Business with GermanyFacts & FiguresGermany and its Neighbours
The Federal Republic of Germany is situated at the heart of Europe. It has nine neighbours: Denmark in the north, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg and France in the west, Switzerland and Austria in the south, and the Czech Republic as well as Poland in the east. The Federal Republic is more than ever a link between East and West, but also between Scandinavia and the Mediterranean.
Population
Germany has a population of about 82.0 million, the largest in Europe after the Russian Federation , followed by the United Kingdom (58.9 million), France (58.5 million) and Italy (57.5 million). In size, however, Germany is smaller than France and Spain .
Geography
Germany has an extraordinary variety of charming landscapes. Low and high mountain ranges are interspersed with upland plains, terrace country, hilly regions and lakelands as well as wide, open lowlands. From north to south Germany is divided into five regions with different topographical features: the North German Plain, the Central Upland Range , the terrace panorama of the southwest, the Alpine foothills in the south and the Bavarian Alps .
Governmental Structures and Institutions
Germany is a republic and a democracy; it is a federal state based on the rule of law and social justice. Its republican system is constitutionally manifested in the name "Federal Republic of Germany".
The Federal Republic consists of 16 Länder (states). The Länder are not mere provinces but states endowed with their own powers. Each has a constitution which must be consistent with the republican, democratic and social principles embodied in the German Constitution.
Since 2002 the Germans are able to back on more than half a century of experience with their constitution, called the Basic Law, which is the best and most liberal constitution Germany has ever had.
Germany and the World
The framework conditions for German foreign policy have changed fundamentally at the beginning of the 21st century. Germany is reunified and sovereign in its foreign policy. Its security situation has improved considerably. German foreign policy is and shall remain peace policy. It remains committed to safeguarding the future of the global community.
Support for human rights, readiness to engage in dialogue, renunciation of force and confidence-building form the foundations of this policy. By dint of its own history, Germany is particularly committed to freedom, the rule of law and human rights. All over the world, therefore, its policy is based on respect for human rights and human dignity. Guided by these principles, it strives to promote stability, peace and development. The Federal Republic of Germany is prepared to assume greater responsibility in this changing world. Its framework for action in the sphere of foreign policy will continue to be the close relationships with its partners in the European Union (EU) and the Atlantic Alliance (NATO) as well as its involvement in international organisations, especially the United Nations and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE).
Pillars of Germany''s foreign policy
German foreign policy is orientated towards the aims of maintaining peace and prosperity, promoting democracy and developing respect for human rights the world over. As a consequence, Germany's foreign policy endeavors are focused on the following:
- The further development of the European Union
- The safeguarding of peace, democracy and prosperity in the whole of Europe; this is to be achieved inter alia through successful enlargement of the EU
- The strengthening of pan-European cooperation within the OSCE
- The further development of the Atlantic Alliance and transatlantic cooperation; in this context Europe must assume more responsibility of its own
- The strengthening of international organisations
- The promotion of respect for human rights all over the world
- The further development of relations based on a spirit of equal partnership with the regions bordering the EU
- The preservation of a habitable world worth living in for future generations
Germany's role as one of the world's leading exporting nations and as the location of viable future-oriented industries must be safeguarded. As one of the largest industrial and trading nations, Germany is dependent upon a well-functioning world economic system which remains committed to free trade but does not lose sight of the need for a reconciliation of ecological and social interests. |
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