Main page Compare countries Index countries Index fields

Query:
##ciekawa_strona##

Compare Croatia (2008) - European Union (2008)

Compare Croatia (2008) z European Union (2008)

 Croatia (2008)European Union (2008)
 CroatiaEuropean Union
Administrative divisions 20 counties (zupanije, zupanija - singular) and 1 city* (grad - singular); Bjelovarsko-Bilogorska Zupanija, Brodsko-Posavska Zupanija, Dubrovacko-Neretvanska Zupanija, Istarska Zupanija, Karlovacka Zupanija, Koprivnicko-Krizevacka Zupanija, Krapinsko-Zagorska Zupanija, Licko-Senjska Zupanija, Medimurska Zupanija, Osjecko-Baranjska Zupanija, Pozesko-Slavonska Zupanija, Primorsko-Goranska Zupanija, Sibensko-Kninska Zupanija, Sisacko-Moslavacka Zupanija, Splitsko-Dalmatinska Zupanija, Varazdinska Zupanija, Viroviticko-Podravska Zupanija, Vukovarsko-Srijemska Zupanija, Zadarska Zupanija, Zagreb*, Zagrebacka Zupanija -
Age structure 0-14 years: 16% (male 368,639/female 349,703)


15-64 years: 67.1% (male 1,499,354/female 1,515,932)


65 years and over: 16.9% (male 292,526/female 467,158) (2007 est.)
0-14 years: 15.72% (male 37,208,905/female 35,254,445)


15-64 years: 67.16% (male 155,807,769/female 153,690,235)


65 years and over: 17.11% (male 32,592,595/female 46,273,197) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products wheat, barley, oilseeds, sugar beets, wine, grapes; dairy products, cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry; fish
Airports 68 (2007) 3,393 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways total: 23


over 3,047 m: 2


2,438 to 3,047 m: 6


1,524 to 2,437 m: 2


914 to 1,523 m: 4


under 914 m: 9 (2007)
2,020 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 45


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 7


under 914 m: 37 (2007)
1,373 (2006)
Area total: 56,542 sq km


land: 56,414 sq km


water: 128 sq km
total: 4,324,782 sq km
Area - comparative slightly smaller than West Virginia less than one-half the size of the US
Background The lands that today comprise Croatia were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the close of World War I. In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became a federal independent Communist state under the strong hand of Marshal TITO. Although Croatia declared its independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, it took four years of sporadic, but often bitter, fighting before occupying Serb armies were mostly cleared from Croatian lands. Under UN supervision, the last Serb-held enclave in eastern Slavonia was returned to Croatia in 1998. Following the two devastating World Wars of the first half of the 20th century, a number of European leaders in the late 1940s became convinced that the only way to establish a lasting peace was to unite the two chief belligerent nations - France and Germany - both economically and politically. In 1950, the French Foreign Minister Robert SCHUMAN proposed an eventual union of all Europe, the first step of which would be the integration of the coal and steel industries of Western Europe. The following year the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) was set up when six members, Belgium, France, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands, signed the Treaty of Paris.

The ECSC was so successful that within a few years the decision was made to integrate other parts of the countries' economies. In 1957, the Treaties of Rome created the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom), and the six member states undertook to eliminate trade barriers among themselves by forming a common market. In 1967, the institutions of all three communities were formally merged into the European Community (EC), creating a single Commission, a single Council of Ministers, and the European Parliament. Members of the European Parliament were initially selected by national parliaments, but in 1979 the first direct elections were undertaken and they have been held every five years since.

In 1973, the first enlargement of the EC took place with the addition of Denmark, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. The 1980s saw further membership expansion with Greece joining in 1981 and Spain and Portugal in 1986. The 1992 Treaty of Maastricht laid the basis for further forms of cooperation in foreign and defense policy, in judicial and internal affairs, and in the creation of an economic and monetary union - including a common currency. This further integration created the European Union (EU). In 1995, Austria, Finland, and Sweden joined the EU, raising the membership total to 15.

