to as Parliament) or Umaghiesi Sabcho (235 seats; members are
elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 5 November 1995 (next to be held NA 1999)
election results: percent of vote by party--CUG 24%, NDP 8%, AGUR 7%,
all other parties received less than 5% each; seats by party--CUG
107, NDP 34, AGUR 32, Progress Bloc 4, SPG 4, others 9, Abkazian
deputies 12, independents 29, not filled 4
Judicial branch: Supreme Court, judges elected by the Supreme
Council on the president's recommendation; Constitutional Court
Political parties and leaders: Citizen's Union of Georgia or CUG
groups: Democratic Union of Georgia or DUG, Political Association
"Georgian Proprietors"--Electoral Association "T'bilisi", Political
Union of Young Democrats "Our Choice", Political Union Tanadgoma)
Political pressure groups and leaders: supporters of the late
ousted President Zviad GAMSAKHURDYA remain a source of opposition;
separatist elements in the breakaway region of Abkhazia; Georgian
refugees from Abkhazia (Abkhaz faction in Georgian Parliament)
International organization participation: BSEC, CCC, CE (guest),
CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS,
ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO
(correspondent), ITU, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO,
UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Tedo JAPARIDZE
chancery: Suite 300, 1615 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20009
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Kenneth S. YALOWITZ
embassy: #25 Antoneli Street, T'bilisi 380026
mailing address: use embassy street address
Flag description: maroon field with small rectangle in upper
hoist side corner; rectangle divided horizontally with black on top,
white below
Economy
Economy--overview: Georgia's economy has traditionally revolved
around Black Sea tourism; cultivation of citrus fruits, tea, and
grapes; mining of manganese and copper; and output of a small
industrial sector producing wine, metals, machinery, chemicals, and
textiles. The country imports the bulk of its energy needs,
including natural gas and oil products. Its only sizable internal
energy resource is hydropower. Despite the severe damage the economy
has suffered due to civil strife, Georgia, with the help of the IMF
and World Bank, made substantial economic gains since 1995,
increasing GDP growth and slashing inflation. The Georgian economy
suffered some setbacks in late 1998, including a large budget
deficit due to a failure to collect tax revenue and to the impact of
the Russian economic crisis. Georgia also still suffers from energy
shortages; it privatized the distribution network in 1998, and
deliveries are steadily improving. Georgia is pinning its hopes for
long-term recovery on the development of an international
transportation corridor through the key Black Sea ports of P'ot'i
and Bat'umi. The construction of a Caspian oil pipeline through
Georgia--scheduled to open in early 1999--should spur greater Western
investment in the economy. The global economic slowdown, a growing
trade deficit, continuing problems with corruption, and political
uncertainties cloud the short-term economic picture.
GDP: purchasing power parity--$11.2 billion (1998 est.)
GDP--real growth rate: 4% (1998 est.)
GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$2,200 (1998 est.)
GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 29%
industry: 16%
services: 55% (1997 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 10.5% (1998 est.)
Labor force: 3.08 million (1997)
Labor force--by occupation: industry and construction 31%,
agriculture and forestry 25%, other 44% (1990)
Unemployment rate: 16% (1996 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $364 million
expenditures: $568 million, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1998)
Industries: steel, aircraft, machine tools, foundry equipment,
electric locomotives, tower cranes, electric welding equipment,
machinery for food preparation and meat packing, electric motors,
process control equipment, trucks, tractors, textiles, shoes,
chemicals, wood products, wine
Industrial production growth rate: -0.3% (1998 est.)
Electricity--production: 6.845 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 29.88%
hydro: 70.12%
nuclear: 0%
other: 0% (1996)
Electricity--consumption: 6.949 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--exports: 300 million kWh (1996)
Electricity--imports: 404 million kWh (1996)
Agriculture--products: citrus, grapes, tea, vegetables, potatoes;
livestock
Exports: $230 million (f.o.b., 1997 est.)
Exports--commodities: citrus fruits, tea, wine, other agricultural
products; diverse types of machinery; ferrous and nonferrous metals;
textiles; chemicals; fuel reexports
Exports--partners: Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan, Ukraine, Armenia,
Bulgaria, Turkey, US, UK, Italy, Germany, Romania (1997)
Imports: $931 million (c.i.f., 1997 est.)
Imports--commodities: fuel, grain and other foods, machinery and
parts, transport equipment
Imports--partners: Russia, Turkey, Azerbaijan (1996); note?EU and
US send humanitarian food shipments
Debt--external: $1.3 billion (1996 est.)
