kareliya (Petrozavodsk),
Khakasiya (Abakan), Komi (Syktyvkar), Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola),
Mordoviya (Saransk), Sakha [Yakutiya] (Yakutsk), North Ossetia
(Vladikavkaz), Tatarstan (Kazan'), Tyva (Kyzyl), Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)
: autonomous okrugs: Aga Buryat (Aginskoye), Chukotka (Anadyr'),
Evenk (Tura), Khanty-Mansi, Komi-Permyak (Kudymkar), Koryak
(Palana), Nenets (Nar'yan-Mar), Taymyr [Dolgano-Nenets] (Dudinka),
Ust'-Orda Buryat (Ust'-Ordynskiy), Yamalo-Nenets (Salekhard)
: krays: Altay (Barnaul), Khabarovsk, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk,
Primorskiy (Vladivostok), Stavropol'
: federal cities: Moscow (Moskva), Saint Petersburg (Sankt-Peterburg)
: autonomous oblast: Yevrey [Jewish] (Birobidzhan)
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their
administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center
name following in parentheses)

Independence:
24 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)

National holiday:
Russia Day, 12 June (1990)

Constitution:
adopted 12 December 1993

Legal system:
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (acting
president since 31 December 1999, president since 7 May 2000)
head of government: Premier Mikhail Yefimovich FRADKOV (since 5
March 2004); Deputy Premier Aleksandr Dmitriyevich ZHUKOV (since 9
March 2004)
cabinet: Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of
the premier and his deputy, ministers, and selected other
individuals; all are appointed by the president
note: there is also a Presidential Administration (PA) that provides
staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential
decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a
Security Council also reports directly to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term;
election last held 14 March 2004 (next to be held March 2008); note
- no vice president; if the president dies in office, cannot
exercise his powers because of ill health, is impeached, or resigns,
the premier succeeds him; the premier serves as acting president
until a new presidential election is held, which must be within
three months; premier appointed by the president with the approval
of the Duma
election results: Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN reelected president;
percent of vote - Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN 71.2%, Nikolay
KHARITONOV 13.7%, other (no candidate above 5%) 15.1%

Legislative branch:
bicameral Federal Assembly or Federalnoye Sobraniye consists of the
Federation Council or Sovet Federatsii (178 seats; as of July 2000,
members appointed by the top executive and legislative officials in
each of the 89 federal administrative units - oblasts, krays,
republics, autonomous okrugs and oblasts, and the federal cities of
Moscow and Saint Petersburg; members serve four-year terms) and the
State Duma or Gosudarstvennaya Duma (450 seats; currently 225 seats
elected by proportional representation from party lists winning at
least 5% of the vote, and 225 seats from single-member
constituencies; members are elected by direct, popular vote to serve
four-year terms)
elections: State Duma - last held 7 December 2003 (next to be held
NA December 2007)
election results: State Duma - percent of vote received by parties
clearing the 5% threshold entitling them to a proportional share of
the 225 party list seats - United Russia 37.1%, CPRF 12.7%, LDPR
11.6%, Motherland 9.1%; seats by party - United Russia 222, CPRF 53,
LDPR 38, Motherland 37, People's Party 19, Yabloko 4, SPS 2, other
7, independents 65, repeat election required 3

Judicial branch:
Constitutional Court; Supreme Court; Superior Court of Arbitration;
judges for all courts are appointed for life by the Federation
Council on the recommendation of the president

Political parties and leaders:
Communist Party of the Russian Federation or CPRF [Gennadiy
Andreyevich ZYUGANOV]; Liberal Democratic Party of Russia or LDPR
[Vladimir Volfovich ZHIRINOVSKIY]; Motherland Bloc (Rodina) [Dmitriy
ROGOZIN]; People's Party [Gennadiy RAYKOV]; Union of Right Forces or
SPS [Anatoliy Borisovich CHUBAYS, Yegor Timurovich GAYDAR, Irina
Mutsuovna KHAKAMADA, Boris Yefimovich NEMTSOV]; United Russia [Boris
Vyacheslavovich GRYZLOV]; Yabloko Party [Grigoriy Alekseyevich
YAVLINSKIY]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
NA

