France

• Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK;
• bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain

• generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean;
• occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral

• flooding;
• avalanches;
• midwinter windstorms;
• drought;
• forest fires in south near the Mediterranean

• some forest damage from acid rain (major forest damage occurred as a result of severe December 1999 windstorm);
• air pollution from industrial and vehicle emissions;
• water pollution from urban wastes, agricultural runoff

0-14 years:

18.5% (male 5,675,269; female 5,401,661)

15-64 years:

65.2% (male 19,503,556; female 19,479,646)

65 years and over:

16.3% (male 3,948,433; female 5,757,418) (2002 est.)

at birth:

1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years:

1.05 male(s)/female

15-64 years:

1 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.69 male(s)/female

total population:

0.95 male(s)/female (2002 est.)

noun:

Frenchman(men), Frenchwoman(women)

adjective:

French

conventional long form:

French Republic

conventional short form:

France

local long form:

Republique Francaise

local short form:

France

• 28 September 1958, amended concerning election of president in 1962, amended to comply with provisions of EC Maastricht Treaty in 1992, Amsterdam Treaty in 1996, Treaty of Nice in 2000;
• amended to tighten immigration laws 1993

chief of state:

President Jacques CHIRAC (since 17 May 1995)

head of government:

Prime Minister Jean-Pierre RAFFARIN (since 7 May 2002)

elections:

• president elected by popular vote for a five-year term (changed from seven-year term in 2001);
• election last held 21 April and 5 May 2002 (next to be held, first round NA April 2007, second round NA May 2007);
• prime minister nominated by the National Assembly majority and appointed by the president

election results:

Jacques CHIRAC reelected president; percent of vote, second ballot - Jacques CHIRAC (RPR) 81.96%, Jean-Marie LE PEN (FN) 18.04%

cabinet:

Council of Ministers appointed by the president on the suggestion of the prime minister

• Supreme Court of Appeals or Cour de Cassation (judges are appointed by the president from nominations of the High Council of the Judiciary);
• Constitutional Council or Conseil Constitutionnel (three members appointed by the president, three appointed by the president of the National Assembly, and three appointed by the president of the Senate);
• Council of State or Conseil d'Etat

• Citizen adn Republican Movement or MCR [Jean Pierre CHEVENEMENT];
• Democratic and European Social Rally or RDES (mainly RAD and PRG) [leader NA];
• Forum of Social Republicans or FRS (offshoot from UMP) [Christine BOUTIN];
• French Communist Party or PCF [Marie-George BUFFET];
• Generation Ecology [France GAMERRE];
• Hunting, Fishing, Nature, and Tradition or CPNT [Jean SAINT-JOSSE];
• Independent Ecological Movement or MEI [Antoine WAECHTER];
• Left Radical Party or PRG (previously Radical Socialist Party or PRS and the Left Radical Movement or MRG) [Jean-Michel BAYLET];
• Liberal-Christian Right [Charles MILLON];
• Liberal Democracy or DL (originally Republican Party or PR) [Alain MADELIN];
• Movement for France or MPF [Philippe DE VILLIERS];
• National Front or FN [Jean-Marie LE PEN];
• National Republican Movement or MNR [Bruno MEGRET];
• Radical Party or RP [Francois LOOS];
• Rally for France or RPF [Charles PASQUA];
• Rally for the Republic or RPR [Michelle ALLIOT-MARIE];
• Revolutionary Communists' League or LCR [Alain KRIVINE];
• Socialist Party or PS [Francois HOLLANDE];
• The Greens [Gilles LEMAIRE, national secretary];
• Union for French Democracy or UDF (coalition of DL, CDS, UDF, RP, and other parties) [Francois BAYROU];
• Union for a Popular Movement or UMP (including RPR, DL, and a part of UDF) [Alain JUPPE];
• Union of the Center or UDC [leader NA]

• historically-Communist labor union (Confederation Generale du Travail) or CGT, approximately 700,000 members (claimed);
• left-leaning labor union (Confederation Francaise Democratique du Travail) or CFDT, approximately 865,000 members (claimed, of which 810,000 are actively employed);
• independent labor union (Confederation Generale du Travail - Force Ouvriere) or FO, 300,000 members (est.);
• independent white-collar union (Confederation Generale des Cadres) or CGC, 196,000 members (claimed);
• employers' union (Mouvement des Entreprises de France) or MEDEF, 750,000 companies as members (claimed)

ACCT, AfDB, AsDB, Australia Group, BDEAC, BIS, CCC, CDB (non-regional), CE, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECA (associate), ECE, ECLAC, EIB, EMU, ESA, ESCAP, EU, FAO, FZ, G- 5, G- 7, G- 8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, InOC, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MONUC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, SPC, UN, UN Security Council, UNAMSIL, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMEE, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOVIC, UNOMIG, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WADB (nonregional), WCL, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC

chief of mission:

Ambassador Jean-David LEVITTE

chancery:

4101 Reservoir Road NW, Washington, DC 20007

FAX:

[1] (202) 944-6166

consulate(s) general:

Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, and San Francisco

telephone:

[1] (202) 944-6000

chief of mission:

Ambassador Howard H. LEACH

embassy:

2 Avenue Gabriel, 75008 Paris

mailing address:

PSC 116, B210 APO AE 09777

telephone:

[33] (1) 43-12-22-22

FAX:

[33] (1) 42 66 97 83

consulate(s) general:

Marseille, Strasbourg

• three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), white, and red;
• known as the French Tricouleur (Tricolor);
• the design and/or colors are similar to a number of other flags, including those of Belgium, Chad, Ireland, Cote d'Ivoire, Luxembourg, and Netherlands;
• the official flag for all French dependent areas

lowest 10%:

3%

highest 10%:

25% (1995)

• machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics;
• textiles, food processing;
• tourism

• wheat, cereals, sugar beets, potatoes, wine grapes;
• beef, dairy products;
• fish

• euros per US dollar - 1.1324 (January 2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000), 0.9386 (1999);
• French francs per US dollar - 5.65 (January 1999), 5.8995 (1998), 5.8367 (1997)

general assessment:

highly developed

domestic:

• extensive cable and microwave radio relay;
• extensive introduction of fiber-optic cable;
• domestic satellite system

international:

• satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (with total of 5 antennas - 2 for Indian Ocean and 3 for Atlantic Ocean), NA Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region);
• HF radiotelephone communications with more than 20 countries

total:

31,939 km (operated by French National Railways (SNCF); 14,176 km of SNCF routes are electrified and 12,132 km are double- or multiple-track)

standard gauge:

31,840 km 1.435-m gauge

narrow gauge:

99 km 1.000-m gauge (2000 est.)

total:

892,900 km

paved:

892,900 km (including 9,900 km of expressways)

unpaved:

0 km (1999)

• crude oil 3,059 km;
• petroleum products 4,487 km;
• natural gas 24,746 km

total:

49 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,263,691 GRT/1,769,932 DWT

ships by type:

bulk 3, cargo 4, chemical tanker 9, combination bulk 1, container 3, liquefied gas 3, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 15, roll on/roll off 4, short-sea passenger 4

note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: French Polynesia 2, Greece 1, Japan 1, Norway 1, Sweden 9 (2002 est.)

• Madagascar claims Bassas da India, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, and Tromelin Island;
• Comoros claims Mayotte;
• Mauritius claims Tromelin Island;
• territorial dispute between Suriname and French Guiana;
• territorial claim in Antarctica (Adelie Land);
• Matthew and Hunter Islands, east of New Caledonia, claimed by France and Vanuatu