Compare French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2002) - European Union (2004)

Compare French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2002) z European Union (2004)

	French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2002)	European Union (2004)

Administrative divisions	none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 districts named Ile Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes "Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US	-
Age structure	-	0-14 years: 16.3% 15-64 years: 67.2% 65 years and over: 16.6% (July 2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	-	wheat, barley, oilseeds, sugar beets, wine, grapes, dairy products, cattle, sheep, pigs, poultry, fish
Airports	none (2001)	total: 3,130 with paved runways: 1,834 with unpaved runways: 1,296 (2003)
Area	total: 7,829 sq km land: 7,829 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen; excludes "Adelie Land" claim of about 500,000 sq km in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US	total: 3,976,372 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly less than 1.3 times the size of Delaware	less than one-half the size of the US
Background	The Southern Lands consist of two archipelagos, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen, and two volcanic islands, Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul. They contain no permanent inhabitants and are visited only by researchers studying the native fauna. The Antarctic portion consists of "Adelie Land," a thin slice of the Antarctic continent discovered and claimed by the French in 1840.	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 of 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 to 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 Great Britain, Sweden, and Denmark. In 2002, citizens of the 12 euro-area countries began using 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 - bringing the current membership to 25. In order to ensure that the EU can continue to function efficiently with an expanded membership, the 2003 Treaty of Nice set forth rules streamlining the size and procedures of EU institutions. An EU Constitutional Treaty, signed in Rome on 29 October 2004, gives member states two years to ratify the document before it is scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006. Despite the expansion of membership and functions, "Eurosceptics" in various countries have raised questions about the erosion of national cultures and the imposition of a flood of regulations from the EU capital in Brussels. Failure by member states to ratify the constitution or the inability of newcomer countries to meet euro currency standards might force a loosening of some EU agreements and perhaps lead to several levels of EU participation. These "tiers" might eventually range from an "inner" core of politically integrated countries to a looser "outer" economic association of members.
Birth rate	-	10.2 births/1,000 population (July 2004 est.)
Capital	-	Brussels, Belgium
Climate	antarctic	cold temperate; potentially subarctic in the north to temperate; mild wet winters; hot dry summers in the south
Coastline	1,232 km	65,413.9 km
Constitution	-	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 (Maastrict) in 1992; the Treaty of Amsterdam in 1997; and the Treaty of Nice in 2001; note - a new draft Constitutional Treaty, signed on 29 October 2004 in Rome, gives member states two years for ratification either by parliamentary vote or national referendum before it is scheduled to take effect on 1 November 2006
Country name	conventional long form: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands conventional short form: French Southern and Antarctic Lands local long form: Territoire des Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises local short form: Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises	-
Currency	-	euro; pound (Cyprus), koruna (Czech Republic), krone (Denmark), kroon (Estonia), forint (Hungary), lat (Latvia), litas (Lithuania), lira (Malta), zloty (Poland), koruna (Slovakia), tolar (Slovenia), krona (Sweden), pound (UK)
Death rate	-	10 deaths/1,000 population (July 2004 est.)
Debt - external	-	$NA
Dependency status	overseas territory of France since 1955; administered from Paris by Administrateur Superieur Francois GARDE (since 24 May 2000), assisted by Secretary General Jean-Yves HERMOSO (since NA)	-
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of France)	chief of mission: Ambassador Rockwell SCHNABEL 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	none (overseas territory of France)	chief of mission: Ambassador John BRUTON chancery: 2300 M Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 862-9500 FAX: [1] (202) 429-1766
Disputes - international	"Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica is not recognized by the US	-
Economic aid - donor	-	$NA
Economy - overview	Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and Reunion.	Domestically, the European Union attempts 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 (from $10,000 to $28,000) and historic national animosities, the European Community faces difficulties in devising and enforcing common policies. For example, both Germany and France since 2003 have flouted the member states' treaty obligation to prevent their national budgets from running more than a 3% deficit. In 2004, the EU admitted 10 central and eastern European countries that are, in general, less advanced technologically and economically than the existing 15. The Economic and Monetary Union (EMU), an associated organization, introduced the euro as the common currency on 1 January 1999. The UK, Sweden, and Denmark do not now participate; the 10 new countries may choose to join the EMU when they meet its fiscal and monetary criteria and the member states so agree.
