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Compare Virgin Islands (2003) - Kosovo (2008)
Compare Virgin Islands (2003) z Kosovo (2008)
| Virgin Islands (2003) | Kosovo (2008) | |
 |  | |
| Administrative divisions | none (territory of the US); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are three islands at the second order; Saint Croix, Saint John, Saint Thomas | 30 municipalities (komunat, singular - komuna in Albanian; opstine, singular - opstina in Serbian); Decan (Decani), Dragash (Dragas), Ferizaj (Urosevac), Fushe Kosove (Kosovo Polje), Gjakove (Dakovica), Gllogoc/Drenas (Glogovac), Gjilan (Gnjilane), Istog (Istok), Kacanik, Kline (Klina), Kamenice/Dardana (Kamenica), Leposaviq (Leposavic), Lipjan (Lipljan), Malisheve (Malisevo), Mitrovice (Mitrovica), Novoberde (Novo Brdo), Obiliq (Obilic), Peje (Pec), Podujeve (Podujevo), Prishtine (Pristina), Prizren, Rahovec (Orahovac), Shtime (Stimlje), Shterpce (Strpce), Skenderaj (Srbica), Suhareke (Suva Reka), Viti (Vitina), Vushtrri (Vucitrn), Zubin Potok, Zvecan |
| Age structure | 0-14 years: 26% (male 16,685; female 15,794)
15-64 years: 64.4% (male 36,241; female 44,157) 65 years and over: 9.5% (male 5,078; female 6,823) (2003 est.) |
- |
| Agriculture - products | fruit, vegetables, sorghum; Senepol cattle | NA |
| Airports | 2 (2002) | 10 (2008) |
| Airports - with paved runways | total: 2
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 (2002) |
total: 6
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 under 914 m: 4 (2008) |
| Airports - with unpaved runways | - | total: 4
under 914 m: 4 (2008) |
| Area | total: 352 sq km
land: 349 sq km water: 3 sq km |
total: 10,887 sq km
land: 10,887 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | twice the size of Washington, DC | slightly larger than Delaware |
| Background | During the 17th century, the archipelago was divided into two territorial units, one English and the other Danish. Sugarcane, produced by slave labor, drove the islands' economy during the 18th and early 19th centuries. In 1917, the US purchased the Danish portion, which had been in economic decline since the abolition of slavery in 1848. | Serbs migrated to the territories of modern Kosovo in the 7th century, but did not fully incorporate them into the Serbian realm until the early 13th century. The Serbian defeat at the Battle of Kosovo in 1389 led to five centuries of Ottoman rule, during which large numbers of Turks and Albanians moved to Kosovo. By the end of the 19th century, Albanians replaced the Serbs as the dominant ethnic group in Kosovo. Serbia reacquired control over Kosovo from the Ottoman Empire during the First Balkan War (1912), and after World War II (1945) the government of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia led by Josip Broz TITO reorganized Kosovo as an autonomous province within the constituent republic of Serbia. Over the next four decades, Kosovo Albanians lobbied for greater autonomy and Kosovo was granted the status almost equal to that of a republic in the 1974 Yugoslav Constitution. Despite the legislative concessions, Albanian nationalism increased in the 1980s leading to nationalist riots and calls for Kosovo's independence. Serbs in Kosovo complained of mistreatment and Serb nationalist leaders, such as Slobodan MILOSEVIC, exploited those charges to win support among Serbian voters, many of whom viewed Kosovo as their cultural heartland. Under MILOSEVIC's leadership, Serbia instituted a new constitution in 1989 that drastically curtailed Kosovo's autonomy and Kosovo Albanian leaders responded in 1991 by organizing a referendum that declared Kosovo independent from Serbia. The MILOSEVIC regime carried out repressive measures against the Albanians in the early 1990s as the unofficial government of Kosovo, led by Ibrahim RUGOVA, tried to use passive resistance to gain international assistance and recognition of its demands for independence. In 1995, Albanians dissatisfied with RUGOVA's nonviolent strategy created the Kosovo Liberation Army and launched an insurgency. In 1998, MILOSEVIC authorized a counterinsurgency campaign that resulted in massacres and massive expulsions of ethnic Albanians by Serbian military, police, and paramilitary forces. The international community tried to resolve the conflict peacefully, but MILOSEVIC rejected the proposed international settlement - the Rambouillet Accords - leading to a three-month NATO bombing of Serbia beginning in March 