"text":"<p>The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was formed in 1918; its name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. Communist Partisans resisted the Axis occupation and division of Yugoslavia from 1941 to 1945 and fought nationalist opponents and collaborators as well. The military and political movement headed by Josip Broz \"TITO\" (Partisans) took full control of Yugoslavia when their domestic rivals and the occupiers were defeated in 1945. Although communists, TITO and his successors (Tito died in 1980) managed to steer their own path between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a half decades. In 1989, Slobodan MILOSEVIC became president of the Republic of Serbia and his ultranationalist calls for Serbian domination led to the violent breakup of Yugoslavia along ethnic lines. In 1991, Croatia, Slovenia, and Macedonia declared independence, followed by Bosnia in 1992. The remaining republics of Serbia and Montenegro declared a new Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) in April 1992 and under MILOSEVIC's leadership, Serbia led various military campaigns to unite ethnic Serbs in neighboring republics into a \"Greater Serbia.\" These actions ultimately failed and, after international intervention, led to the signing of the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995.</p> <p>MILOSEVIC retained control over Serbia and eventually became president of the FRY in 1997. In 1998, an ethnic Albanian insurgency in the formerly autonomous Serbian province of Kosovo provoked a Serbian counterinsurgency campaign that resulted in massacres and massive expulsions of ethnic Albanians living in Kosovo. The MILOSEVIC government's rejection of a proposed international settlement led to NATO's bombing of Serbia in the spring of 1999. Serbian military and police forces withdrew from Kosovo in June 1999, and the UN Security Council authorized an interim UN administration and a NATO-led security force in Kosovo. FRY elections in late 2000 led to the ouster of MILOSEVIC and the installation of democratic government. In 2003, the FRY became the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro, a loose federation of the two republics. Widespread violence predominantly targeting ethnic Serbs in Kosovo in March 2004 led to more intense calls to address Kosovo's status, and the UN began facilitating status talks in 2006. In June 2006, Montenegro seceded from the federation and declared itself an independent nation. Serbia subsequently gave notice that it was the successor state to the union of Serbia and Montenegro.</p> <p>In February 2008, after nearly two years of inconclusive negotiations, Kosovo declared itself independent of Serbia - an action Serbia refuses to recognize. At Serbia's request, the UN General Assembly (UNGA) in October 2008 sought an advisory opinion from the International Court of Justice (ICJ) on whether Kosovo's unilateral declaration of independence was in accordance with international law. In a ruling considered unfavorable to Serbia, the ICJ issued an advisory opinion in July 2010 stating that international law did not prohibit declarations of independence. In late 2010, Serbia agreed to an EU-drafted UNGA Resolution acknowledging the ICJ's decision and calling for a new round of talks between Serbia and Kosovo, this time on practical issues rather than Kosovo's status. Serbia and Kosovo signed the first agreement of principles governing the normalization of relations between the two countries in April 2013 and are in the process of implementing its provisions. In 2015, Serbia and Kosovo reached four additional agreements within the EU-led Brussels Dialogue framework. These included agreements on the Community of Serb-Majority Municipalities; telecommunications; energy production and distribution; and freedom of movement. President Aleksandar VUCIC has promoted an ambitious goal of Serbia joining the EU by 2025. Under his leadership as prime minister, in 2014 Serbia opened formal negotiations for accession. </p>"
"text":"in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well-distributed rainfall); in other parts, continental and Mediterranean climate (relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns)"
},
"Terrain":{
"text":"extremely varied; to the north, rich fertile plains; to the east, limestone ranges and basins; to the southeast, ancient mountains and hills"
"text":"Danube (shared with Germany [s], Austria, Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary, Croatia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania [m]) - 2,888 km<br><strong>note</strong> – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> most ethnic Albanians boycotted the 2011 census; Romani populations are usually underestimated in official statistics and may represent 5–11% of Serbia's population"
"text":"Serbian (official) 88.1%, Hungarian 3.4%, Bosnian 1.9%, Romani 1.4%, other 3.4%, undeclared or unknown 1.8%; note - Serbian, Hungarian, Slovak, Romanian, Croatian, and Ruthenian (Rusyn) are official in the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina; most ethnic Albanians boycotted the 2011 census (2011 est.)"
"text":"<br>Knjiga svetskih činjenica, neophodan izvor osnovnih informacija. (Serbian)<br><br>The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information."