International organization participation:
APEC, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS, BSEC, CBSS, CE, CERN
(observer), CIS, EAPC, EBRD, G- 8, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt
(signatory), ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO,
Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA,
MINURSO, MONUC, NAM (guest), NSG, OAS (observer), ONUB, OPCW, OSCE,
Paris Club, PCA, PFP, SCO, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD,
UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIK, UNMIL, UNMISET, UNMOVIC, UNOCI,
UNOMIG, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer),
ZC

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Yuriy Viktorovich USHAKOV
chancery: 2650 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007
telephone: [1] (202) 298-5700, 5701, 5704, 5708
FAX: [1] (202) 298-5735
consulate(s) general: Houston, New York, San Francisco, and Seattle

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Alexander VERSHBOW
embassy: Bolshoy Devyatinskiy Pereulok No. 8, 121099 Moscow
mailing address: PSC-77, APO AE 09721
telephone: [7] (095) 728-5000
FAX: [7] (095) 728-5090
consulate(s) general: Saint Petersburg, Vladivostok, Yekaterinburg

Flag description:
three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red

Economy Russia

Economy - overview:
Russia ended 2004 with its sixth straight year of growth, averaging
6.5% annually since the financial crisis of 1998. Although high oil
prices and a relatively cheap ruble are important drivers of this
economic rebound, since 2000 investment and consumer-driven demand
have played a noticeably increasing role. Real fixed capital
investments have averaged gains greater than 10% over the last five
years, and real personal incomes have realized average increases
over 12%. Russia has also improved its international financial
position since the 1998 financial crisis, with its foreign debt
declining from 90% of GDP to around 28%. Strong oil export earnings
have allowed Russia to increase its foreign reserves from only $12
billion to some $120 billion at yearend 2004. These achievements,
along with a renewed government effort to advance structural
reforms, have raised business and investor confidence in Russia's
economic prospects. Nevertheless, serious problems persist. Economic
growth slowed down in the second half of 2004 and the Russian
government forecasts growth of only 4.5% to 6.2% for 2005. Oil,
natural gas, metals, and timber account for more than 80% of
exports, leaving the country vulnerable to swings in world prices.
Russia's manufacturing base is dilapidated and must be replaced or
modernized if the country is to achieve broad-based economic growth.
Other problems include a weak banking system, a poor business
climate that discourages both domestic and foreign investors,
corruption, and widespread lack of trust in institutions. In
addition, a string of investigations launched against a major
Russian oil company, culminating with the arrest of its CEO in the
fall of 2003, have raised concerns by some observers that President
PUTIN is granting more influence to forces within his government
that desire to reassert state control over the economy.

GDP (purchasing power parity):
$1.408 trillion (2004 est.)

GDP - real growth rate:
6.7% (2004 est.)

GDP - per capita:
purchasing power parity - $9,800 (2004 est.)

GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 4.9%
industry: 33.9%
services: 61.2% (2004 est.)

Labor force:
71.83 million (2004 est.)

Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture 12.3%, industry 22.7%, services 65% (2002 est.)

Unemployment rate:
8.3% plus considerable underemployment (2004 est.)

Population below poverty line:
25% (January 2003 est.)

Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 5.9%
highest 10%: 47% (2001)

Distribution of family income - Gini index:
39.9 (2001)

Inflation rate (consumer prices):
11.5% (2004 est.)

Investment (gross fixed):
19.1% of GDP (2004 est.)

Budget:
revenues: $106.4 billion
expenditures: $93.33 billion, including capital expenditures of NA
(2004 est.)

Public debt:
28.2% of GDP (2004 est.)

Agriculture - products:
grain, sugar beets, sunflower seed, vegetables, fruits; beef, milk

Industries:
complete range of mining and extractive industries producing coal,
oil, gas, chemicals, and metals; all forms of machine building from
rolling mills to high-performance aircraft and space vehicles;
defense industries including radar, missile production, and advanced
electronic components, shipbuilding; road and rail transportation
equipment; communications equipment; agricultural machinery,
tractors, and construction equipment; electric power generating and
transmitting equipment; medical and scientific instruments; consumer
durables, textiles, foodstuffs, handicrafts

Industrial production growth rate:
6.4% (2004 est.)