Economic aid--recipient: $212.7 million (1995)
Currency: lari introduced September 1995 replacing the coupon
Exchange rates: lari per US$1 (end of period)--1.82 (December
1998), 1.32 (December 1997), 1.28 (December 1996), 1.24 (December
1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 760,000 (1996 est.)
Telephone system:
domestic: local--T'bilisi and K'ut'aisi have cellular telephone
networks with about 10,000 customers total; urban areas 20
telephones/100 people; rural areas 4 phones/100 people; intercity--a
fiber-optic line connects T'bilisi to K'ut'aisi (Georgia's second
largest city); nationwide pager service
international: Georgia and Russia are working on a fiber-optic line
between P'ot'i and Sochi (Russia); present international service is
available by microwave, land line, and satellite through the Moscow
switch; international electronic mail and telex service available
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA; note 2
national broadcast stations, 3 regional broadcast stations
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 3
Televisions: NA
Transportation
Railways:
total: 1,583 km in common carrier service; does not include
industrial lines
broad gauge: 1,583 km 1.520-m gauge (1993)
Highways:
total: 20,700 km
paved: 19,354 km
unpaved: 1,346 km (1996 est.)
Pipelines: crude oil 370 km; refined products 300 km; natural gas
440 km (1992)
Ports and harbors: Bat'umi, P'ot'i, Sokhumi
Merchant marine:
total: 8 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 86,667 GRT/121,679 DWT
ships by type: cargo 2, oil tanker 5, short-sea passenger 1 (1998
est.)
Airports: 28 (1994 est.)
Airports--with paved runways:
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 7
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 1
under 914 m: 1 (1994 est.)
Airports--with unpaved runways:
total: 14
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 5
under 914 m: 6 (1994 est.)
Transportation--note: transportation network is in poor condition
and disrupted by ethnic conflict, criminal activities, and fuel
shortages; network lacks maintenance and repair
Military
Military branches: Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense
Forces, National Guard, Republic Security Forces (internal and
border troops)
Military manpower--military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower--availability:
males age 15-49: 1,287,225 (1999 est.)
Military manpower--fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 1,018,309 (1999 est.)
Military manpower--reaching military age annually:
males: 40,604 (1999 est.)
Military expenditures--dollar figure: $57 million (1998)
Military expenditures--percent of GDP: 1% (1998)
Military--note: a CIS peacekeeping force consisting of Russian
troops is deployed in the Abkhazia region of Georgia together with a
UN military observer group; a Russian peacekeeping battalion is
deployed in South Ossetia
Transnational Issues
Disputes--international: none
Illicit drugs: limited cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy,
mostly for domestic consumption; used as transshipment point for
opiates via Central Asia to Western Europe
======================================================================
@Germany
-------
Introduction
Background: Germany--first united in 1871?suffered defeats in
successive world wars and was occupied by the victorious Allied
powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the
beginning of the Cold War and increasing tension between the US and
Soviet Union, two German states were formed in 1949: the western
Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic
Republic (GDR). The newly democratic FRG embedded itself in key
Western economic and security organizations, the EU and NATO, while
the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw
Pact. The decline of the Soviet Union and end of the Cold War
cleared the path for the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and German
re-unification in 1990. Germany has expended considerable
funds--roughly $100 billion a year--in subsequent years working to
bring eastern productivity and wages up to western standards, with
mixed results. Unemployment--which in the east is nearly double that
in the west--has grown over the last several years, primarily as a
result of structural problems like an inflexible labor market. In
January 1999, Germany and 10 other members of the EU formed a common
European currency, the euro, and the German government is now
looking toward reform of the EU budget and enlargement of the Union
into Central Europe.
Geography
Location: Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North
Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark
Geographic coordinates: 51 00 N, 9 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area:
total: 356,910 sq km
land: 349,520 sq km
water: 7,390 sq km
note: includes the formerly separate Federal Republic of Germany,
the German Democratic Republic, and Berlin, following formal
unification on 3 October 1990
Area--comparative: slightly smaller than Montana
Land boundaries:
total: 3,621 km
border countries: Austria 784 km, Belgium 167 km, Czech Republic 646
km, Denmark 68 km, France 451 km, Luxembourg 138 km, Netherlands 577
km, Poland 456 km, Switzerland 334 km
Coastline: 2,389 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and
summers; occasional warm, tropical foehn wind; high relative humidity
Terrain: lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in
south
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Freepsum Lake -2 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,962 m
Natural resources: iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite,
uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel
Land use:
arable land: 33%
permanent crops: 1%
permanent pastures: 15%
forests and woodland: 31%
other: 20% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 4,750 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: flooding
Environment--current issues: emissions from coal-burning utilities
and industries and lead emissions from vehicle exhausts (the result
of continued use of leaded fuels) contribute to air pollution; acid
rain, resulting from sulfur dioxide emissions, is damaging forests;
pollution in the Baltic Sea from raw sewage and industrial effluents
from rivers in eastern Germany; hazardous waste disposal
Environment--international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air
Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air
Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental
Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification,
Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban,
Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic
Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography--note: strategic location on North European Plain and
along the entrance to the Baltic Sea
People
Population: 82,087,361 (July 1999 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 15% (male 6,495,882; female 6,172,359)
15-64 years: 69% (male 28,687,267; female 27,526,698)
65 years and over: 16% (male 4,990,090; female 8,215,065) (1999 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.01% (1999 est.)