A new currency, the euro, was launched in world money markets on 1 January 1999; it became the unit of exchange for all of the EU states except the United Kingdom, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2002, citizens of the 12 euro-area countries began using the euro banknotes and coins. Ten new countries joined the EU in 2004 - Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Hungary, Latvia, Lithuania, Malta, Poland, Slovakia, and Slovenia - and in 2007 Bulgaria and Romania joined, bringing the current membership to 27. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an expanded membership, the Treaty of Nice (in force as of 1 February 2003) set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An effort to establish an EU constitution, begun in October 2004, failed to attain unanimous ratification. A new effort, undertaken in June 2007, calls for the creation of an Intergovernmental Conference to form a political agreement, known as the Reform Treaty, which is to serve as a constitution. Unlike the constitution, however, the Reform Treaty would amend existing treaties rather than replace them.
Birth rate 9.63 births/1,000 population (2007 est.) 10 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues: $22.46 billion


expenditures: $23.85 billion (2007 est.)
-
Capital name: Zagreb


geographic coordinates: 45 48 N, 16 00 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
name: Brussels (Belgium), Strasbourg (France), Luxembourg


geographic coordinates: 50 50 N, 4 20 E


time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October


note: the Council of the European Union meets in Brussels, Belgium, the European Parliament meets in Brussels and Strasbourg, France, and the Court of Justice of the European Communities meets in Luxembourg
Climate Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate; mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south
Coastline 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km) 65,992.9 km
Constitution adopted on 22 December 1990; revised 2000, 2001 based on a series of treaties: the Treaty of Paris, which set up the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) in 1951; the Treaties of Rome, which set up the European Economic Community (EEC) and the European Atomic Energy Community (Euratom) in 1957; the Single European Act in 1986; the Treaty on European Union (Maastricht) in 1992; the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997; and the Treaty of Nice in 2003; note - a new draft Constitutional Treaty, signed on 29 October 2004 in Rome, gave member states two years for ratification either by parliamentary vote or national referendum before it was scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006; defeat in French and Dutch referenda in May-June 2005 dealt a severe setback to the ratification process; in June 2007, the European Council agreed on a clear and concise mandate for an Intergovernmental Conference to form a political agreement and put it into legal form; this agreement, known as the Reform Treaty, is to serve as a constitution and will be presented to the European Council in October 2007, in order to begin the ratification process
Country name conventional long form: Republic of Croatia


conventional short form: Croatia


local long form: Republika Hrvatska


local short form: Hrvatska


former: People's Republic of Croatia, Socialist Republic of Croatia
-
Death rate 11.57 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.) 10 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $41.56 billion (30 June 2007) -
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador Robert A. BRADTKE


embassy: 2 Thomas Jefferson Street, 10010 Zagreb


mailing address: use street address


telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200


FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373
chief of mission: Ambassador C. Boyden GRAY


embassy: 13 Zinnerstraat/Rue Zinner, B-1000 Brussels


mailing address: same as above


telephone: [32] (2) 508-2222


FAX: [32] (2) 512-5720
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Marijan GUBIC


chancery: 2343 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 588-5899


FAX: [1] (202) 588-8936


consulate(s) general: Chicago, Los Angeles, New York
chief of mission: Ambassador John BRUTON