Electricity - consumption	-	2.635 trillion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	-	234.8 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	-	245.7 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	-	2.822 trillion kWh (2001)
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Ross on Iles Kerguelen 1,850 m	lowest point: Lammefjord, Denmark -7 m; Zuidplaspolder, Netherlands -7 m highest point: Mount Blanc, France/Italy 4,807 m
Environment - current issues	NA	NA
Environment - international agreements	-	Hazardous Wastes, Biodiversity, Air Pollution, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Tropical Timber 82, Tropical Timber 94, Ozone Layer Protection, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Law of the Sea, Desertification, Climate Change; has signed, but not yet ratified: Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Exchange rates	-	euros per US dollar - 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001)
Executive branch	-	chief of union: President of the European Commission Jose DURAO BARROSO (since 22 November 2004) cabinet: European Commission (composed of 25 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; the president-designate then chooses the other Commission members; the European Parliament confirms the entire Commission for a five-year term; election last held 18 November 2004 (next to be held 2009) election results: European Parliament approved the European Commission by an approval vote of 449-149 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 twice 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	-	6.429 million bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities	-	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	-	NA
Fiscal year	-	NA
Flag description	the flag of France is used	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	-	purchasing power parity - $11.05 trillion (2004 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	-	agriculture: 2.3% industry: 28.3% services: 69.4% (2004 est.)
GDP - per capita	-	purchasing power parity - $25,700 (2004 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	-	1% (2004 est.)
Geographic coordinates	43 00 S, 67 00 E	-
Geography - note	islands component is widely scattered across remote locations in the southern Indian Ocean	-
Heliports	-	94 (2003)
Highways	-	total: 4,634,810 km (including 56,704 km of expressways) paved: 4,161,318 km unpaved: 473,492 km (1999-2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	-	lowest 10%: 2.9% highest 10%: 25.2% (1995 est.)
Imports	-	16.97 million bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities	-	machinery, vehicles, aircraft, plastics, crude oil, chemicals, textiles, metals, foodstuffs, clothing
Imports - partners	-	NA
Independence	-	7 February 1992 (Maastricht Treaty signed establishing the EU); 1 November 1993 (Maastricht Treaty entered into force)
Industrial production growth rate	-	0.8% (2004 est.)
Industries	-	among the world's largest and most technologically advanced industries, including iron and steel, aluminum, petroleum, coal, cement, chemicals, pharmaceuticals, automobiles, aircraft, railroad equipment, shipbuilding, electrical power equipment, machine tools, electronics, telecommunications equipment, fishing, food processing, furniture, paper, textiles and clothing, tourism
Infant mortality rate	-	total: 5.3 deaths/1,000 live births (July 2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-	2% (2004 est.)
International organization participation	-	European Union: ASEAN (dialogue member), ARF (dialogue member), EBRD, IDA, OAS (observer), OECD, WTO European Commission: Australian Group, CBSS, CERN, FAO, G-10, NSG (observer), UN (observer) European Central Bank: BIS European Investment Bank: WADB (nonregional member)
Irrigated land	0 sq km (1998 est.)	115,807 sq km
Judicial branch	-	European Court of Justice (ensures that the treaties are interpreted and applied correctly) - 25 Justices (one from each member state) appointed for a six-year term; note - for the sake of efficiency, the court can sit with 11 justices known as the "Grand Chamber"; Court of First Instance - 25 justices appointed for a six-year term
Labor force	-	211.1 million
Labor force - by occupation	-	agriculture 4.3%, industry 29%, services 66.8% (2000)
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 11,214.8 km border countries: Albania 282 km, Andorra 120.3 km, Belarus 1,050 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Croatia 999 km, Holy See 3.2 km, Liechtenstein 34.9 km, Macedonia 246 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Norway 2,348 km, Romania 443 km, Russia 2,257 km, San Marino 39 km, Serbia and Montenegro 151 km, Switzerland 1,811 km, Turkey 206 km, Ukraine 726 km note: data for European Continent only
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.)	arable land: NA permanent crops: NA
Languages	-	Czech, Danish, Dutch, English, Estonian, Finnish, French, German, Greek, Hungarian, Italian, Latvian, Lithuanian, Maltese, Polish, Portuguese, Slovak, Slovene, Spanish, Swedish; note - only official languages are listed
Legal system	the laws of France, where applicable, apply	-
Legislative branch	-	Council of the European Union (25 member-state ministers having 321 votes; the number of votes is roughly proportional to member-states' population); note - the Council is the main decision-making body of the EU; European Parliament (732 seats; 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
Life expectancy at birth	-	total population: 78.1 years male: 74.9 years female: 81.4 years (July 2004 est.)
