British Virgin Islands (2002) | Germany (2003) | |
Administrative divisions | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 22.4% (male 2,401; female 2,351)
15-64 years: 72.7% (male 7,962; female 7,509) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 565; female 484) (2002 est.) |
0-14 years: 14.9% (male 6,312,614; female 5,988,681)
15-64 years: 67.3% (male 28,213,316; female 27,240,648) 65 years and over: 17.8% (male 5,842,457; female 8,800,610) (2003 est.) |
Agriculture - products | fruits, vegetables; livestock, poultry; fish | potatoes, wheat, barley, sugar beets, fruit, cabbages; cattle, pigs, poultry |
Airports | 3 (2001) | 551 (2002) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
914 to 1,523 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 328
over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 54 1,524 to 2,437 m: 63 914 to 1,523 m: 69 under 914 m: 131 (2002) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 1 (2002) |
total: 223
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 189 (2002) |
Area | total: 153 sq km
land: 153 sq km water: 0 sq km note: comprised of 16 inhabited and more than 20 uninhabited islands; includes the island of Anegada |
total: 357,021 sq km
land: 349,223 sq km water: 7,798 sq km |
Area - comparative | about 0.9 times the size of Washington, DC | slightly smaller than Montana |
Background | First settled by the Dutch in 1648, the islands were annexed in 1672 by the English. The economy is closely tied to the larger and more populous US Virgin Islands to the west; the US dollar is the legal currency. | As Europe's largest economy and most populous nation, Germany remains a key member of the continent's economic, political, and defense organizations. European power struggles immersed the country in two devastating World Wars in the first half of the 20th century and left the country occupied by the victorious Allied powers of the US, UK, France, and the Soviet Union in 1945. With the advent of the Cold War, two German states were formed in 1949: the western Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) and the eastern German Democratic Republic (GDR). The democratic FRG embedded itself in key Western economic and security organizations, the EC, which became the EU, and NATO, while the Communist GDR was on the front line of the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact. The decline of the USSR and the end of the Cold War allowed for German unification in 1990. Since then, Germany has expended considerable funds to bring eastern productivity and wages up to western standards. In January 2002, Germany and 11 other EU countries introduced a common European currency, the euro. |
Birth rate | 15.09 births/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 8.6 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $121.5 million
expenditures: $115.5 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1997) |
revenues: $802 billion
expenditures: $825 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.) |
Capital | Road Town | Berlin |
Climate | subtropical; humid; temperatures moderated by trade winds | temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters and summers; occasional warm foehn wind |
Coastline | 80 km | 2,389 km |
Constitution | 1 June 1977 | 23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of the united German people 3 October 1990 |
Country name | conventional long form: none
conventional short form: British Virgin Islands abbreviation: BVI |
conventional long form: Federal Republic of Germany
conventional short form: Germany local long form: Bundesrepublik Deutschland local short form: Deutschland former: German Empire, German Republic, German Reich |
Currency | US dollar (USD) | euro (EUR)
note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries |
Death rate | 4.42 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 10.34 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Debt - external | $36.1 million (1997) | $NA |
Dependency status | overseas territory of the UK; internal self-governing | - |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Daniel R. COATS
embassy: Neustaedtische Kirchstrasse 4-5, 10117 Berlin; note - a new embassy will be built near the Brandenburg Gate in Berlin mailing address: PSC 120, Box 1000, APO AE 09265 telephone: [49] (30) 238-5174 FAX: [49] (30) 238-6290 consulate(s) general: Duesseldorf, Frankfurt am Main, Hamburg, Leipzig, Munich |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none (overseas territory of the UK) | chief of mission: Ambassador Wolfgang Friedrich ISCHINGER
chancery: 4645 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007 telephone: [1] (202) 298-8140 FAX: [1] (202) 298-4249 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York, San Francisco |
Disputes - international | none | none |
Economic aid - donor | - | ODA, $5.6 billion (1998) |
Economic aid - recipient | NA | - |