1999, which forced Serbia to withdraw its military and police forces from Kosovo in June 1999. UN Security Council Resolution 1244 (1999) placed Kosovo under a transitional administration, the UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK), pending a determination of Kosovo's future status. Under the resolution, Serbia's territorial integrity was protected, but it was UNMIK who assumed responsibility for governing Kosovo. In 2001, UNMIK promulgated a Constitutional Framework, which established Kosovo's Provisional Institutions of Self-Government (PISG), and in succeeding years UNMIK increasingly devolved responsibilities to the PISG. A UN-led process began in late 2005 to determine Kosovo's future status. Negotiations held intermittently between 2006 and 2007 on issues related to decentralization, religious heritage, and minority rights failed to yield a resolution between Serbia's willingness to grant a high degree of autonomy and the Albanians' call for full independence for Kosovo. On 17 February 2008, the Kosovo Assembly declared its independence from Serbia. |
| Birth rate | 15.8 births/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
| Budget | revenues: $364.4 million
expenditures: $364.4 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1990 est.) |
revenues: $893.2 million
expenditures: $796.6 million (2006 est.) |
| Capital | Charlotte Amalie | name: Pristina (Prishtine)
geographic coordinates: 42 40 N, 21 10 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 |
| Climate | subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds, relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season May to November | influenced by continental air masses resulting in relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns; Mediterranean and alpine influences create regional variation; maximum rainfall between October and December |
| Coastline | 188 km | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Constitution | Revised Organic Act of 22 July 1954 | Constitutional Framework of 2001; note - the Kosovo Government is charged with putting forward an AHTISAARI (UN Special Envoy) Plan-compliant draft of a new constitution soon after independence |
| Country name | conventional long form: United States Virgin Islands
conventional short form: Virgin Islands former: Danish West Indies |
conventional long form: Republic of Kosovo
conventional short form: Kosovo local long form: Republika e Kosoves (Republika Kosova) local short form: Kosova (Kosovo) former: Kosovo i Metohija, Autonomna Pokrajina |
| Currency | US dollar (USD) | - |
| Death rate | 5.68 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
| Debt - external | $NA | Serbia continued to pay Kosovo's external debt, which it claimed was around $1.2 billion; Kosovo was willing to accept around $900 million, according to the national bank of Serbia (2007) |
| Dependency status | organized, unincorporated territory of the US with policy relations between the Virgin Islands and the US under the jurisdiction of the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior | - |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | none (territory of the US) | - |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | none (territory of the US) | - |
| Disputes - international | none | Serbia with several other states protest the US and other states' recognition of Kosovo's declaring itself as a sovereign and independent state in February 2008; ethnic Serbian municipalities along Kosovo's northern border challenge final status of Kosovo-Serbia boundary; several thousand NATO-led KFOR peacekeepers under UNMIK authority continue to keep the peace within Kosovo between the ethnic Albanian majority and the Serb minority in Kosovo; Kosovo authorities object to alignment of the Kosovo boundary with Macedonia in accordance with the 2000 Macedonia-Serbia and Montenegro delimitation agreement |
| Economic aid - recipient | $NA | $252 million (2006) |