Birth rate: 8.68 births/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Death rate: 10.76 deaths/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1999 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female
total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (1999 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 5.14 deaths/1,000 live births (1999 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.17 years
male: 74.01 years
female: 80.5 years (1999 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.26 children born/woman (1999 est.)
Nationality:
noun: German(s)
adjective: German
Ethnic groups: German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, Italians 0.7%, Greeks
0.4%, Poles 0.4%, other 4.6% (made up largely of people fleeing the
war in the former Yugoslavia)
Religions: Protestant 38%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 1.7%,
unaffiliated or other 26.3%
Languages: German
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1977 est.)
male: NA%
female: NA%
Government
Country name:
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany
local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland
local short form: Deutschland
Data code: GM
Government type: federal republic
Capital: Berlin
note: the shift from Bonn to Berlin will take place over a period of
years, with Bonn retaining many administrative functions and several
ministries even after parliament moves in 1999
Administrative divisions: 16 states (Laender, singular--Land);
Baden-Wuerttemberg, Bayern, Berlin, Brandenburg, Bremen, Hamburg,
Hessen, Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Niedersachsen, Nordrhein-Westfalen,
Rheinland-Pfalz, Saarland, Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt,
Schleswig-Holstein, Thueringen
Independence: 18 January 1871 (German Empire unification);
divided into four zones of occupation (UK, US, USSR, and later,
France) in 1945 following World War II; Federal Republic of Germany
(FRG or West Germany) proclaimed 23 May 1949 and included the former
UK, US, and French zones; German Democratic Republic (GDR or East
Germany) proclaimed 7 October 1949 and included the former USSR
zone; unification of West Germany and East Germany took place 3
October 1990; all four powers formally relinquished rights 15 March
1991
National holiday: German Unity Day (Day of Unity), 3 October
(1990)
Constitution: 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became
constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990
Legal system: civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial
review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has
not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Roman HERZOG (since 1 July 1994)
head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October
1998)
cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president upon the proposal of the
chancellor
elections: president elected for a five-year term by a Federal
Convention including all members of the Federal Assembly and an
equal number of delegates elected by the Land Parliaments; election
last held 23 May 1994 (next to be held 23 May 1999); chancellor
elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a
four-year term; election last held 27 September 1998 (next to be
held in the fall of 2002)
election results: Roman HERZOG elected president; percent of Federal
Convention vote--52.6%; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent
of Federal Assembly--52.8%
Legislative branch: bicameral chamber (no official name for the
two chambers as a whole) consists of the Federal Assembly or
Bundestag (656 seats usually, but 669 for the 1998 term; elected by
popular vote under a system combining direct and proportional
representation; a party must win 5% of the national vote or three
direct mandates to gain representation; members serve four-year
terms) and the Federal Council or Bundesrat (69 votes; state
governments are directly represented by votes; each has 3 to 6 votes
depending on population and are required to vote as a block)
elections: Federal Assembly--last held 27 September 1998 (next to be
held by the fall of 2002); note--there are no elections for the
Bundesrat; composition is determined by the composition of the
state-level governments; the composition of the Bundesrat has the
potential to change any time one of the 16 states holds an election
election results: Federal Assembly--percent of vote by party--SPD
40.9%, Alliance 90/Greens 6.7%, CDU/CSU 35.1%, FDP 6.2%, PDS 5.1%;
seats by party--SPD 298, Alliance 90/Greens 47, CDU/CSU 245, FDP 43,
PDS 36; Federal Council--current composition--votes by party--SPD-led
states 45, CDU-led states 24
Judicial branch: Federal Constitutional Court or
Bundesverfassungsgericht, half the judges are elected by the
Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat
Political parties and leaders: Christian Democratic Union or CDU
Political pressure groups and leaders: employers' organizations,
expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups
International organization participation: AfDB, AsDB, Australia
Group, BDEAC, BIS, CBSS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN, EAPC,
EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G-10, IADB, IAEA,
IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO,
IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MTCR,
NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA,
UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNOMIG, UPU, WEU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Juergen CHROBOG
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007
consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston,
Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco, Seattle
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador John C. KORNBLUM
embassy: Deichmanns Aue 29, 53170 Bonn
mailing address: PSC 117, APO AE 09080
branch office: Berlin; mailing address: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse
consulate(s) general: Dusseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg,
Leipzig, Munich
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of black (top),
red, and gold
Economy
Economy--overview: Germany possesses the world's third most
powerful economy, with its capitalist market system tempered by
generous welfare benefits. On 1 January 1999, Germany and 10 other
European Union countries launched the European Monetary Union (EMU)
by permanently fixing their bilateral exchange rates and giving the
new European Central Bank control over the zone's monetary policy.