"text":"air pollution around Belgrade and other industrial cities; water pollution from industrial wastes dumped into the Sava which flows into the Danube; inadequate management of domestic, industrial, and hazardous waste"
},
"Environment - international agreements":{
"party to":{
"text":"Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Heavy Metals, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands"
},
"signed, but not ratified":{
"text":"none of the selected agreements"
}
},
"Air pollutants":{
"particulate matter emissions":{
"text":"24.27 micrograms per cubic meter (2016 est.)"
},
"carbon dioxide emissions":{
"text":"45.22 megatons (2016 est.)"
},
"methane emissions":{
"text":"11.96 megatons (2020 est.)"
}
},
"Climate":{
"text":"in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well-distributed rainfall); in other parts, continental and Mediterranean climate (relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns)"
"text":"Danube (shared with Germany [s], Austria, Slovakia, Czechia, Hungary, Croatia, Bulgaria, Ukraine, Moldova, and Romania [m]) - 2,888 km<br><strong>note</strong> – [s] after country name indicates river source; [m] after country name indicates river mouth"
"text":"People's Republic of Serbia, Socialist Republic of Serbia"
},
"etymology":{
"text":"the origin of the name is uncertain, but seems to be related to the name of the West Slavic Sorbs who reside in the Lusatian region in present-day eastern Germany; by tradition, the Serbs migrated from that region to the Balkans in about the 6th century A.D."
}
},
"Government type":{
"text":"parliamentary republic"
},
"Capital":{
"name":{
"text":"Belgrade (Beograd)"
},
"geographic coordinates":{
"text":"44 50 N, 20 30 E"
},
"time difference":{
"text":"UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)"
},
"daylight saving time":{
"text":"+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October"
"text":"the Serbian \"Beograd\" means \"white fortress\" or \"white city\" and dates back to the 9th century; the name derives from the white fortress wall that once enclosed the city"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> the northern 37 municipalities and 8 cities - about 28% of Serbia's area - compose the Autonomous Province of Vojvodina and are indicated with *"
"text":"5 June 2006 (from the State Union of Serbia and Montenegro); notable earlier dates: 1217 (Serbian Kingdom established); 16 April 1346 (Serbian Empire established); 13 July 1878 (Congress of Berlin recognizes Serbian independence); 1 December 1918 (Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes (Yugoslavia) established)"
"text":"many previous; latest adopted 30 September 2006, approved by referendum 28-29 October 2006, effective 8 November 2006"
},
"amendments":{
"text":"proposed by at least one third of deputies in the National Assembly, by the president of the republic, by the government, or by petition of at least 150,000 voters; passage of proposals and draft amendments each requires at least two-thirds majority vote in the Assembly; amendments to constitutional articles including the preamble, constitutional principles, and human and minority rights and freedoms also require passage by simple majority vote in a referendum"
}
},
"Legal system":{
"text":"civil law system"
},
"International law organization participation":{
"text":"has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction"
},
"Citizenship":{
"citizenship by birth":{
"text":"no"
},
"citizenship by descent only":{
"text":"at least one parent must be a citizen of Serbia"
},
"dual citizenship recognized":{
"text":"yes"
},
"residency requirement for naturalization":{
"text":"3 years"
}
},
"Suffrage":{
"text":"18 years of age, 16 if employed; universal"
},
"Executive branch":{
"chief of state":{
"text":"President Aleksandar VUCIC (since 31 May 2017)"
},
"head of government":{
"text":"Prime Minister Ana BRNABIC (since 29 June 2017)"
"text":"president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 2 April 2017 (next to be held in April 2022); prime minister elected by the National Assembly"
"text":"<br><em>2017:</em> Aleksandar VUCIC elected president in the first round; percent of vote - Aleksandar VUCIC (SNS) 55.1%, Sasa JANKOVIC (independent) 16.4%, Luka MAKSIMOVIC (independent) 9.4%, Vuk JEREMIC (independent) 5.7%, Vojislav SESELJ (SRS) 4.5%, Bosko OBRADOVIC (Dveri) 2.3%, other 5.0%, invalid/blank 1.6%; Prime Minister Ana BRNABIC reelected by the National Assembly on 5 October 2020<br><br><em>2012: </em>Tomislav NIKOLIC elected president; percent of vote in second round - Tomislav NIKOLIC (SNS) 51.2%, Boris TADIC (NDS-Z) 48.8%"