| Economy - overview | Tourism is the primary economic activity, accounting for more than 70% of GDP and 70% of employment. The islands normally host 2 million visitors a year. The manufacturing sector consists of petroleum refining, textiles, electronics, pharmaceuticals, and watch assembly. The agricultural sector is small, with most food being imported. International business and financial services are a small but growing component of the economy. One of the world's largest petroleum refineries is at Saint Croix. The islands are subject to substantial damage from storms. The government is working to improve fiscal discipline, support construction projects in the private sector, expand tourist facilities, reduce crime, and protect the environment. | Kosovo's economy has largely transitioned to a market-based system but is highly dependent on the international community and the diaspora for financial and technical assistance. Remittances from the diaspora - located mainly in Germany and Switzerland - account for about 30% of GDP. Kosovo's citizens are the poorest in Europe with an average per capita income of only $1900 - about one-third the level of neighboring Albania. Unemployment - at 50% of the population - is a severe problem that encourages outward migration. Most of Kosovo's population lives in rural towns outside of the largest city, Pristina. Inefficient, near-subsistence farming is common - the result of small plots, limited mechanization, and lack of technical expertise. The complexity of Serbia and Kosovo's political and legal relationships created uncertainty over property rights and hindered the privatization of state-owned assets. Minerals and metals - including lignite, lead, zinc, nickel, chrome, aluminum, magnesium, and a wide variety of construction materials - once formed the backbone of industry, but output has declined because investment is insufficient to replace ageing Eastern Bloc equipment. Technical and financial problems in the power sector also impede industrial development, and deter foreign investment. Economic growth is largely driven by the private sector - mostly small-scale retail businesses. Both the euro and the Serbian dinar circulate. Kosovo's tie to the euro has helped keep inflation low. Kosovo has maintained a budget surplus as a result of efficient tax collection and inefficient spending. While maintaining ultimate oversight, UNMIK continues to work with the EU and Kosovo's provisional government to accelerate economic growth, lower unemployment, and attract foreign investment. In order to help integrate Kosovo into regional economic structures, UNMIK signed (on behalf of Kosovo) its accession to the Central Europe Free Trade Area (CEFTA) in 2006. |
| Electricity - consumption | 957.9 million kWh (2001) | 4.281 billion kWh (2006) |
| Electricity - exports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
| Electricity - imports | 0 kWh (2001) | - |
| Electricity - production | 1.03 billion kWh (2001) | 3.996 billion kWh (2006) |
| Electricity - production by source | fossil fuel: 100%
hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (2001) |
- |
| Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m
highest point: Crown Mountain 474 m |
lowest point: Drini i Bardhe/Beli Drim 297 m (located on the border with Albania)
highest point: Gjeravica/Deravica 2,565 m |
| Environment - current issues | lack of natural freshwater resources | - |
| Ethnic groups | black 78%, white 10%, other 12%
note: West Indian 81% (49% born in the Virgin Islands and 32% born elsewhere in the West Indies), US mainland 13%, Puerto Rican 4%, other 2% |
Albanians 88%, Serbs 7%, other 5% (Bosniak, Gorani, Roma, Turk) |
| Exchange rates | the US dollar is used | Serbian dinars per US dollar - 54.5 (2008 est.) |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President George W. BUSH of the US (since 20 January 2001); Vice President Richard B. CHENEY (Since 20 January 2001)
head of government: Governor Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL (since 5 January 1999) and Lieutenant Governor Vargrave RICHARDS (since NA January 2003) cabinet: NA elections: US president and vice president elected on the same ticket for four-year terms; governor and lieutenant governor elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 5 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2006) election results: Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL reelected governor; percent of vote - Dr. Charles Wesley TURNBULL (Democrat) 50.5%, John de JONGH 24.4% |
chief of state: President Fatmir SEJDIU (since 10 February 2006)
head of government: Prime Minister Hashim THACI (since 9 January 2008) cabinet: ministers; elected by the Kosovo Assembly elections: the president is elected for a 5-year term by the Kosovo Assembly; the prime minister is elected by the Kosovo Assembly election results: Fatmir SEJDIU and Hashim THACI elected to be president and prime minister respectively by the Assembly |
