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Compare Syria (2006) - Croatia (2002)

Compare Syria (2006) z Croatia (2002)

 Syria (2006)Croatia (2002)
 SyriaCroatia
Administrative divisions 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus 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: 37% (male 3,592,915/female 3,384,722)


15-64 years: 59.7% (male 5,779,257/female 5,500,887)


65 years and over: 3.3% (male 296,070/female 327,510) (2006 est.)
0-14 years: 18.3% (male 411,847; female 390,797)


15-64 years: 66.3% (male 1,461,305; female 1,448,973)


65 years and over: 15.4% (male 252,970; female 424,859) (2002 est.)
Agriculture - products wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk wheat, corn, sugar beets, sunflower seed, barley, alfalfa, clover, olives, citrus, grapes, soybeans, potatoes; livestock, dairy products
Airports 92 (2006) 67 (2001)
Airports - with paved runways total: 26


over 3,047 m: 6


2,438 to 3,047 m: 15


914 to 1,523 m: 3


under 914 m: 2 (2006)
total: 22


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: 8 (2002)
Airports - with unpaved runways total: 66


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 54 (2006)
total: 45


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 7


under 914 m: 37 (2002)
Area total: 185,180 sq km


land: 184,050 sq km


water: 1,130 sq km


note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
total: 56,542 sq km


land: 56,414 sq km


water: 128 sq km
Area - comparative slightly larger than North Dakota slightly smaller than West Virginia
Background Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, France administered Syria until its independence in 1946. The country lacked political stability, however, and experienced a series of military coups during its first decades. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic, but in September 1961 the two entities separated and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the Socialist Ba'th Party and the minority Alawite sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel, and over the past decade Syria and Israel have held occasional peace talks over its return. Following the death of President al-ASAD in July 2000, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April of 2005. In 1918, the Croats, Serbs, and Slovenes formed a kingdom known after 1929 as Yugoslavia. Following World War II, Yugoslavia became an 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.
Birth rate 27.76 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) 12.8 births/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Budget revenues: $6.392 billion


expenditures: $7.613 billion; including capital expenditures of $3.23 billion (2005 est.)
revenues: $8.6 billion


expenditures: $9 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (2001 est.)
Capital name: Damascus


geographic coordinates: 33 30 N, 36 18 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins 1 April; ends 30 September
Zagreb
Climate mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus Mediterranean and continental; continental climate predominant with hot summers and cold winters; mild winters, dry summers along coast
Coastline 193 km 5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km)
Constitution 13 March 1973 adopted on 22 December 1990
Country name conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic


conventional short form: Syria


local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah


local short form: Suriyah


former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
conventional long form: Republic of Croatia


conventional short form: Croatia


local long form: Republika Hrvatska


local short form: Hrvatska
Currency - kuna (HRK)
Death rate 4.81 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) 11.31 deaths/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Debt - external $8.566 billion; note - excludes military debt and debt to Russia (2005 est.) $16.5 billion (2001)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Michael CORBIN


embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansour Street, No. 2, Damascus


mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus


telephone: [963] (11) 333-1342


FAX: [963] (11) 224-7938
chief of mission: Ambassador Lawrence G. ROSSIN


embassy: Andrije Hebranga 2, Zagreb 10000


mailing address: use street address


telephone: [385] (1) 661-2200


FAX: [385] (1) 661-2373
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission: Ambassador Imad MUSTAFA


chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313


FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548
chief of mission: Ambassador Ivan GRDESIC


