Part 157
telephone: [40] (21) 200-3300
FAX: [40] (21) 200-3442
Flag description:
three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), yellow, and red; the national coat of arms that used to be centered in the yellow band has been removed; now similar to the flag of Chad, also resembles the flags of Andorra and Moldova
Economy ::Romania
Economy - overview:
Romania, which joined the European Union on 1 January 2007, began the transition from Communism in 1989 with a largely obsolete industrial base and a pattern of output unsuited to the country's needs. The country emerged in 2000 from a punishing three-year recession thanks to strong demand in EU export markets. Domestic consumption and investment have fueled strong GDP growth in recent years, but have led to large current account imbalances. Romania's macroeconomic gains have only recently started to spur creation of a middle class and address Romania's widespread poverty. Corruption and red tape continue to handicap its business environment. Inflation rose in 2007-08, driven in part by strong consumer demand and high wage growth, rising energy costs, a nation-wide drought affecting food prices, and a relaxation of fiscal discipline. Romania's strong GDP growth moderated markedly in the last quarter of 2008 as the country began to feel the effects of a global downturn in financial markets and trade, and growth is expected to be much weaker in 2009. Romania hopes to adopt the euro by 2014.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$272 billion (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 42 $254 billion (2007 est.)
$239.2 billion (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$200.1 billion (2008 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
7.1% (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 35 6.2% (2007 est.)
7.9% (2006 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$12,200 (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 90 $11,400 (2007 est.)
$10,700 (2006 est.)
note: data are in 2008 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 8.1%
industry: 36%
services: 55.9% (2008 est.)
Labor force:
9.32 million (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 53
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 29.7%
industry: 23.2%
services: 47.1% (2006)
Unemployment rate:
4.4% (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 56 4.1% (2007 est.)
Population below poverty line:
25% (2005 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 1.2%
highest 10%: 20.8% (2006)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
32 (2008) country comparison to the world: 103 28.8 (2003)
Investment (gross fixed):
33.3% of GDP (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 13
Budget:
revenues: $65.29 billion
expenditures: $74.99 billion (2008 est.)
Public debt:
14.7% of GDP (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 105 23.6% of GDP (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
7.8% (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 123 4.8% (2007 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
NA%
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
14.99% (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 55 13.35% (31 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$25.3 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 33 $25.17 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$36.09 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 33 $34.96 billion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$72.85 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 43 $58.76 billion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$19.92 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 59 $44.93 billion (31 December 2007)
$32.78 billion (31 December 2006)
Agriculture - products:
wheat, corn, barley, sugar beets, sunflower seed, potatoes, grapes; eggs, sheep
Industries:
electric machinery and equipment, textiles and footwear, light machinery and auto assembly, mining, timber, construction materials, metallurgy, chemicals, food processing, petroleum refining
Industrial production growth rate:
7.1% (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 27
Electricity - production:
58.28 billion kWh (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 44
Electricity - consumption:
49.44 billion kWh (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 44
Electricity - exports:
5.169 billion kWh (2008 est.)
Electricity - imports:
921 million kWh (2008 est.)
Oil - production:
115,200 bbl/day (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 50
Oil - consumption:
219,000 bbl/day (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 54
Oil - exports:
115,600 bbl/day (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 65
Oil - imports:
217,000 bbl/day (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 45
Oil - proved reserves:
600 million bbl (1 January 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 42
Natural gas - production:
11.42 billion cu m (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 41
Natural gas - consumption:
16.92 billion cu m (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 39
Natural gas - exports:
0 cu m (2008) country comparison to the world: 128
Natural gas - imports:
5.5 billion cu m (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 30
Natural gas - proved reserves:
63 billion cu m (1 January 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 60
Current account balance:
-$24.81 billion (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 178 -$23.02 billion (2007 est.)
Exports:
$49.41 billion (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 56 $40.32 billion (2007 est.)