Economy - overview | The economy, one of the most stable and prosperous in the Caribbean, is highly dependent on tourism, generating an estimated 45% of the national income. An estimated 350,000 tourists, mainly from the US, visited the islands in 1998. In the mid-1980s, the government began offering offshore registration to companies wishing to incorporate in the islands, and incorporation fees now generate substantial revenues. Roughly 400,000 companies were on the offshore registry by yearend 2000. The adoption of a comprehensive insurance law in late 1994, which provides a blanket of confidentiality with regulated statutory gateways for investigation of criminal offenses, is expected to make the British Virgin Islands even more attractive to international business. Livestock raising is the most important agricultural activity; poor soils limit the islands' ability to meet domestic food requirements. Because of traditionally close links with the US Virgin Islands, the British Virgin Islands has used the dollar as its currency since 1959. | Germany's affluent and technologically powerful economy has turned in a weak performance throughout much of the 1990s and early 2000s. The modernization and integration of the eastern German economy continues to be a costly long-term problem, with annual transfers from west to east amounting to roughly $70 billion. Germany's ageing population, combined with high unemployment, has pushed social security outlays to a level exceeding contributions from workers. Structural rigidities in the labor market - including strict regulations on laying off workers and the setting of wages on a national basis - have made unemployment a chronic problem. Growth in 2002 and 2003 fell short of 1%. Corporate restructuring and growing capital markets are setting the foundations that could allow Germany to meet the long-term challenges of European economic integration and globalization, particularly if labor market rigidities are further addressed. In the short run, however, the fall in government revenues and the rise in expenditures have raised the deficit above the EU's 3% debt limit. |
Electricity - consumption | 39.1 million kWh (1999) | 506.8 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (1999) | 43.9 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (1999) | 44 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production | 42 million kWh (1999) | 544.8 billion kWh (2001) |
Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
fossil fuel: 61.8%
hydro: 4.2% nuclear: 29.9% other: 4.1% (2001) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Sage 521 m |
lowest point: Neuendorf bei Wilster -3.54 m
highest point: Zugspitze 2,963 m |
Environment - current issues | limited natural fresh water resources (except for a few seasonal streams and springs on Tortola, most of the islands' water supply comes from wells and rainwater catchments) | emissions from coal-burning utilities and industries 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; government established a mechanism for ending the use of nuclear power over the next 15 years; government working to meet EU commitment to identify nature preservation areas in line with the EU's Flora, Fauna, and Habitat directive |
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-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, 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 |
Ethnic groups | black 83%, white, Indian, Asian and mixed | German 91.5%, Turkish 2.4%, other 6.1% (made up largely of Serbo-Croatian, Italian, Russian, Greek, Polish, Spanish) |
Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | euros per US dollar - 1.06 (2002), 1.12 (2001), 1.09 (2000), 0.94 (1999), 1.76 (1998) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor Tom MACAN (since 14 October 2002)
head of government: Chief Minister Ralph T. O'NEAL (since 15 May 1995) cabinet: Executive Council appointed by the governor from members of the Legislative Council elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed chief minister by the governor |
chief of state: President Johannes RAU (since 1 July 1999)
head of government: Chancellor Gerhard SCHROEDER (since 27 October 1998) cabinet: Cabinet or Bundesminister (Federal Ministers) appointed by the president on the recommendation 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 state parliaments; election last held 23 May 1999 (next to be held 23 May 2004); chancellor elected by an absolute majority of the Federal Assembly for a four-year term; election last held 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006) election results: Johannes RAU elected president; percent of Federal Convention vote - 57.6%; Gerhard SCHROEDER elected chancellor; percent of Federal Assembly vote 50.7% |
Exports | $6.2 million | 404,300 bbl/day (2001) |
Exports - commodities | rum, fresh fish, fruits, animals; gravel, sand | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, metals and manufactures, foodstuffs, textiles |
Exports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | France 10.7%, US 10.3%, UK 8.4%, Italy 7.3%, Netherlands 6.1%, Austria 5.1%, Belgium 4.8%, Spain 4.6%, Switzerland 4.2% (2002) |
Fiscal year | 1 April - 31 March | calendar year |
Flag description | blue, with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and the Virgin Islander coat of arms centered in the outer half of the flag; the coat of arms depicts a woman flanked on either side by a vertical column of six oil lamps above a scroll bearing the Latin word VIGILATE (Be Watchful) | three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red, and gold |
GDP | purchasing power parity - $311 million (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $2.16 trillion (2002 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 2%
industry: 6% services: 92% (1996 est.) |
agriculture: 1%
industry: 31% services: 68% (2002 est.) |
GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $16,000 (2000 est.) | purchasing power parity - $26,200 (2002 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 4.4% (2000 est.) | 0.2% (2002 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 18 30 N, 64 30 W | 51 00 N, 9 00 E |
Geography - note | strong ties to nearby US Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico | strategic location on North European Plain and along the entrance to the Baltic Sea |
Heliports | - | 40 (2002) |
Highways | total: 177 km
paved: 177 km unpaved: 0 km (2000) |
total: 230,735 km
paved: 230,735 km (including 11,515 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1999) |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%: 3.6%
highest 10%: 25.1% (1997) |
Illicit drugs | transshipment point for South American narcotics destined for the US and Europe; large offshore financial center | source of precursor chemicals for South American cocaine processors; transshipment point for and consumer of Southwest Asian heroin, Latin American cocaine, and European-produced synthetic drugs |
Imports | $230 million (2000 est.) | 3.081 million bbl/day (2001) |
Imports - commodities | building materials, automobiles, foodstuffs, machinery | machinery, vehicles, chemicals, foodstuffs, textiles, metals |
Imports - partners | Virgin Islands (US), Puerto Rico, US | France 9.5%, Netherlands 8.2%, US 7.7%, UK 6.5%, Italy 6.4%, Belgium 5.2%, Austria 4%, China 4% (2002) |
Independence | none (overseas territory of the UK) | 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 |
Industrial production growth rate | 4% (1985) | -2.1% (2002 est.) |
Industries | tourism, light industry, construction, rum, concrete block, offshore financial center | among the world's largest and most technologically advanced producers of iron, steel, coal, cement, chemicals, machinery, vehicles, machine tools, electronics, food and beverages; shipbuilding; textiles |
Infant mortality rate | 19.55 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.) | total: 4.23 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 4.68 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 3.3% (2000) | 1.3% (2002 est.) |
International organization participation | Caricom (associate), CDB, ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC, OECS (associate), UNESCO (associate) | AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS, CDB, CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, EIB, EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 16 (2000) | 200 (2001) |
Irrigated land | NA sq km | 4,850 sq km (1998 est.) |
Judicial branch | Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court, consisting of the High Court of Justice and the Court of Appeal (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the High Court); Magistrate's Court; Juvenile Court; Court of Summary Jurisdiction | Federal Constitutional Court or Bundesverfassungsgericht (half the judges are elected by the Bundestag and half by the Bundesrat) |
Labor force | 4,911 (1980) | 41.9 million (2001) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% | industry 33.4%, agriculture 2.8%, services 63.8% (1999) |
Land boundaries | 0 km | 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 |
Land use | arable land: 20%
permanent crops: 6.67% other: 73.33% (1998 est.) |
arable land: 33.88%
permanent crops: 0.65% other: 65.47% (1998 est.) |
Languages | English (official) | German |
Legal system | English law | civil law system with indigenous concepts; judicial review of legislative acts in the Federal Constitutional Court; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction |
Legislative branch | unicameral Legislative Council (13 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote, one member from each of 9 electoral districts, four at-large members; members serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 17 May 1999 (next to be held NA 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - VIP 7, CCM 1, NDP 5 |
bicameral Parliament or parlament consists of the Federal Assembly or Bundestag (603 seats; 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 22 September 2002 (next to be held NA September 2006); 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 38.5%, CDU/CSU 38.5%, Alliance '90/Greens 8.6%, FDP 7.4%, PDS 4%; seats by party - SPD 251, CDU/CSU 248, Alliance '90/Greens 55, FDP 47, PDS 2; Federal Council - current composition - NA |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 75.85 years
male: 74.9 years female: 76.84 years (2002 est.) |
total population: 78.42 years
male: 75.46 years female: 81.55 years (2003 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 97.8% (1991 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99% (1977 est.) male: NA% female: NA% |
Location | Caribbean, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Central Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea and the North Sea, between the Netherlands and Poland, south of Denmark |
Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
Maritime claims | exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 3 NM |
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
exclusive economic zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 12 NM |
Merchant marine | total: 1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 70,285 GRT/6,946 DWT
ships by type: passenger 1 (2002 est.) |
total: 337 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 6,036,397 GRT/7,334,067 DWT