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
Disputes - international Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied with the almost 1,000-strong UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) patrolling a buffer zone since 1964; Lebanon claims Shaba'a farms in Golan Heights; international pressure prompts the removal of Syrian troops and intelligence personnel stationed in Lebanon since October 1976; 2004 Agreement and pending demarcation settles border dispute with Jordan Croatia and Bosnia and Herzegovina continue discussions on the disputed boundary in the Una River near Kostajnica, Hrvatska Dubica, and Zeljava; Bosnia and Herzegovina also protests Croatian claim to the tip of the Klek Peninsula and several islands near Neum; Hungary opposes Croatian plan to build a hydropower dam on the boundary stream Drava; Slovenia and Croatia have not obtained parliamentary ratification of 2001 land and maritime boundary treaty which cedes villages on the Dragonja River and Sveta Gera (Trdinov Peak) to Croatia, and most of Pirin Bay to Slovenia, but restricts Slovenian access to the open sea; Croatia and Serbia and Montenegro continue to discuss disputed Prevlaka Peninsula and control over the Gulf of Kotor despite imminent UN intention to withdraw observer mission (UNMOP); Croatia and Italy are still trying to resolve bilateral property and ethnic minority rights dating from World War II
Economic aid - recipient $180 million (2002 est.) ODA $66 million (2000)
Economy - overview The Syrian Government estimates the economy grew by 4.5 percent in real terms in 2005, led by the petroleum and agricultural sectors, which together account for about half of GDP. Economic performance and the exchange rate on the informal market were hit by international political developments following the assassination in February of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafiq al-HARIRI and the specter of international sanctions. Higher crude oil prices countered declining oil production and exports and helped to narrow the budget deficit and widen the current account surplus. The Government of Syria has implemented modest economic reforms in the last few years, including cutting interest rates, opening private banks, consolidating some of the multiple exchange rates, and raising prices on some subsidized foodstuffs. Nevertheless, the economy remains highly controlled by the government. Long-run economic constraints include declining oil production and exports, increasing pressure on water supplies caused by rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and water pollution. Before the dissolution of Yugoslavia, the Republic of Croatia, after Slovenia, was the most prosperous and industrialized area, with a per capita output perhaps one-third above the Yugoslav average. The economy emerged from its mild recession in 2000 with tourism the main factor, but massive structural unemployment remains a key negative element. The government's failure to press the economic reforms needed to spur growth is largely the result of coalition politics and public resistance, particularly from the trade unions, to measures that would cut jobs, wages, or social benefits. As a result, the country is likely to experience only moderate growth without disciplined fiscal and structural reform.
Electricity - consumption 28.26 billion kWh (2003 est.) 12.638 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - exports 0 kWh (2003) 900 million kWh (2000)
Electricity - imports 0 kWh (2003) 3.7 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production 29.53 billion kWh (2003 est.) 10.578 billion kWh (2000)
Electricity - production by source - fossil fuel: 45%


hydro: 55%


nuclear: 0%


other: 0% (2000)
Elevation extremes lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m


highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m


highest point: Dinara 1,830 m
Environment - current issues deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water 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
Environment - international agreements party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Ethnic groups Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7% Croat 78.1%, Serb 12.2%, Bosniak 0.9%, Hungarian 0.5%, Slovene 0.5%, Czech 0.4%, Albanian 0.3%, Montenegrin 0.3%, Roma 0.2%, others 6.6% (1991)
Exchange rates Syrian pounds per US dollar - (public sector rate): 11.225 (2005), 11.225 (2004), 11.225 (2003), 11.225 (2002), 11.225 (2001), (parallel market rate in 'Amman and Beirut): NA (2005), NA (2004), 52.8 (2003), 52.4 (2002), 50.4 (2001), (official rate for repaying loans): 11.25 (2004) kuna per US dollar - 8.452 (January 2002), 8.340 (2001), 8.277 (2000), 7.112 (1999), 6.362 (1998), 6.101 (1997)
Executive branch chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Farouk al-SHARA (since 11 February 2006)


head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003); Deputy Prime Minister Abdallah al-DARDARI (since 14 June 2005)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president approved by popular referendum for a seven-year term (no term limits); referendum last held 10 July 2000 - after the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, father of Bashar al-ASAD - (next to be held 2007); vice president appointed by the president; prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president


election results: Bashar al-ASAD approved as president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.29%