Exports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, textiles and footwear, metals and metal products, machinery and equipment, minerals and fuels, chemicals, agricultural products
Exports - partners:
Germany 16.5%, Italy 15.6%, France 7.4%, Turkey 6.6%, Hungary 5.1%, Bulgaria 4.2% (2008)
Imports:
$76.17 billion (2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 42 $64.54 billion (2007 est.)
Imports - commodities:
machinery and equipment, fuels and minerals, chemicals, textile and products, metals, agricultural products
Imports - partners:
Germany 16.3%, Italy 11.4%, Hungary 7.4%, Russia 6%, France 5.7%, Turkey 4.9%, Austria 4.9%, Kazakhstan 4.6%, China 4.2% (2008)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$39.47 billion (31 December 2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 33 $39.96 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Debt - external:
$102.2 billion (31 December 2008) country comparison to the world: 36 $NA (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$72.61 billion (31 December 2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 43 $62.86 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$921 million (31 December 2008 est.) country comparison to the world: 74 $1.238 billion (31 December 2007 est.)
Exchange rates:
lei (RON) per US dollar - 2.5 (2008 est.), 2.43 (2007), 2.809 (2006), 3 (2005), 3 (2004)
Communications ::Romania
Telephones - main lines in use:
5.036 million (2007) country comparison to the world: 31
Telephones - mobile cellular:
24.467 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 34
Telephone system:
general assessment: the telecommunications sector is being expanded and modernized; domestic and international service improving rapidly, especially mobile-cellular services
domestic: more than 90 percent of telephone network is automatic; fixed-line teledensity exceeds 20 telephones per 100 persons; mobile-cellular teledensity, expanding rapidly, roughly 110 telephones per 100 persons
international: country code - 40; the Black Sea Fiber Optic System provides connectivity to Bulgaria and Turkey; satellite earth stations - 10; digital, international, direct-dial exchanges operate in Bucharest (2008)
Radio broadcast stations:
698 (station frequency type NA) (2006)
Television broadcast stations:
623 (plus 200 repeaters) (2006)
Internet country code:
.ro
Internet hosts:
2.188 million (2009) country comparison to the world: 31
Internet users:
6.132 million (2008) country comparison to the world: 37
Transportation ::Romania
Airports:
53 (2009) country comparison to the world: 89
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 25
over 3,047 m: 4
2,438 to 3,047 m: 10
1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 28
914 to 1,523 m: 7
under 914 m: 21 (2009)
Heliports:
2 (2009)
Pipelines:
gas 3,588 km; oil 2,424 km (2008)
Railways:
total: 10,788 km country comparison to the world: 21 broad gauge: 57 km 1.524-m gauge
standard gauge: 10,731 km 1.435-m gauge (3,965 km electrified) (2008)
Roadways:
total: 198,817 km country comparison to the world: 26 paved: 60,043 km (includes 228 km of expressways)
unpaved: 138,774 km (2004)
Waterways:
1,731 km country comparison to the world: 48 note: includes 1,075 km on Danube River, 524 km on secondary branches, and 132 km on canals (2006)
Merchant marine:
total: 17 country comparison to the world: 103 by type: cargo 11, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 2, roll on/roll off 1
registered in other countries: 49 (Cambodia 1, Georgia 16, North Korea 4, Liberia 2, Malta 8, Marshall Islands 1, Moldova 3, Panama 7, Saint Kitts and Nevis 1, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1, Sierra Leone 3, Syria 2) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Braila, Constanta, Galati, Tulcea
Military ::Romania
Military branches:
Land Forces, Naval Forces, Romanian Air Force (Fortele Aeriene Romane, FAR), Special Operations (2009)
Military service age and obligation:
18-35 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; conscription officially ended October 2006; all military inductees (including women) contract for an initial 5-year term of service, with subsequent successive contracts for 3-year terms until age 36 (2009)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 5,682,299
females age 16-49: 5,557,098 (2008 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 4,542,720
females age 16-49: 4,604,484 (2009 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 124,356
female: 118,430 (2009 est.)