chancery: 2300 M Street, NW, Washington, DC 20037


telephone: [1] (202) 862-9500


FAX: [1] (202) 429-1766
Disputes - international dispute remains with Bosnia and Herzegovina over several small disputed sections of the boundary related to maritime access that hinders ratification of the 1999 border agreement; the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which would have ceded most of Pirin Bay and maritime access to Slovenia and several villages to Croatia, remains un-ratified and in dispute; Slovenia also protests Croatia's 2003 claim to an exclusive economic zone in the Adriatic; as a European Union peripheral state, neighboring Slovenia must conform to the strict Schengen border rules to curb illegal migration and commerce through southeastern Europe while encouraging close cross-border ties with Croatia as a political union, the EU has no border disputes with neighboring countries, but Estonia has no land boundary agreements with Russia, Slovenia disputes its land and maritime boundaries with Croatia, and Spain has territorial and maritime disputes with Morocco and with the UK over Gibraltar; the EU has set up a Schengen area - consisting of 22 EU member states that have signed the convention implementing the Schengen agreements or "acquis" (1985 and 1990) on the free movement of persons and the harmonization of border controls in Europe; these agreements became incorporated into EU law with the implementation of the 1997 Treaty of Amsterdam on 1 May 1999; in addition, non-EU states Iceland and Norway (as part of the Nordic Union) have been included in the Schengen area since 1996 (full members in 2001), bringing the total current membership to 24; the UK (since 2000) and Ireland (since 2002) take part in only some aspects of the Schengen area, especially with respect to police and criminal matters; nine of the 12 new member states that joined the EU in 2004 joined Schengen on 21 December 2007; of the three remaining EU states, Cyprus is expected to join by 2009, while Romania and Bulgaria continue to enhance their border security systems
Economic aid - recipient ODA, $125.4 million (2005) -
Economy - overview Once one of the wealthiest of the Yugoslav republics, Croatia's economy suffered badly during the 1991-95 war as output collapsed and the country missed the early waves of investment in Central and Eastern Europe that followed the fall of the Berlin Wall. Since 2000, however, Croatia's economic fortunes have begun to improve slowly, with moderate but steady GDP growth between 4% and 6% led by a rebound in tourism and credit-driven consumer spending. Inflation over the same period has remained tame and the currency, the kuna, stable. Nevertheless, difficult problems still remain, including a stubbornly high unemployment rate, a growing trade deficit and uneven regional development. The state retains a large role in the economy, as privatization efforts often meet stiff public and political resistance. While macroeconomic stabilization has largely been achieved, structural reforms lag because of deep resistance on the part of the public and lack of strong support from politicians. The EU accession process should accelerate fiscal and structural reform. Internally, the EU is attempting to lower trade barriers, adopt a common currency, and move toward convergence of living standards. Internationally, the EU aims to bolster Europe's trade position and its political and economic power. Because of the great differences in per capita income among member states (from $7,000 to $69,000) and historic national animosities, the EU faces difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. For example, since 2003 Germany and France have flouted the member states' treaty obligation to prevent their national budgets from running more than a 3% deficit. In 2004 and 2007, the EU admitted 10 and two countries, respectively, that are, in general, less advanced technologically and economically than the other 15. Eleven established EU member states introduced the euro as their common currency on 1 January 1999 (Greece did so two years later), but the UK, Sweden, and Denmark chose not to participate. Of the 12 most recent member states, only Slovenia (1 January 2007) and Cyprus and Malta (1 January 2008) have adopted the euro; the remaining nine are legally required to adopt the currency upon meeting EU's fiscal and monetary convergence criteria.
Electricity - consumption 14.97 billion kWh (2005) 2.81 trillion kWh (2004 est.)
Electricity - exports 3.634 billion kWh (2005) NA
Electricity - imports 8.746 billion kWh (2005) NA
Electricity - production 11.99 billion kWh (2005) 3.007 trillion kWh (2004 est.)
Elevation extremes lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m


highest point: Dinara 1,830 m
lowest point: Lammefjord, Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder, Netherlands -7 m


highest point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m; note - situated on the border between France and Italy
Environment - current issues air pollution (from metallurgical plants) and resulting acid rain is damaging the forests; coastal pollution from industrial and domestic waste; landmine removal and reconstruction of infrastructure consequent to 1992-95 civil strife NA
Environment - international agreements party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling


signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Tropical Timber 82, Tropical Timber 94


signed but not ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds
Ethnic groups Croat 89.6%, Serb 4.5%, other 5.9% (including Bosniak, Hungarian, Slovene, Czech, and Roma) (2001 census) -
Exchange rates kuna per US dollar - 5.3735 (2007), 5.8625 (2006), 5.9473 (2005), 6.0358 (2004), 6.7035 (2003) euros per US dollar - 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003)
Executive branch chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)


head of government: Prime Minister Ivo SANADER (since 9 December 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Jadranka KOSOR (since 23 December 2003) and Damir POLANCEC (since 15 February 2005), Djurdja ADLESIC (since 12 January 2008), Slobodan UZELAC (since 12 January 2008)


cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the parliamentary Assembly


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 16 January 2005 (next to be held in January 2010); the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the president and then approved by the Assembly


election results: Stjepan MESIC reelected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC 66%, Jadranka KOSOR 34% in the second round
chief of union: President of the European Commission Jose Manuel DURAO BARROSO (since 22 November 2004)


cabinet: European Commission (composed of 27 members, one from each member country; each commissioner responsible for one or more policy areas)


elections: the president of the European Commission is designated by member governments and is confirmed by the European Parliament; working from member state recommendations, the Commission president then assembles a "college" of Commission members; the European Parliament confirms the entire Commission for a five-year term; the last confirmation process was held 18 November 2004 (next to be held in 2009)


election results: European Parliament approved the European Commission by an approval vote of 449 to 149 with 82 abstentions