| Exports | NA (2001) | $13.08 million (2006) |
| Exports - commodities | refined petroleum products | scrap metals, mining and processed metal products, plastics, wood |
| Exports - partners | US, Puerto Rico | Central Europe Free Trade Area (CFTA) 56% (2006) |
| Fiscal year | 1 October - 30 September | - |
| Flag description | white, with a modified US coat of arms in the center between the large blue initials V and I; the coat of arms shows a yellow eagle holding an olive branch in one talon and three arrows in the other with a superimposed shield of vertical red and white stripes below a blue panel | centered on a dark blue field is the shape of Kosovo in a gold color surmounted by six white, five-pointed stars - each representing one of the major ethnic groups of Kosovo - arrayed in a slight arc |
| GDP | purchasing power parity - $2.4 billion (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: NA%
industry: NA% services: NA% |
agriculture: NA
industry: NA services: NA |
| GDP - per capita | purchasing power parity - $19,000 (2001 est.) | - |
| GDP - real growth rate | 2% (2001 est.) | 2.6% (2007) |
| Geographic coordinates | 18 20 N, 64 50 W | 42 35 N, 21 00 E |
| Geography - note | important location along the Anegada Passage - a key shipping lane for the Panama Canal; Saint Thomas has one of the best natural deepwater harbors in the Caribbean | - |
| Heliports | - | 2 (2008) |
| Highways | total: 856 km
paved: NA km unpaved: NA km note: the only US possession where driving on the left side of the road is practiced (2000) |
- |
| Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
- |
| Imports | NA (2001) | $84.99 million (2006) |
| Imports - commodities | crude oil, foodstuffs, consumer goods, building materials | petroleum, foodstuffs, machinery and electrical equipment |
| Imports - partners | US, Puerto Rico | Central Europe Free Trade Area (CFTA) 48% (2006) |
| Industrial production growth rate | NA% | - |
| Industries | tourism, petroleum refining, watch assembly, rum distilling, construction, pharmaceuticals, textiles, electronics | NA |
| Infant mortality rate | total: 9 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 10.12 deaths/1,000 live births female: 7.81 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.) |
- |
| Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 2% (1992) | 2% (2007 est.) |
| International organization participation | ECLAC (associate), Interpol (subbureau), IOC | - |
| Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | 50 (2000) | - |
| Irrigated land | NA sq km | - |
| Judicial branch | US District Court of the Virgin Islands (under Third Circuit jurisdiction); Territorial Court (judges appointed by the governor for 10-year terms) | Supreme Court judges are appointed by the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG); district courts judges are appointed by the SRSG; municipal courts judges are appointed by the SRSG |
| Labor force | 49,000 (2002 est.) | 832,000 (June 2007 est.) |
| Labor force - by occupation | agriculture 1%, industry 20%, services 79% (1990 est.) | agriculture: 21.4%
industry: NA services: NA (2006) |
| Land boundaries | 0 km | total: 700.7 km
border countries: Albania 111.8 km, Macedonia 158.7 km, Montenegro 78.6 km, Serbia 351.6 km |
| Land use | arable land: 15%
permanent crops: 6% other: 79% (1998 est.) |
- |
| Languages | English (official), Spanish, Creole | Albanian, Serbian, Bosniak, Turkish |
| Legal system | based on US laws | evolving legal system based on terms of UN Special Envoy Martii AHTISAARI's Plan for Kosovo's supervised independence |
| Legislative branch | unicameral Senate (15 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve two-year terms)
elections: last held 6 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - Democratic Party 8, ICM NA, no party affiliation NA note: the Virgin Islands elects one non-voting representative to the US House of Representatives; election last held 6 November 2002 (next to be held NA November 2004); results - Donna M. CHRISTIAN-CHRISTENSON (Democrat) reelected |
unicameral Kosovo Assembly of the Provisional Government (120 seats; 100 seats directly elected, 10 seats for Serbs, 10 seats for other minorities; to serve three-year terms)