Electricity - production:
915 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - production by source:
fossil fuel: 66.3%
hydro: 17.2%
nuclear: 16.4%
other: 0.1% (2003)

Electricity - consumption:
894.3 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - exports:
20.7 billion kWh (2003)

Electricity - imports:
12.65 billion kWh (2002)

Oil - production:
8.42 million bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - consumption:
2.31 million bbl/day (2003 est.)

Oil - exports:
6.11 million bbl/day (2003)

Oil - imports:
NA

Oil - proved reserves:
69 billion bbl (2003 est.)

Natural gas - production:
578.6 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - consumption:
405.8 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - exports:
171 billion cu m (2003 est.)

Natural gas - imports:
32.7 billion cu m (2001 est.)

Natural gas - proved reserves:
47 trillion cu m (2003)

Current account balance:
$46.04 billion (2004 est.)

Exports:
$162.5 billion (2004 est.)

Exports - commodities:
petroleum and petroleum products, natural gas, wood and wood
products, metals, chemicals, and a wide variety of civilian and
military manufactures

Exports - partners:
Netherlands 9.1%, Germany 8%, Ukraine 6.4%, Italy 6.2%, China 6%,
US 5%, Switzerland 4.7%, Turkey 4.3% (2004)

Imports:
$92.91 billion (2004 est.)

Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, consumer goods, medicines, meat, sugar,
semifinished metal products

Imports - partners:
Germany 15.3%, Ukraine 8.8%, China 6.9%, Japan 5.7%, Kazakhstan 5%,
US 4.6%, Italy 4.6%, France 4.4% (2004)

Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$124.5 billion (3 December 2004 e)

Debt - external:
$169.6 billion (2004 est.)

Economic aid - recipient:
in FY01 from US, $979 million (including $750 million in
non-proliferation subsidies); in 2001 from EU, $200 million (2000
est.)

Currency (code):
Russian ruble (RUR)

Currency code:
RUR

Exchange rates:
Russian rubles per US dollar - 28.814 (2004), 30.692 (2003), 31.349
(2002), 29.169 (2001), 28.129 (2000)

Fiscal year:
calendar year

Communications Russia

Telephones - main lines in use:
35.5 million (2002)

Telephones - mobile cellular:
17,608,800 (2002)

Telephone system:
general assessment: the telephone system underwent significant
changes in the 1990s; there are more than 1,000 companies licensed
to offer communication services; access to digital lines has
improved, particularly in urban centers; Internet and e-mail
services are improving; Russia has made progress toward building the
telecommunications infrastructure necessary for a market economy;
however, a large demand for main line service remains unsatisfied
domestic: cross-country digital trunk lines run from Saint
Petersburg to Khabarovsk, and from Moscow to Novorossiysk; the
telephone systems in 60 regional capitals have modern digital
infrastructures; cellular services, both analog and digital, are
available in many areas; in rural areas, the telephone services are
still outdated, inadequate, and low density
international: country code - 7; Russia is connected internationally
by three undersea fiber-optic cables; digital switches in several
cities provide more than 50,000 lines for international calls;
satellite earth stations provide access to Intelsat, Intersputnik,
Eutelsat, Inmarsat, and Orbita systems

Radio broadcast stations:
AM 420, FM 447, shortwave 56 (1998)

Radios:
61.5 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations:
7,306 (1998)

Televisions:
60.5 million (1997)

Internet country code:
.ru; Russia also has responsibility for a legacy domain ".su" that
was allocated to the Soviet Union, and whose legal status and
ownership are contested by the Russian Government, ICANN, and
several Russian commercial entities

Internet hosts:
560,874 (2004)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs):
300 (June 2000)

Internet users:
6 million (2002)

Transportation Russia

Railways:
total: 87,157 km
broad gauge: 86,200 km 1.520-m gauge (40,300 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 957 km 1.067-m gauge (on Sakhalin Island)
note: an additional 30,000 km of non-common carrier lines serve
industries (2004)

Highways:
total: 537,289 km
paved: 362,133 km
unpaved: 175,156 km (2001)

Waterways:
96,000 km
note: 72,000 km system in European Russia links Baltic Sea, White
Sea, Caspian Sea, Sea of Azov, and Black Sea (2004)

Pipelines:
condensate 122 km; gas 150,007 km; oil 75,539 km; refined products
13,771 km (2004)