note: the European Council brings together heads of state and government and the president of the European Commission and meets at least four times a year; its aim is to provide the impetus for the major political issues relating to European integration and to issue general policy guidelines
Exports 40,930 bbl/day (2004) 6.971 million bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels machinery, motor vehicles, aircraft, plastics, pharmaceuticals and other chemicals, fuels, iron and steel, nonferrous metals, wood pulp and paper products, textiles, meat, dairy products, fish, alcoholic beverages.
Exports - partners Italy 23.1%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 12.7%, Germany 10.4%, Slovenia 8.3%, Austria 6.1% (2006) US 23.3%, Switzerland 7.6%, Russia 5.2%, China 4.8% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year NA
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and blue superimposed by the Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered) on a blue field, 12 five-pointed gold stars arranged in a circle, representing the union of the peoples of Europe; the number of stars is fixed
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 7.2%


industry: 32%


services: 60.7% (2007 est.)
agriculture: 2%


industry: 27.1%


services: 70.7% (2006 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 5.6% (2007 est.) 3% (2007 est.)
Geographic coordinates 45 10 N, 15 30 E -
Geography - note controls most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits; the vast majority of Adriatic Sea islands lie off the coast of Croatia - some 1,200 islands, islets, ridges, and rocks -
Heliports 2 (2007) 100 (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: 3.4%


highest 10%: 24.5% (2003 est.)
lowest 10%: 2.8%


highest 10%: 25.2% (2001 est.)
Illicit drugs transit point along the Balkan route for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe; has been used as a transit point for maritime shipments of South American cocaine bound for Western Europe -
Imports 109,800 bbl/day (2004) 17.76 million bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities machinery, transport and electrical equipment; chemicals, fuels and lubricants; foodstuffs machinery, vehicles, aircraft, plastics, crude oil, chemicals, textiles, metals, foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners Italy 16.7%, Germany 14.5%, Russia 9.7%, Slovenia 6.8%, Austria 5.4%, China 5.3% (2006) US 13.8%, China 13.4%, Russia 8.2%, Japan 6.2% (2006)
Independence 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) 7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1 November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)
Industrial production growth rate 6.5% (2007 est.) 2.6% (2006 est.)
Industries chemicals and plastics, machine tools, fabricated metal, electronics, pig iron and rolled steel products, aluminum, paper, wood products, construction materials, textiles, shipbuilding, petroleum and petroleum refining, food and beverages, tourism among the world's largest and most technologically advanced, the European Union industrial base includes: ferrous and non-ferrous metal production and processing, metal products, petroleum, coal, cement, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, aerospace, rail transportation equipment, passenger and commercial vehicles, construction equipment, industrial equipment, shipbuilding, electrical power equipment, machine tools and automated manufacturing systems, electronics and telecommunications equipment, fishing, food and beverage processing, furniture, paper, textiles, tourism
Infant mortality rate total: 6.6 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 6.6 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 6.6 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
total: 4.8 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 5.3 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 4.3 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 2.2% (2007 est.) 1.8% (2006 est.)
International organization participation ACCT (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC, MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSTAH, NAM (observer), NSG, OAS (observer), OIF (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, SECI, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNMEE, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMOGIP, UNOCI, UNOMIG, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC European Union: ARF (dialogue member), ASEAN (dialogue member), IDA, OAS (observer), UN (observer)


European Community: Australian Group, CBSS, CERN, FAO, EBRD, G-10, NAM (observer), NSG (observer), OECD, UNRWA, WCO, WTO, ZC (observer)


European Central Bank: BIS


European Investment Bank: EBRD, WADB (nonregional member)
Irrigated land 110 sq km (2003) 168,050 sq km (2003 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Court; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts appointed for eight-year terms by the Judicial Council of the Republic, which is elected by the Assembly Court of Justice of the European Communities (ensures that the treaties are interpreted and applied uniformly throughout the EU; resolve constitutional issues among the EU institutions) - 27 justices (one from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - for the sake of efficiency, the court can sit with 13 justices known as the "Grand Chamber"; Court of First Instance - 27 justices appointed for a six-year term
Labor force 1.714 million (2007 est.) 222.4 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 2.7%


industry: 32.8%


services: 64.5% (2004)
agriculture: 4.4%


industry: 27.1%


services: 67.1%


note: the remainder is in miscellaneous public and private sector industries and services (2002 est.)
Land boundaries total: 2,197 km


border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia 241 km, Montenegro 25 km, Slovenia 670 km
total: 12,440.8 km


border countries: Albania 282 km, Andorra 120.3 km, Belarus 1,050 km, Croatia 999 km, Holy See 3.2 km, Liechtenstein 34.9 km, Macedonia 394 km, Moldova 450 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Norway 2,348 km, Russia 2,257 km, San Marino 39 km, Serbia 945 km, Switzerland 1,811 km, Turkey 446 km, Ukraine 1,257 km