Location	south of Africa, islands in the southern Indian Ocean, about equidistant between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia; note - French Southern and Antarctic Lands include Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet, and Iles Kerguelen in the southern Indian Ocean, along with the French-claimed sector of Antarctica, "Adelie Land"; the US does not recognize the French claim to "Adelie Land"	Europe between Eastern Europe and the North Atlantic Ocean
Map references	Antarctic Region	Europe
Maritime claims	exclusive economic zone: 200 NM from Iles Kerguelen only territorial sea: 12 NM	NA
Merchant marine	total: 71 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,815,472 GRT/4,806,161 DWT ships by type: bulk 5, cargo 5, chemical tanker 13, container 11, liquefied gas 7, petroleum tanker 19, roll on/roll off 11 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 2, France 62, Japan 3, Monaco 1, Norway 5, Sweden 1 (2002 est.)	-
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of France	In October 2004, the European Union heads of government signed a "constitutional treaty" that offers possibilities - with some limits - for increased defense and security cooperation. If ratified, in a process that may take some two years, this treaty will in effect make operational the European Security and Defense Policy (ESDP) approved in the 2000 Nice Treaty. Despite limits of cooperation for some EU members, development of a European military planning unit is likely to continue. So is creation of a rapid-reaction military force and a humanitarian aid system, which the planning unit will support. France, Germany, Belgium, Netherlands, Luxembourg, and Italy continue to press for wider coordination. The five-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 Congo and assumed command of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan in August 2004. Eurocorps directly commands the 5,000-man Franco-German Brigade and the Multinational Command Support Brigade and will command EUFOR, which will take over from SFOR in Bosnia in December 2004. Other troop contributions are under national command - committments to provide 67,100 troops were made at the Helsinki EU session in 2000. Some 56,000 EU troops were actually deployed in 2003. In August 2004, the new European Defense Agency, tasked with promoting cooperative European defense capabilities, began operations. As of November 2004, Germany, the United Kingdom, and France had proposed creation of three 1,500-man rapid-reaction "battle groups."
National holiday	-	Europe Day 9 May (1950); note - a Union-wide holiday, the day that Robert Schuman proposed the creation of an organized Europe
Natural hazards	Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes	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	fish, crayfish	iron ore, arable land, natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, lead, zinc, hydropower, uranium, potash, fish
Net migration rate	-	1.5 migrant(s)/1,000 population (July 2004 est.)
Political parties and leaders	-	Group of the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe or ALDE [Graham R. WATSON]; Independence/Democracy Group or IND/DEM [Jens-Peter BONDE and Nigel FARAGE]; Group of Greens/European Free Alliance or Greens/EFA [Monica FRASSONI and Daniel Marc COHN-BENDIT]; Socialist Group in the European Parliament or PES [Martin SCHULZ]; Confederal Group of the European United Left-Nordic Green Left or EUL/NGL [Francis WURTZ]; European People's Party-European Democrats or EPP-ED [Hans-Gert POETTERING]; Union for Europe of the Nations Group or UEN [Brian CROWLEY and Cristiana MUSCARDINI]
Population	no indigenous inhabitants (July 2002 est.) note: in 2002, there were 145 researchers whose numbers vary from winter (July) to summer (January)	456,285,839 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	-	NA
Population growth rate	-	0.17% (July 2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	none; offshore anchorage only	Antwerp (Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Bremen (Germany), Copenhagen (Denmark), Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas (Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal), London (UK), Marseille (France), Naples (Italy), Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Riga (Latvia), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Stockholm (Sweden), Talinn (Estonia)
Radio broadcast stations	-	AM 866, FM 13,396, shortwave 73 (1998); note - sum of individual country radio broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Euroradio)
Railways	-	total: 222,293 km broad gauge: 28,438 km standard gauge: 186,405 km narrow gauge: 7,427 km other: 23 km (2003)
Religions	-	Roman Catholic, Protestant, Orthodox, Muslim, Jewish
Sex ratio	-	at birth: NA under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and older: 0.69 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (July 2004 est.)
Suffrage	-	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	-	note - see individual country entries of member states
Telephones - main lines in use	-	238,763,162 (2002)
Telephones - mobile cellular	-	314,644,700 (2002)
Television broadcast stations	-	2,791 (1995); note - does not include repeaters; sum of indiviual country television broadcast stations; there is also a European-wide station (Eurovision)
Terrain	volcanic	fairly flat along the Baltic and Atlantic coast; mountainous in the central and southern areas
Total fertility rate	-	1.48 children born/woman (July 2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	-	9.1% (2004 est.)
Waterways	none	53,512 km

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