Ports and harbors:
Anapa, Kaliningrad, Murmansk, Nakhodka, Novorossiysk,
Rostov-na-Donu, Saint Petersburg, Taganrog, Vanino, Vostochnyy

Merchant marine:
total: 1,194 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,521,472 GRT/5,505,118 DWT
by type: barge carrier 1, bulk carrier 45, cargo 767, chemical
tanker 20, combination ore/oil 48, container 21, passenger 11,
passenger/cargo 8, petroleum tanker 213, refrigerated cargo 46, roll
on/roll off 12, specialized tanker 2
foreign-owned: 56 (Belgium 2, Cyprus 1, Estonia 2, Germany 1, Hong
Kong 1, Latvia 3, Norway 1, Sweden 1, Turkey 28, Ukraine 10, United
Kingdom 2, United States 4)
registered in other countries: 326 (2005)

Airports:
2,586 (2004 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 577
over 3,047 m: 55
2,438 to 3,047 m: 197
1,524 to 2,437 m: 128
914 to 1,523 m: 98
under 914 m: 99 (2004 est.)

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 2,009
over 3,047 m: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 30
1,524 to 2,437 m: 111
914 to 1,523 m: 257
under 914 m: 1,597 (2004 est.)

Heliports:
36 (2004 est.)

Military Russia

Military branches:
Ground Forces (SV), Navy (VMF), Air Forces (VVS); Airborne Troops
(VDV), Strategic Rocket Troops (RVSN), and Space Troops (KV) are
independent "combat arms," not subordinate to any of the three
branches

Military service age and obligation:
18-27 years of age; males are registered for the draft at 17 years
of age; 200,000 conscripts were inducted into the armed forces in
2003; length of compulsory military service is 2 years; plans as of
August 2004 call for reduction in mandatory service to 1 year by
2008; 2003 planning calls for volunteer servicemen to compose 70% of
armed forces by 2010, with the remaining servicemen consisting of
conscripts (August 2004)

Manpower available for military service:
males age 18-49: 35,247,049 (2005 est.)

Manpower fit for military service:
males age 18-49: 21,049,651 (2005 est.)

Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males: 1,286,069 (2005 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure:
NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
NA

Transnational Issues Russia

Disputes - international:
in 2004, China and Russia divided up the islands in the Amur,
Ussuri, and Argun Rivers, ending a century-old border dispute; the
sovereignty dispute over the islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri,
Shikotan, and the Habomai group, known in Japan as the "Northern
Territories" and in Russia as the "Southern Kurils," occupied by the
Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, and claimed by
Japan, remains the primary sticking point to signing a peace treaty
formally ending World War II hostilities; Russia and Georgia agree
on delimiting 80% of their common border, leaving certain small,
strategic segments and the maritime boundary unresolved; OSCE
observers monitor volatile areas such as the Pankisi Gorge in the
Akhmeti region and the Kodori Gorge in Abkhazia; equidistant seabed
treaties were signed and ratified with Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan in
the Caspian Sea but no consensus exists on dividing the water column
among the littoral states; Russia and Norway dispute their maritime
limits in the Barents Sea and Russia's fishing rights beyond
Svalbard's territorial limits within the Svalbard Treaty zone;
various groups in Finland advocate restoration of Karelia and other
areas ceded to the Soviet Union following the Second World War but
the Finnish Government asserts no territorial demands; in 1996, the
Estonia-Russia technical border agreement was initialed but both
have been hesitant to sign and ratify it, with Russia asserting that
Estonia needs to better assimilate Russian-speakers and Estonian
groups advocating realignment of the boundary based more closely on
the 1920 Tartu Peace Treaty that would bring the now divided ethnic
Setu people and parts of the Narva region within Estonia; the
Latvian-Russian boundary treaty of 1997 remains unsigned and
unratified with Russia linking it to better Latvian treatment of
ethnic Russians and Latvian politicians demanding Russian agreement
to a declaration that admits Soviet aggression during the Second
World War and other issues; in 2003, the Lithuania-Russia land and
maritime boundary treaty was ratified and a transit regime
established through Lithuania linking Russia and its Kaliningrad
coastal exclave, leaving only improvements to the border demarcation
in 2005; delimitation of land boundary with Ukraine is complete, but
states have agreed to defer demarcation; Russia and Ukraine continue
talks but still dispute the alignment of a maritime boundary through
the Kerch Strait and Sea of Azov; Kazakhstan and Russia continue
demarcation of their long border; Russian Duma has not yet ratified
1990 Maritime Boundary Agreement with the US in the Bering Sea