note: data for European Continent only
Land use arable land: 25.82%


permanent crops: 2.19%


other: 71.99% (2005)
arable land: NA%


permanent crops: NA%


other: NA%
Languages Croatian 96.1%, Serbian 1%, other and undesignated 2.9% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German) (2001 census) Bulgarian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, Gaelic, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish


note: only official languages are listed; German, the major language of Germany, Austria, and Switzerland, is the most widely spoken mother tongue - over 19% of the EU population; English is the most widely spoken language - about 49% of the EU population is conversant with it (2007)
Legal system based on Austro-Hungarian law system with Communist law influences; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction comparable to the legal systems of member states; first supranational law system
Legislative branch unicameral Assembly or Sabor (153 seats; members elected from party lists by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 25 November 2007 (next to be held in November 2011)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; number of seats by party - HDZ 66, SDP 56, HNS 7, HSS 6, HDSSB 3, IDS 3, SDSS 3, other 9
two legislative bodies consists of the Council of the European Union (27 member-state ministers having 345 votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states' population; note - the Council is the main decision-making body of the EU) and the European Parliament (785 seats, as of 1 January 2007; seats allocated among member states by proportion to population; members elected by direct universal suffrage for a five-year term)


elections: last held 10-13 June 2004 (next to be held June 2009)


election results: percent of vote - NA; seats by party - EPP-ED 268, PES 202, ALDE 88, Greens/EFA 42, EUL/NGL 41, IND/DEM 36, UEN 27, independents 28; note - seats by party as of 1 December 2007 - EPP-ED 275, PES 217, ALDE 104, UEN 44, Greens/EFA 42, EUL/NGL 41, IND/DEM 24, independents 34, 4 unaccounted for
Life expectancy at birth total population: 74.9 years


male: 71.26 years


female: 78.75 years (2007 est.)
total population: 78.7 years


male: 75.6 years


female: 82 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 98.1%


male: 99.3%


female: 97.1% (2001 census)
-
Location Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia Europe between the North Atlantic Ocean in the west and Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine to the east
Map references Europe Europe
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
NA
Merchant marine total: 75 ships (1000 GRT or over) 1,165,409 GRT/1,867,160 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 21, cargo 12, chemical tanker 3, passenger/cargo 28, petroleum tanker 7, refrigerated cargo 1, roll on/roll off 3


foreign-owned: 2 (Bermuda 2)


registered in other countries: 36 (Bahamas 1, Belize 1, Liberia 5, Malta 12, Marshall Islands 4, Panama 6, St Vincent and The Grenadines 7) (2007)
-
Military - note - In November 2004, the EU heads of government signed a "Treaty Establishing a Constitution for Europe" that offers possibilities for increased defense and security cooperation. If ratified, this treaty will give operational effect to the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP), approved in the 2000 Nice Treaty. Despite limits of cooperation for some EU members, development of a EU military planning unit is likely to continue. The planning unit will support the EU Rapid Reaction Force, which EU ministers have said will deploy 2 "battle groups" in January 2007. France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy continue to press for wider coordination. The 5-nation Eurocorps - created in 1992 by France, Germany, Belgium, Spain, and Luxembourg - has already deployed troops and police on peacekeeping missions to Bosnia-Herzegovina, Macedonia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo and assumed command of the ISAF in Afghanistan in August 2004. Eurocorps directly commands the 5,000-man Franco-German Brigade, the Multinational Command Support Brigade, and EUFOR, which took over from SFOR in Bosnia in December 2004. Individual EU nations made commitments to provide 67,100 troops following the December 1999 EU summit in Helsinki. Some 56,000 troops from EU member states were actually deployed on various international operations in 2003. In August 2004, the new European Defense Agency, tasked with promoting cooperative European defense capabilities, began operations. In November 2004, the EU Council of Ministers formally committed to creating 13 1,500-man battle groups by the end of 2007, to respond to international crises on a rotating basis. Twenty-two of the EU's 25 nations have agreed to supply troops. France, Italy, and the UK formed the first of 3 battle groups in 2005. In May 2005, Norway, Sweden and Finland agreed to establish one of the battle groups, possibly to include Estonia forces. The remaining 9 groups are to be formed in 2007. A rapid-reaction naval EU Maritime Task Group was stood up in March 2007. (2005)
Military branches Armed Forces of the Republic of Croatia (Oruzane Snage Republike Hrvatske, OSRH), consists of five major commands directly subordinate to a General Staff: Ground Forces (Hrvatska Kopnena Vojska, HKoV), Naval Forces (Hrvatska Ratna Mornarica, HRM), Air Force, Joint Education and Training Command, Logistics Command; Military Police Force supports each of the three Croatian military forces (2007) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.39% (2005 est.) -
National holiday Independence Day, 8 October (1991); note - 25 June 1991 was the day the Croatian Parliament voted for independence; following a three-month moratorium to allow the European Community to solve the Yugoslav crisis peacefully, Parliament adopted a decision on 8 October 1991 to sever constitutional relations with Yugoslavia Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday, the day that Robert SCHUMAN proposed the creation of the European Coal and Steel Community to achieve an organized Europe
Nationality noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)


