GERMANY
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered to the North by the North Sea, Denmark, and the Baltic Sea, to the East by Poland and the Czech Republic, to the South by Austria and Switzerland and in the West by France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands.
With over 82 million inhabitants, it has the largest population among the EU countries even though its landmass is by far not the largest.
After World War II, Germany's territory was divided into two separate states in 1949. It became reunified again on October 3rd, 1990. Germany is a founding member of the European Union and part of the Euro zone since 1999. It has played a leading role in the EU since its beginnings and has maintained a strong alliance with France since the end of World War II. The alliance was especially close in the late 1980s and early 1990s under the leadership of Christian Democrat Helmut Kohl and Socialist François Mitterrand. It holds a key position in European affairs and is recognized as a scientific and technological leader in several fields. It is at the front position of European states to create a more unified and capable European political, defense and security system.
Germany is the largest national economy in Europe. The development in 2006 was 2.8% and it is predicted to keep this level in the following years. The export of goods "Made in Germany" is one of the main factors of the country's wealth.
The largest international trade fairs and congresses are held in several German cities such as Hannover, Frankfurt and Berlin every year.
The ten biggest companies on the international stock market are Daimler, Volkswagen, Allianz, Siemens, Deutsche Bank, E.ON, Deutsche Post, Deutsche Telekom, Metro and BASF. Well known global brands are Mercedes Benz, SAP, BMW, adidas, Audi, Porsche and Nivea.
Germany is a federal parliamentary republic of sixteen states (Bundesländer). The capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8 and signed the Kyoto protocol.