note: Hafiz al-ASAD died on 10 June 2000; on 20 June, the Ba'th Party nominated Bashar al-ASAD for president and presented his name to the People's Council on 25 June; he was approved by a popular referendum on 10 July
chief of state: President Stjepan (Stipe) MESIC (since 18 February 2000)


head of government: Prime Minister Ivica RACAN (since 27 January 2000); Deputy Prime Ministers Goran GRANIC (since 27 January 2000), Ante SIMONIC (since NA July 2002), Slavko LINIC (since 27 January 2000)


cabinet: Council of Ministers named by the prime minister and approved by the House of Representatives


elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 7 February 2000 (next to be held NA 2005); prime minister nominated by the president in line with the balance of power in the Assembly


election results: Stjepan MESIC elected president; percent of vote - Stjepan MESIC (HNS) 56%, Drazen BUDISA (HSLS) 44%


note: government coalition - SDP, HSLS, HSS, LP, HNS; a fifth party, the Istrian Democratic Assembly (IDS), withdrew in June 2001
Exports 285,000 bbl/day (2004) $5.1 billion f.o.b. (2002 est.)
Exports - commodities crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat transport equipment, textiles, chemicals, foodstuffs, fuels
Exports - partners Iraq 22.3%, Saudi Arabia 15.3%, Italy 8.4%, Germany 8.3%, Lebanon 7.7%, Egypt 4.3%, France 4.2% (2005) Italy 23.7%, Germany 14.8%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 12%, Slovenia 9.1%, Austria 5.7%, France 3.5 (2001)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; the current design dates to 1980 red, white, and blue horizontal bands with Croatian coat of arms (red and white checkered)
GDP - purchasing power parity - $38.9 billion (2002 est.)
GDP - composition by sector agriculture: 24.9%


industry: 23%


services: 51.9% (2004 est.)
agriculture: 9%


industry: 33%


services: 58% (2002 est.)
GDP - per capita - purchasing power parity - $8,800 (2002 est.)
GDP - real growth rate 2.8% (2005 est.) 3% (2002 est.)
Geographic coordinates 35 00 N, 38 00 E 45 10 N, 15 30 E
Geography - note there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 2005 est.) controls most land routes from Western Europe to Aegean Sea and Turkish Straits
Heliports 7 (2006) 1 (2002)
Highways - total: 28,009 km


paved: 23,695 km (including 330 km of expressways)


unpaved: 4,314 km (2001)
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
lowest 10%: 4%


highest 10%: 23% (1998)
Illicit drugs a transit point for opiates and hashish bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls and bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money-laundering 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 NA bbl/day $9.7 billion c.i.f. (2002)
Imports - commodities machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper machinery, transport and electrical equipment, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, foodstuffs
Imports - partners Saudi Arabia 10.6%, China 5.6%, Egypt 5.4%, Italy 5.3%, UAE 5.2%, Ukraine 4.2%, Germany 4.1% (2005) Germany 17.1%, Italy 16.9%, Slovenia 7.9%, Russia 7.2%, Austria 7%, France 4.4% (2001)
Independence 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration) 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia)
Industrial production growth rate 7% (2002 est.) 2.8% (2002 est.)
Industries petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining 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
Infant mortality rate total: 28.61 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 28.85 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 28.36 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
7.06 deaths/1,000 live births (2002 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 5% (2005 est.) 4% (2002 est.)
International organization participation ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO BIS, CCC, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) - 9 (2000)
Irrigated land 13,330 sq km (2003) 30 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch Supreme Constitutional Court (adjudicates electoral disputes and rules on constitutionality of laws and decrees; justices appointed for four-year terms by the President); High Judicial Council (appoints and dismisses judges; headed by the President); Court of Cassation (national level); State Security Courts (hear cases related to national security); Personal Status Courts (religious; hear cases related to marriage and divorce); Courts of First Instance (local level; include magistrate, summary, and peace courts) 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 House of Representatives
Labor force 5.12 million (2004 est.) 1.7 million (2001)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture: 30%