adjective: Croatian
-
Natural hazards destructive earthquakes flooding along coasts; avalanches in mountainous area; earthquakes in the south; volcanic eruptions in Italy; periodic droughts in Spain; ice floes in the Baltic
Natural resources oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, gypsum, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower iron ore, natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, lead, zinc, bauxite, uranium, potash, salt, hydropower, arable land, timber, fish
Net migration rate 1.58 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.) 1.6 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines gas 1,556 km; oil 583 km (2007) -
Political parties and leaders Croatian Democratic Congress of Slavonia and Baranja or HDSSB [Vladimir SISLJAGIC]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of the Right or HSP [Anto DJAPIC]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Josip FRISCIC]; Croatian Pensioner Party or HSU [Vladimir JORDAN]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Djurdja ADLESIC]; Independent Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav STANIMIROVIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Zoran MILANOVIC] Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or EUL/NGL [Francis WURTZ]; European People's Party-European Democrats or EPP-ED [Joseph DAUL]; Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Graham R. WATSON]; Group of Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Monica FRASSONI and Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT]; Identity, Tradition, Sovereignty Group or ITS [Bruno GOLLNISCH]; Independence/Democracy Group or IND/DEM [Jens-Peter BONDE and Nigel FARAGE]; Socialist Group in the European Parliament or PES [Martin SCHULZ]; Union for Europe of the Nations Group or UEN [Brian CROWLEY and Cristiana MUSCARDINI]
Political pressure groups and leaders NA -
Population 4,493,312 (July 2007 est.) 490,426,060 (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 11% (2003) see individual country listings
Population growth rate -0.035% (2007 est.) 0.16% (2007 est.)
Radio broadcast stations AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999) AM 930, FM 13,655, shortwave 71 (1998); note - sum of individual country radio broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Euroradio)
Railways total: 2,726 km


standard gauge: 2,726 km 1.435-m gauge (1,199 km electrified) (2006)
total: 236,656 km


broad gauge: 28,240 km


standard gauge: 200,532 km


narrow gauge: 7,861 km


other: 23 km (2006)
Religions Roman Catholic 87.8%, Orthodox 4.4%, other Christian 0.4%, Muslim 1.3%, other and unspecified 0.9%, none 5.2% (2001 census) Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.054 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 0.989 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.626 male(s)/female


total population: 0.926 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
at birth: NA


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.69 male(s)/female


total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed) 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment: the telecommunications network has improved steadily since the mid-1990s; the number of fixed telephone lines has increased to about 40 per 100 persons; virtually 100 mobile cellular telephones per 100 persons


domestic: more than 90 percent of local lines are digital


international: country code - 385; digital international service is provided through the main switch in Zagreb; Croatia participates in the Trans-Asia-Europe (TEL) fiber-optic project, which consists of 2 fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; the ADRIA-1 submarine cable provides connectivity to Albania and Greece (2007)
note - see individual country entries of member states
Telephones - main lines in use 1.832 million (2006) 238 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular 4.47 million (2006) 466 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (1995) 2,700 (1995); note - sum of individual country television broadcast stations excluding repeaters; there is also a European-wide station (Eurovision)
Terrain geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the central and southern areas
Total fertility rate 1.41 children born/woman (2007 est.) 1.5 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 11.8% (2007 est.) 8.5% (2006 est.)
Waterways 785 km (2007) 52,332 km (2006)
Sitemap: Compare countries listing (map site) | Country listing (map site)
Links: Add to favorites | Information about this website | Stats | Polityka prywatnosci
This page was generated in ##czas## s. Size this page: ##rozmiar_strony## kB.