elections: last held 17 November 2007 (next to be held NA) election results: percent of vote by party - Democratic Party of Kosovo 34.3%, Democratic League of Kosovo 22.6%, New Kosovo Alliance 12.3%, Democratic League of Dardania-Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo 10.0%, Alliance for the Future of Kosovo 9.6%; seats by party - Democratic Party of Kosovo 37, Democratic League of Kosovo 25, New Kosovo Alliance 13, Democratic League of Dardania-Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo 11, Alliance for the Future of Kosovo 10 |
| Life expectancy at birth | total population: 78.59 years
male: 74.73 years female: 82.68 years (2003 est.) |
- |
| Literacy | definition: NA
total population: NA% male: NA% female: NA% |
- |
| Location | Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east of Puerto Rico | Southeast Europe, between Serbia and Macedonia |
| Map references | Central America and the Caribbean | Europe |
| Maritime claims | exclusive economic zone: 200 NM
territorial sea: 12 NM |
none (landlocked) |
| Merchant marine | none (2002 est.) | - |
| Military - note | defense is the responsibility of the US | - |
| National holiday | Transfer Day (from Denmark to the US), 27 March (1917) | - |
| Nationality | noun: Virgin Islander(s)
adjective: Virgin Islander |
noun: Kosovoan
adjective: Kosovoan |
| Natural hazards | several hurricanes in recent years; frequent and severe droughts and floods; occasional earthquakes | - |
| Natural resources | sun, sand, sea, surf | nickel, lead, zinc, magnesium, lignite, kaolin, chrome, bauxite |
| Net migration rate | 0.12 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.) | - |
| Political parties and leaders | Democratic Party [Arturo WATLINGTON]; Independent Citizens' Movement or ICM [Usie RICHARDS]; Republican Party [Gary SPRAUVE] | Albanian Christian Democratic Party of Kosovo or PSHDK [Mark KRASNIQI]; Alliance for the Future of Kosovo or AAK [Ramush HARADINAJ]; Alliance of Independent Social Democrats of Kososvo and Metohija or SDSKiM [Slavisa PETKOVIC]; Autonomous Liberal Party of SLS [Slobodan PETROVIC]; Bosniak Vakat Coalition [ Dzezair MURATI]; Citizens' Initiative of Gora or GIG [Murselj HALILI]; Council of Independent Social Democrats of Kosovo or SNSDKIM [Ljubisa ZIVIC]; Democratic League of Dardania or LDD [Nexhat DACI]; Democratic League of Kosovo or LDK [Fatmir SEJDIU]; Democratic Party of Ashkali of Kosovo or PDAK [Sabit RRAHMANI]; Democratic Party of Kosovo or PDK [Hashim THACI]; Kosovo Democratic Turkish Party of KDTP [Mahir YAGCILAR]; New Democratic Initiative of Kosovo or IRDK [Xhevdet Neziraj]; New Democratic Party or ND [Branislav GRBIC]; New Kosovo Alliance [Behgjet PACOLLI]; Popular Movement of Kosovo or LPK [Emrush XHEMAJLI]; Reform Party Ora; Serb National Party or SNS [Mihailo SCEPANOVIC]; Serbian Kosovo and Metohija Party or SKMS [Dragisa MIRIC]; United Roma Party of Kosovo or PREBK [Haxhi Zylfi MERXHA]; Democratic Action Party or SDA [Numan BALIC] |
| Political pressure groups and leaders | NA | - |
| Population | 124,778 (July 2003 est.) | 2,126,708 (2007 est.) |
| Population below poverty line | NA% | 30% (2006 est.) |
| Population growth rate | 1.02% (2003 est.) | - |
| Ports and harbors | Charlotte Amalie, Christiansted, Cruz Bay, Port Alucroix | - |
| Radio broadcast stations | AM 5, FM 11, shortwave 0 (2002) | - |
| Railways | 0 km | total: 430 km (2005) |
| Religions | Baptist 42%, Roman Catholic 34%, Episcopalian 17%, other 7% | Muslim, Serbian Orthodox, Roman Catholic |
| Sex ratio | at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.82 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.74 male(s)/female total population: 0.87 male(s)/female (2003 est.) |
- |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal; note - indigenous inhabitants are US citizens but do not vote in US presidential elections | 18 years of age; universal |
| Telephone system | general assessment: NA
domestic: modern, uses fiber-optic cable and microwave radio relay international: submarine cable and satellite communications; satellite earth stations - NA |
- |
| Telephones - main lines in use | 65,000 (1997) | 106,300 (2006) |
| Telephones - mobile cellular | 2,000 (1992) | 562,000 (2006) |
| Television broadcast stations | 2 (2002) | - |
| Terrain | mostly hilly to rugged and mountainous with little level land | flat fluvial basin with an elevation of 400-700 m above sea level surrounded by several high mountain ranges with elevations of 2,000 to 2,500 m |
| Total fertility rate | 2.22 children born/woman (2003 est.) | - |
| Unemployment rate | 4.9% (March 1999) | 50% (2007 est.) |
| Waterways | none | - |
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