industry: 27%


services: 43% (2002 est.)
agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Land boundaries total: 2,253 km


border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km
total: 2,197 km


border countries: Bosnia and Herzegovina 932 km, Hungary 329 km, Serbia and Montenegro (north) 241 km, Serbia and Montenegro (south) 25 km, Slovenia 670 km
Land use arable land: 24.8%


permanent crops: 4.47%


other: 70.73% (2005)
arable land: 23.55%


permanent crops: 2.24%


other: 74.21% (1998 est.)
Languages Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood Croatian 96%, other 4% (including Italian, Hungarian, Czech, Slovak, and German)
Legal system based on a combination of French and Ottoman civil law; religious law is used in the family court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction based on civil law system
Legislative branch unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-Shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held 2-3 March 2003 (next to be held in 2007)


election results: percent of vote by party - NPF 67%, independents 33%; seats by party - NPF 167, independents 83; note - the constitution guarantees that the Ba'th Party (part of the NPF alliance) receives one-half of the seats
unicameral Assembly or Sabor (151 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms); note - House of Counties was abolished in March 2001


elections: Assembly - last held 2-3 January 2000 (next to be held in the fall of 2003)


election results: Assembly (then referred to as the House of Representatives) - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - HDZ 46, SDP 44, HSLS 24, HSS 17, HSP/HKDU 5, IDS 4, HNS 2, independents 4, minority representatives 5
Life expectancy at birth total population: 70.32 years


male: 69.01 years


female: 71.7 years (2006 est.)
total population: 74.13 years


male: 70.52 years


female: 77.96 years (2002 est.)
Literacy definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 76.9%


male: 89.7%


female: 64% (2003 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 97%


male: 99%


female: 95% (1991 est.)
Location Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Slovenia
Map references Middle East Europe
Maritime claims territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 41 nm
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation


territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine total: 108 ships (1000 GRT or over) 386,603 GRT/563,506 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 8, cargo 93, container 1, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1


foreign-owned: 11 (Lebanon 7, Romania 3, UAE 1)


registered in other countries: 130 (Cambodia 20, Comoros 4, Cyprus 3, Dominica 1, Georgia 43, Hong Kong 1, North Korea 14, Lebanon 1, Malta 7, Mongolia 1, Panama 18, Saint Kitts and Nevis 3, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 6, Sierra Leone 1, Slovakia 2, unknown 5) (2006)
total: 49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 681,465 GRT/1,076,315 DWT


ships by type: bulk 14, cargo 13, chemical tanker 1, combination bulk 5, container 1, multi-functional large-load carrier 3, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 2, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 3


note: includes a foreign-owned ship registered here as a flag of convenience: Hong Kong 1 (2002 est.)
Military branches Syrian Armed Forces: Syrian Arab Army (includes Syrian Arab Navy), Syrian Arab Air and Air Defense Force (includes Air Defense Command) (2005) Ground Forces (Hrvatska Vojska, HV), Naval Forces, Air and Air Defense Forces
Military expenditures - dollar figure $858 million (FY00 est.); note - based on official budget data that may understate actual spending $520 million (2002 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 5.9% (FY00) 2.39% (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability - males age 15-49: 1,086,578 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service - males age 15-49: 860,497 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - military age - 19 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually - males: 30,037 (2002 est.)
National holiday Independence Day, 17 April (1946) Statehood Day, 25 June (1991)
Nationality noun: Syrian(s)


adjective: Syrian
noun: Croat(s), Croatian(s)