Military expenditures:
1.9% of GDP (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 85
Transnational Issues ::Romania
Disputes - international:
the ICJ gave Ukraine until December 2006 to reply, and Romania until June 2007 to issue a rejoinder, in their dispute submitted in 2004 over Ukrainian-administered Zmiyinyy/Serpilor (Snake) Island and Black Sea maritime boundary delimitation; Romania also opposes Ukraine's reopening of a navigation canal from the Danube border through Ukraine to the Black Sea
Illicit drugs:
major transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin transiting the Balkan route and small amounts of Latin American cocaine bound for Western Europe; although not a significant financial center, role as a narcotics conduit leaves it vulnerable to laundering, which occurs via the banking system, currency exchange houses, and casinos
page last updated on November 11, 2009
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@Russia (Central Asia)
Introduction ::Russia
Background:
Founded in the 12th century, the Principality of Muscovy, was able to emerge from over 200 years of Mongol domination (13th-15th centuries) and to gradually conquer and absorb surrounding principalities. In the early 17th century, a new Romanov Dynasty continued this policy of expansion across Siberia to the Pacific. Under PETER I (ruled 1682-1725), hegemony was extended to the Baltic Sea and the country was renamed the Russian Empire. During the 19th century, more territorial acquisitions were made in Europe and Asia. Defeat in the Russo-Japanese War of 1904-05 contributed to the Revolution of 1905, which resulted in the formation of a parliament and other reforms. Repeated devastating defeats of the Russian army in World War I led to widespread rioting in the major cities of the Russian Empire and to the overthrow in 1917 of the imperial household. The Communists under Vladimir LENIN seized power soon after and formed the USSR. The brutal rule of Iosif STALIN (1928-53) strengthened Communist rule and Russian dominance of the Soviet Union at a cost of tens of millions of lives. The Soviet economy and society stagnated in the following decades until General Secretary Mikhail GORBACHEV (1985-91) introduced glasnost (openness) and perestroika (restructuring) in an attempt to modernize Communism, but his initiatives inadvertently released forces that by December 1991 splintered the USSR into Russia and 14 other independent republics. Since then, Russia has shifted its post-Soviet democratic ambitions in favor of a centralized semi-authoritarian state whose legitimacy is buttressed, in part, by carefully managed national elections, former President PUTIN's genuine popularity, and the prudent management of Russia's windfall energy wealth. Russia has severely disabled a Chechen rebel movement, although violence still occurs throughout the North Caucasus.
Geography ::Russia
Location:
Northern Asia (the area west of the Urals is considered part of Europe), bordering the Arctic Ocean, between Europe and the North Pacific Ocean
Geographic coordinates:
60 00 N, 100 00 E
Map references:
Asia
Area:
total: 17,098,242 sq km country comparison to the world: 1 land: 16,377,742 sq km
water: 720,500 sq km
Area - comparative:
approximately 1.8 times the size of the US
Land boundaries:
total: 20,241.5 km
border countries: Azerbaijan 284 km, Belarus 959 km, China (southeast) 3,605 km, China (south) 40 km, Estonia 290 km, Finland 1,313 km, Georgia 723 km, Kazakhstan 6,846 km, North Korea 17.5 km, Latvia 292 km, Lithuania (Kaliningrad Oblast) 227 km, Mongolia 3,441 km, Norway 196 km, Poland (Kaliningrad Oblast) 432 km, Ukraine 1,576 km
Coastline:
37,653 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation
Climate:
ranges from steppes in the south through humid continental in much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climate in the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast to frigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to cool along Arctic coast
Terrain:
broad plain with low hills west of Urals; vast coniferous forest and tundra in Siberia; uplands and mountains along southern border regions
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Gora El'brus 5,633 m
Natural resources:
wide natural resource base including major deposits of oil, natural gas, coal, and many strategic minerals, timber
note: formidable obstacles of climate, terrain, and distance hinder exploitation of natural resources
Land use:
arable land: 7.17%
permanent crops: 0.11%
other: 92.72% (2005)
Irrigated land:
46,000 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
4,498 cu km (1997)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 76.68 cu km/yr (19%/63%/18%)
per capita: 535 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
permafrost over much of Siberia is a major impediment to development; volcanic activity in the Kuril Islands; volcanoes and earthquakes on the Kamchatka Peninsula; spring floods and summer/autumn forest fires throughout Siberia and parts of European Russia
Environment - current issues:
air pollution from heavy industry, emissions of coal-fired electric plants, and transportation in major cities; industrial, municipal, and agricultural pollution of inland waterways and seacoasts; deforestation; soil erosion; soil contamination from improper application of agricultural chemicals; scattered areas of sometimes intense radioactive contamination; groundwater contamination from toxic waste; urban solid waste management; abandoned stocks of obsolete pesticides
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Sulfur 94
Geography - note:
largest country in the world in terms of area but unfavorably located in relation to major sea lanes of the world; despite its size, much of the country lacks proper soils and climates (either too cold or too dry) for agriculture; Mount El'brus is Europe's tallest peak
People ::Russia
Population:
140,041,247 (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 9
Age structure:
0-14 years: 14.8% (male 10,644,833/female 10,095,011)
15-64 years: 71.5% (male 48,004,040/female 52,142,313)
65 years and over: 13.7% (male 5,880,877/female 13,274,173) (2009 est.)
Median age:
total: 38.4 years
male: 35.2 years
female: 41.6 years (2009 est.)
Population growth rate:
-0.467% (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 226
Birth rate:
11.1 births/1,000 population (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 177
Death rate:
16.06 deaths/1,000 population (July 2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 16
Net migration rate:
0.28 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 71
Urbanization:
urban population: 73% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: -0.5% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.44 male(s)/female
total population: 0.86 male(s)/female (2009 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 10.56 deaths/1,000 live births country comparison to the world: 152 male: 12.08 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 8.94 deaths/1,000 live births (2009 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 66.03 years country comparison to the world: 162 male: 59.33 years
female: 73.14 years (2009 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.41 children born/woman (2009 est.) country comparison to the world: 194
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
1.1% (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 52
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
940,000 (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 13
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
40,000 (2007 est.) country comparison to the world: 13
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: intermediate
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea
vectorborne disease: tickborne encephalitis
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)
Nationality:
noun: Russian(s)
adjective: Russian
Ethnic groups:
Russian 79.8%, Tatar 3.8%, Ukrainian 2%, Bashkir 1.2%, Chuvash 1.1%, other or unspecified 12.1% (2002 census)
Religions:
Russian Orthodox 15-20%, Muslim 10-15%, other Christian 2% (2006 est.)