Refugees and internally displaced persons:
IDPs: 368,000 (displacement from Chechnya and North Ossetia) (2004)

Illicit drugs:
limited cultivation of illicit cannabis and opium poppy and
producer of methamphetamine, mostly for domestic consumption;
government has active illicit crop eradication program; used as
transshipment point for Asian opiates, cannabis, and Latin American
cocaine bound for growing domestic markets, to a lesser extent
Western and Central Europe, and occasionally to the US; major source
of heroin precursor chemicals; corruption and organized crime are
key concerns; heroin increasingly popular in domestic market

This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005

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@Rwanda

Introduction Rwanda

Background:
In 1959, three years before independence from Belgium, the majority
ethnic group, the Hutus, overthrew the ruling Tutsi king. Over the
next several years, thousands of Tutsis were killed, and some
150,000 driven into exile in neighboring countries. The children of
these exiles later formed a rebel group, the Rwandan Patriotic Front
(RPF), and began a civil war in 1990. The war, along with several
political and economic upheavals, exacerbated ethnic tensions,
culminating in April 1994 in the genocide of roughly 800,000 Tutsis
and moderate Hutus. The Tutsi rebels defeated the Hutu regime and
ended the killing in July 1994, but approximately 2 million Hutu
refugees - many fearing Tutsi retribution - fled to neighboring
Burundi, Tanzania, Uganda, and the former Zaire. Since then, most of
the refugees have returned to Rwanda, but about 10,000 that remain
in the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo have formed an
extremist insurgency bent on retaking Rwanda, much as the RPF tried
in 1990. Despite substantial international assistance and political
reforms - including Rwanda's first local elections in March 1999 and
its first post-genocide presidential and legislative elections in
August and September 2003, respectively - the country continues to
struggle to boost investment and agricultural output, and ethnic
reconciliation is complicated by the real and perceived Tutsi
political dominance. Kigali's increasing centralization and
intolerance of dissent, the nagging Hutu extremist insurgency across
the border, and Rwandan involvement in two wars in recent years in
the neighboring Democratic Republic of the Congo continue to hinder
Rwanda's efforts to escape its bloody legacy.

Geography Rwanda

Location:
Central Africa, east of Democratic Republic of the Congo

Geographic coordinates:
2 00 S, 30 00 E

Map references:
Africa

Area:
total: 26,338 sq km
land: 24,948 sq km
water: 1,390 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
total: 893 km
border countries: Burundi 290 km, Democratic Republic of the Congo
217 km, Tanzania 217 km, Uganda 169 km

Coastline:
0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims:
none (landlocked)

Climate:
temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November to
January); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible

Terrain:
mostly grassy uplands and hills; relief is mountainous with
altitude declining from west to east

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Rusizi River 950 m
highest point: Volcan Karisimbi 4,519 m

Natural resources:
gold, cassiterite (tin ore), wolframite (tungsten ore), methane,
hydropower, arable land

Land use:
arable land: 40.54%
permanent crops: 12.16%
other: 47.3% (2001)

Irrigated land:
40 sq km (1998 est.)

Natural hazards:
periodic droughts; the volcanic Virunga mountains are in the
northwest along the border with Democratic Republic of the Congo

Environment - current issues:
deforestation results from uncontrolled cutting of trees for fuel;
overgrazing; soil exhaustion; soil erosion; widespread poaching

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto
Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes,
Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea

Geography - note:
landlocked; most of the country is savanna grassland with the
population predominantly rural

People Rwanda

Population:
8,440,820
note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the
effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower
life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower
population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of
population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected (July
2005 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: 41.9% (male 1,777,178/female 1,762,252)
15-64 years: 55.5% (male 2,328,686/female 2,356,572)
65 years and over: 2.6% (male 87,155/female 128,977) (2005 est.)

Median age:
total: 18.48 years
male: 18.26 years
female: 18.7 years (2005 est.)

Population growth rate:
2.43% (2005 est.)

Birth rate:
40.6 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Death rate:
16.32 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Net migration rate:
0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)

Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.03 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.01 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.68 male(s)/female
total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2005 est.)