adjective: Croatian
Natural hazards dust storms, sandstorms destructive earthquakes
Natural resources petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower oil, some coal, bauxite, low-grade iron ore, calcium, natural asphalt, silica, mica, clays, salt, hydropower
Net migration rate 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) 9.72 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2002 est.)
Pipelines gas 2,764 km; oil 2,000 km (2006) crude oil 670 km; petroleum products 20 km; natural gas 310 km (1992)
Political parties and leaders Arab Socialist Unionist Movement [Ahmed al-AHMED]; National Progressive Front or NPF (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party; the governing party) [President Bashar al-ASAD, secretary general]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallal Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Arab Socialist Party or ASP [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yuusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Syrian Social National Party [Jubran URAYJI]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL] Alliance of Croatian Coast and Mountains Department or PGS [Luciano SUSANJ]; Croatian Christian Democratic Union or HKDU [Marko VESELICA]; Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ [Ivo SANADER]; Croatian Party of Rights or HSP [Dobroslav PARAGA]; Croatian Peasant Party or HSS [Zlatko TOMCIC]; Croatian People's Party or HNS [Vesna PUSIC]; Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS [Drazen BUDISA]; Croatian True Revival Party or HIP [Miroslav TUDJMAN]; Independent Democratic Serb Party or SDSS [Vojislav STANIMIROVIC]; Istrian Democratic Assembly or IDS [Ivan JAKOVCIC]; Liberal Party or LP [leader NA]; Social Democratic Party of Croatia or SDP [Ivica RACAN]


note: the Social Democratic Party or SDP and the Croatian Social Liberal Party or HSLS formed a coalition as did the HSS, HNS, LP, and IDS, which together defeated the Croatian Democratic Union or HDZ in the 2000 lower house parliamentary election; the IDS subsequently left the governing coalition in June 2001 over its inability to win greater autonomy for Istria
Political pressure groups and leaders Kurdish Democratic Alliance (includes several groups but has no designated leader); Kurdish Democratic Front (includes several groups but has no designated leader); Muslim Brotherhood (operates in exile in London) [Sadr al-Din al-BAYANUNI]; National Democratic Front [Hassan Abd al-AZIM] NA
Population 18,881,361


note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2006 est.)
4,390,751 (July 2002 est.)
Population below poverty line 20% (2004 est.) NA%
Population growth rate 2.3% (2006 est.) 1.12% (2002 est.)
Ports and harbors - Dubrovnik, Dugi Rat, Omisalj, Ploce, Pula, Rijeka, Sibenik, Split, Vukovar (inland waterway port on Danube), Zadar
Radio broadcast stations AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 16, FM 98, shortwave 5 (1999)
Radios - 1.51 million (1997)
Railways total: 2,711 km


standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge


narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2005)
total: 2,726 km


standard gauge: 2,726 km 1.435-m gauge (NA electrified) (2000)
Religions Sunni Muslim 74%, Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects 16%, Christian (various sects) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo) Roman Catholic 76.5%, Orthodox 11.1%, Muslim 1.2%, Protestant 0.4%, others and unknown 10.8% (1991)
Sex ratio at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.9 male(s)/female


total population: 1.05 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female


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


65 years and over: 0.6 male(s)/female


total population: 0.94 male(s)/female (2002 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed)
Telephone system general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology


domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network


international: country code - 963; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel
general assessment: NA


domestic: reconstruction plan calls for replacement of all analog circuits with digital and enlarging the network; a backup will be included in the plan for the main trunk


international: 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 two fiber-optic trunk connections with Slovenia and a fiber-optic trunk line from Rijeka to Split and Dubrovnik; Croatia is also investing in ADRIA 1, a joint fiber-optic project with Germany, Albania, and Greece (2000)
Telephones - main lines in use 2.903 million (2005) 1,721,139 (2000)
Telephones - mobile cellular 2.95 million (2005) 1.3 million (2001)
Television broadcast stations 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995) 36 (plus 321 repeaters) (September 1995)
Terrain primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west geographically diverse; flat plains along Hungarian border, low mountains and highlands near Adriatic coastline and islands
Total fertility rate 3.4 children born/woman (2006 est.) 1.93 children born/woman (2002 est.)
Unemployment rate 12.3% (2004 est.) 20.2% (2002 est.)
Waterways 900 km (not economically significant) (2005) 785 km


note: (perennially navigable; large sections of Sava blocked by downed bridges, silt, and debris)
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