Germans expect to have the new European currency, the euro, in
pocket by 2002. Domestic demand contributed to a moderate economic
upswing in early 1998, although unemployment remains high.
Job-creation measures have helped superficially, but structural
rigidities--like high wages and costly benefits--make unemployment a
long-term, not just a cyclical, problem. Although minimally affected
by the Asian crisis in 1998, Germany revised its 1999 forecast
downward at the beginning of the year to reflect anticipated effects
from the global economic slowdown. Over the long term, Germany faces
budgetary problems--lower tax revenues and higher pension outlays--as
its population ages. Meanwhile, the German nation continues to
wrestle with the integration of eastern Germany, whose adjustment
may take decades to complete despite annual transfers from the west
of roughly $100 billion a year.
GDP: purchasing power parity--$1.813 trillion (1998 est.)
GDP--real growth rate: 2.7% (1998 est.)
GDP--per capita: purchasing power parity?$22,100 (1998 est.)
GDP--composition by sector:
agriculture: 1.1%
industry: 33.1%
services: 65.8% (1998)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 0.9% (1998 est.)
Labor force: 38.2 million (1998)
Labor force--by occupation: industry 33.7%, agriculture 2.7%,
services 63.6% (1998)
Unemployment rate: 10.6% (1998 est.)
Budget:
revenues: $977 billion
expenditures: $1.024 trillion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1998 est.)
Industries: western: among world's largest and technologically
advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals,
machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages;
eastern: metal fabrication, chemicals, brown coal, shipbuilding,
machine building, food and beverages, textiles, petroleum refining
Industrial production growth rate: 5% (1998)
Electricity--production: 515.058 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--production by source:
fossil fuel: 66.23%
hydro: 3.5%
nuclear: 29.81%
other: 0.46% (1996)
Electricity--consumption: 509.458 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--exports: 42.5 billion kWh (1996)
Electricity--imports: 36.9 billion kWh (1996)
Agriculture--products: western?potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar
beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry; eastern--wheat, rye,
barley, potatoes, sugar beets, fruit; pork, beef, chickens, milk,
hides
Exports: $510 billion (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Exports--commodities: machinery 31%, vehicles 17%, chemicals 13%,
metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles (1997)
Exports--partners: EU 55.5% (France 10.7%, UK 8.5%, Italy 7.4%,
Netherlands 7.0%, Belgium-Luxembourg 5.8%), US 8.6%, Japan 2.3%
(1997 est.)
Imports: $426 billion (f.o.b., 1998 est.)
Imports--commodities: machinery 22%, vehicles 10%, chemicals 9%,
foodstuffs 8%, textiles, metals (1997)
Imports--partners: EU 54.3% (France 10.5%, Netherlands 8.5%, Italy
7.8%, UK 7.0%, Belgium-Luxembourg 6.2%), US 7.7%, Japan 4.9% (1997)
Debt--external: $NA
Economic aid--donor: ODA, $7.5 billion (1995)
Currency: 1 deutsche mark (DM) = 100 pfennige
Exchange rates: deutsche marks (DM) per US$1--1.69 (January 1999),
1.7597 (1998), 1.7341 (1997), 1.5048 (1996), 1.4331 (1995), 1.6228
(1994)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Union introduced a common
currency that is now being used by financial institutions in some
member countries at the rate of 0.8597 euros per US$ and a fixed
rate of 1.95583 deutsche marks per euro; the euro will replace the
local currency in consenting countries for all transactions in 2002
Fiscal year: calendar year
Communications
Telephones: 44 million