Infant mortality rate:
total: 91.23 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 96.37 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 85.93 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.)

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 46.96 years
male: 45.92 years
female: 48.03 years (2005 est.)

Total fertility rate:
5.49 children born/woman (2005 est.)

HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
5.1% (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
250,000 (2003 est.)

HIV/AIDS - deaths:
22,000 (2003 est.)

Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: very high
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and
typhoid fever
vectorborne disease: malaria (2004)

Nationality:
noun: Rwandan(s)
adjective: Rwandan

Ethnic groups:
Hutu 84%, Tutsi 15%, Twa (Pygmoid) 1%

Religions:
Roman Catholic 56.5%, Protestant 26%, Adventist 11.1%, Muslim 4.6%,
indigenous beliefs 0.1%, none 1.7% (2001)

Languages:
Kinyarwanda (official) universal Bantu vernacular, French
(official), English (official), Kiswahili (Swahili) used in
commercial centers

Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 70.4%
male: 76.3%
female: 64.7% (2003 est.)

People - note:
Rwanda is the most densely populated country in Africa

Government Rwanda

Country name:
conventional long form: Republic of Rwanda
conventional short form: Rwanda
local long form: Republika y'u Rwanda
local short form: Rwanda
former: Ruanda

Government type:
republic; presidential, multiparty system

Capital:
Kigali

Administrative divisions:
12 provinces (in French - provinces, singular - province; in
Kinyarwanda - prefigintara for singular and plural); Butare, Byumba,
Cyangugu, Gikongoro, Gisenyi, Gitarama, Kibungo, Kibuye, Kigali
Rurale, Kigali-ville, Umutara, Ruhengeri

Independence:
1 July 1962 (from Belgium-administered UN trusteeship)

National holiday:
Independence Day, 1 July (1962)

Constitution:
new constitution adopted 4 June 2003

Legal system:
based on German and Belgian civil law systems and customary law;
judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; has not
accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal adult

Executive branch:
chief of state: President Paul KAGAME (since 22 April 2000)
head of government: Prime Minister Bernard MAKUZA (since 8 March
2000)
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president
elections: last held 25 August 2003 (next to be held NA 2008)
election results: Paul KAGAME elected president in first direct
popular vote; Paul KAGAME 95.05%, Faustin TWAGIRAMUNGU 3.62%,
Jean-Nepomuscene NAYINZIRA 1.33%

Legislative branch:
unicameral National Assembly or Assemblee Nationale (53 seats;
members elected by direct vote)
elections: last held 29 September 2003 (next to be held Chamber of
Deputies - NA 2008; Senate - NA 2011)
election results: seats by party under the 2003 Constitution - RPF
40, PSD 7, PL 6

Judicial branch:
Supreme Court; High Courts of the Republic; Provincial Courts;
District Courts; mediation committees

Political parties and leaders:
Centrist Democratic Party or PDC [Alfred MUKEZAMFURA]; Democratic
Popular Union of Rwanda or UDPR [Adrien RANGIRA]; Democratic
Republican Movement or MDR (officially banned) [Celestin KABANDA];
Islamic Democratic Party or PDI [Andre BUMAYA]; Liberal Party or PL
[Prosper HIGIRO]; Party for Democratic Renewal (officially banned)
[Pasteur BIZIMUNGU and Charles NTAKARUTINKA]; Rwandan Patriotic
Front or RPF [Paul KAGAME]; Social Democratic Party or PSD [Vincent
BIRUTA]

Political pressure groups and leaders:
IBUKA - association of genocide survivors

International organization participation:
ACCT, ACP, AfDB, AU, CEPGL, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM,
IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO
(correspondent), ITU, MIGA, NAM, OPCW, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WCL, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO

Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Zac NSENGA
chancery: 1714 New Hampshire Ave. NW, Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 232-2882
FAX: [1] (202) 232-4544

Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Henderson
PATRICK
embassy: 337 Boulevard de la Revolution, Kigali
mailing address: B. P. 28, Kigali
telephone: [250] 50 56 01 through 03
FAX: [250] 57 2128

Flag description:
three horizontal bands of sky blue (top, double width), yellow, and
green, with a golden sun with 24 rays near the fly end of the blue
band

Economy Rwanda