note: estimates are of practicing worshipers; Russia has large populations of non-practicing believers and non-believers, a legacy of over seven decades of Soviet rule
Languages:
Russian, many minority languages
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 99.4%
male: 99.7%
female: 99.2% (2002 census)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 14 years
male: 13 years
female: 14 years (2006)
Education expenditures:
3.8% of GDP (2005) country comparison to the world: 117
Government ::Russia
Country name:
conventional long form: Russian Federation
conventional short form: Russia
local long form: Rossiyskaya Federatsiya
local short form: Rossiya
former: Russian Empire, Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
Government type:
federation
Capital:
name: Moscow
geographic coordinates: 55 45 N, 37 35 E
time difference: UTC+3 (8 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October
note: Russia is divided into 11 time zones
Administrative divisions:
46 oblasts (oblastey, singular - oblast), 21 republics (respublik, singular - respublika), 4 autonomous okrugs (avtonomnykh okrugov, singular - avtonomnyy okrug), 9 krays (krayev, singular - kray), 2 federal cities (goroda, singular - gorod), and 1 autonomous oblast (avtonomnaya oblast')
oblasts: Amur (Blagoveshchensk), Arkhangel'sk, Astrakhan', Belgorod, Bryansk, Chelyabinsk, Irkutsk, Ivanovo, Kaliningrad, Kaluga, Kemerovo, Kirov, Kostroma, Kurgan, Kursk, Leningrad, Lipetsk, Magadan, Moscow, Murmansk, Nizhniy Novgorod, Novgorod, Novosibirsk, Omsk, Orenburg, Orel, Penza, Pskov, Rostov, Ryazan', Sakhalin (Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk), Samara, Saratov, Smolensk, Sverdlovsk (Yekaterinburg), Tambov, Tomsk, Tula, Tver', Tyumen', Ul'yanovsk, Vladimir, Volgograd, Vologda, Voronezh, Yaroslavl'
republics: Adygeya (Maykop), Altay (Gorno-Altaysk), Bashkortostan (Ufa), Buryatiya (Ulan-Ude), Chechnya (Groznyy), Chuvashiya (Cheboksary), Dagestan (Makhachkala), Ingushetiya (Magas), Kabardino-Balkariya (Nal'chik), Kalmykiya (Elista), Karachayevo-Cherkesiya (Cherkessk), Kareliya (Petrozavodsk), Khakasiya (Abakan), Komi (Syktyvkar), Mariy-El (Yoshkar-Ola), Mordoviya (Saransk), North Ossetia (Vladikavkaz), Sakha [Yakutiya] (Yakutsk), Tatarstan (Kazan'), Tyva (Kyzyl), Udmurtiya (Izhevsk)
autonomous okrugs: Chukotka (Anadyr'), Khanty-Mansi (Khanty-Mansiysk), Nenets (Nar'yan-Mar), Yamalo-Nenets (Salekhard)
krays: Altay (Barnaul), Kamchatka (Petropavlovsk-Kamchatskiy), Khabarovsk, Krasnodar, Krasnoyarsk, Perm', Primorskiy [Maritime] (Vladivostok), Stavropol', Zabaykal'sk (Chita)
federal cities: Moscow [Moskva], Saint Petersburg [Sankt-Peterburg]
autonomous oblast: Yevrey [Jewish] (Birobidzhan)
note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers (exceptions have the administrative center name following in parentheses)
Independence:
24 August 1991 (from the Soviet Union)
National holiday:
Russia Day, 12 June (1990)
Constitution:
adopted 12 December 1993
Legal system:
based on civil law system; judicial review of legislative acts; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Dmitriy Anatolyevich MEDVEDEV (since 7 May 2008)
head of government: Premier Vladimir Vladimirovich PUTIN (since 8 May 2008); First Deputy Premiers Igor Ivanovich SHUVALOV and Viktor Alekseyevich ZUBKOV (since 12 May 2008); Deputy Premiers Sergey Borisovich IVANOV (since 12 May 2008), Dmitriy Nikolayevich KOZAK (since 14 October 2008), Aleksey Leonidovich KUDRIN (since 24 September 2007), Igor Ivanovich SECHIN (since 12 May 2008), Sergey Semenovich SOBYANIN (since 12 May 2008), Aleksandr Dmitriyevich ZHUKOV (since 9 March 2004), and Dmitry Nikolayevich KOZAK (since 14 October 2008)
cabinet: Ministries of the Government or "Government" composed of the premier and his deputies, ministers, and selected other individuals; all are appointed by the president
note: there is also a Presidential Administration (PA) that provides staff and policy support to the president, drafts presidential decrees, and coordinates policy among government agencies; a Security Council also reports directly to the president
elections: president elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 2 March 2008 (next to be held in March 2012); note - no vice president; if the president dies in office, cannot exercise his powers because of ill health, is impeached, or resigns, the premier serves as acting president until a new presidential election is held, which must be within three months; premier appointed by the president with the approval of the Duma