ships by type: cargo 94, chemical tanker 15, container 203, liquefied gas 3, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 5, railcar carrier 2, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 7 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Chile 1, Finland 5, Iceland 1, Netherlands 3, Switzerland 1 (2002 est.) |
Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the UK | - |
Military branches | - | Army, Navy (including naval air arm), Air Force, Medical Corps, Joint Support Service |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | - | $38.8 billion (2002) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | - | 1.38% (2002) |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49: 20,509,838 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49: 17,399,936 (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 18 years of age (2003 est.) |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males: 472,946 (2003 est.) |
National holiday | Territory Day, 1 July | Unity Day, 3 October (1990) |
Nationality | noun: British Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: British Virgin Islander |
noun: German(s)
adjective: German |
Natural hazards | hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October) | flooding |
Natural resources | NEGL | iron ore, coal, potash, timber, lignite, uranium, copper, natural gas, salt, nickel, arable land |
Net migration rate | 10.91 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.) | 2.18 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) |
Pipelines | - | condensate 325 km; gas 25,289 km; oil 3,743 km; refined products 3,827 km (2003) |
Political parties and leaders | Concerned Citizens Movement or CCM [Ethlyn SMITH]; National Democratic Party or NDP [Orlando SMITH]; United Party or UP [Gregory MADURO]; Virgin Islands Party or VIP [Ralph T. O'NEAL] | Alliance '90/Greens [Angelika BEER and Reinhard BUETIKOFER]; Christian Democratic Union or CDU [Angela MERKEL]; Christian Social Union or CSU [Edmund STOIBER, chairman]; Free Democratic Party or FDP [Guido WESTERWELLE, chairman]; Party of Democratic Socialism or PDS [Lothar BISKY]; Social Democratic Party or SPD [Gerhard SCHROEDER, chairman] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | employers' organizations; expellee, refugee, trade unions, and veterans groups |
Population | 21,272 (July 2002 est.) | 82,398,326 (July 2003 est.) |
Population below poverty line | NA% | NA% |
Population growth rate | 2.16% (2002 est.) | 0.04% (2003 est.) |
Ports and harbors | Road Town | Berlin, Bonn, Brake, Bremen, Bremerhaven, Cologne, Dresden, Duisburg, Emden, Hamburg, Karlsruhe, Kiel, Luebeck, Magdeburg, Mannheim, Rostock, Stuttgart |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 1, FM 4, shortwave 0 (1998) | AM 51, FM 787, shortwave 4 (1998) |
Radios | 9,000 (1997) | - |
Railways | 0 km | total: 45,514 km (21,000 km electrified)
standard gauge: 45,276 km 1.435-m gauge (20,084 km electrified) narrow gauge: 214 km 1.000-m gauge (16 km electrified); 24 km 0.750-m gauge (2002) |
Religions | Protestant 86% (Methodist 33%, Anglican 17%, Church of God 9%, Seventh-Day Adventist 6%, Baptist 4%, Jehovah's Witnesses 2%, other 2%), Roman Catholic 10%, none 2%, other 2% (1991) | Protestant 34%, Roman Catholic 34%, Muslim 3.7%, unaffiliated or other 28.3% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.04 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 1.17 male(s)/female total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2002 est.) |
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: 0.66 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal | 18 years of age; universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: worldwide telephone service
domestic: NA international: submarine cable to Bermuda |
general assessment: Germany has one of the world's most technologically advanced telecommunications systems; as a result of intensive capital expenditures since reunification, the formerly backward system of the eastern part of the country, dating back to World War II, has been modernized and integrated with that of the western part
domestic: Germany is served by an extensive system of automatic telephone exchanges connected by modern networks of fiber-optic cable, coaxial cable, microwave radio relay, and a domestic satellite system; cellular telephone service is widely available, expanding rapidly, and includes roaming service to many foreign countries international: Germany's international service is excellent worldwide, consisting of extensive land and undersea cable facilities as well as earth stations in the INMARSAT, INTELSAT, EUTELSAT, and INTERSPUTNIK satellite systems (2001) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 10,000 (1996) | 50.9 million (March 2001) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | NA | 55.3 million (June 2001) |
Television broadcast stations | 1 (plus one cable company) (1997) | 373 (plus 8,042 repeaters) (1995) |
Terrain | coral islands relatively flat; volcanic islands steep, hilly | lowlands in north, uplands in center, Bavarian Alps in south |
Total fertility rate | 1.72 children born/woman (2002 est.) | 1.37 children born/woman (2003 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 3% (1995) | 9.8% (2002 est.) |
Waterways | none | 7,500 km
note: major rivers include the Rhine and Elbe; Kiel Canal is an important connection between the Baltic Sea and North Sea (1999) |