"text":"unicameral National Assembly or Narodna Skupstina (250 seats; members directly elected by party list proportional representation vote in a single nationwide constituency to serve 4-year terms)"
"text":"percent of vote by party/coalition - For Our Children 60.7%, SPS-JS 10.4%, SPAS 3.8%, SVM 2.2%, Straight Ahead 1%, Albanian Democratic Alternative .8%, SDA .8%, other 20.3%; seats by party/coalition For Our Children 188, SPS-JS 32, SPAS 11, SVM 9, Straight Ahead 4, Albanian Democratic Alternative 3, SDA 3; composition (preliminary) - men 165, women 85, percent of women 30%"
"text":"Supreme Court of Cassation (consists of 36 judges, including the court president); Constitutional Court (consists of 15 judges, including the court president and vice president)"
"text":"Supreme Court justices proposed by the High Judicial Council (HJC), an 11-member independent body consisting of 8 judges elected by the National Assembly and 3 ex-officio members; justices appointed by the National Assembly; Constitutional Court judges elected - 5 each by the National Assembly, the president, and the Supreme Court of Cassation; initial appointment of Supreme Court judges by the HJC is 3 years and beyond that period tenure is permanent; Constitutional Court judges elected for 9-year terms"
"text":"basic courts, higher courts, appellate courts; courts of special jurisdiction include the Administrative Court, commercial courts, and misdemeanor courts"
"text":"Albanian Democratic Alternative (coalition of ethnic Albanian parties) Shaip KAMBERI<br>Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians or SVM [Istvan PASZTOR]<br>Democratic Party or DS [Zoran LUTOVAC]<br>Democratic Party of Macedonians or DPM [Nenad KRSTESKI]<br>Democratic Party of Serbia or DSS [Milos JOVANOVIC]<br>Dveri [Bosko OBRADOVIC]<br>For Our Children (electoral alliance includes SNS, PS, PUPS, PSS, SNP, SPO, NSS) [Aleksandar VUCIC]<br>Justice and Reconciliation Party or SPP [Usame ZUKORLIC] (formerly Bosniak Democratic Union of Sandzak or BDZS)<br>Movement of Socialists or PS [Aleksandar VULIN]<br>Party of Democratic Action of the Sandzak or SDA [Sulejman UGLJANIN]<br>Party of United Pensioners of Serbia or PUPS [Milan KRKOBABIC]<br>People's Party or NARODNA [Vuk JEREMIC]<br>People's Peasant Party or NSS [Marijan RISTICEVIC]<br>Serbian Patriotic Alliance or SPAS [Aleksandar SAPIC] (merged into SNS)<br>Serbian People's Party or SNP [Nenad POPOVIC]<br>Serbian Progressive Party or SNS [Aleksandar VUCIC]<br>Serbian Radical Party or SRS [Vojislav SESELJ]<br>Serbian Renewal Movement or SPO [Vuk DRASKOVIC]<br>Social Democratic Party or SDS [Boris TADIC]<br>Social Democratic Party of Serbia or SDPS [Rasim LJAJIC]<br>Socialist Party of Serbia or SPS [Ivica DACIC]<br>Straight Ahead (electoral coalition includes SPP, DPM)<br>Strength of Serbia or PSS [Bogoljub KARIC]<br>Together for Serbia or ZZS [Nebojsa ZELENOVIC]<br>United Serbia or JS [Dragan MARKOVIC]",
"text":"three equal horizontal stripes of red (top), blue, and white - the Pan-Slav colors representing freedom and revolutionary ideals; charged with the coat of arms of Serbia shifted slightly to the hoist side; the principal field of the coat of arms represents the Serbian state and displays a white two-headed eagle on a red shield; a smaller red shield on the eagle represents the Serbian nation, and is divided into four quarters by a white cross; interpretations vary as to the meaning and origin of the white, curved symbols resembling firesteels (fire strikers) or Cyrillic \"C's\" in each quarter; a royal crown surmounts the coat of arms",
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> adopted 1904; song originally written as part of a play in 1872 and has been used as an anthem by the Serbian people throughout the 20th and 21st centuries"
"text":"<p>Serbia has a transitional economy largely dominated by market forces, but the state sector remains significant in certain areas. The economy relies on manufacturing and exports, driven largely by foreign investment. MILOSEVIC-era mismanagement of the economy, an extended period of international economic sanctions, civil war, and the damage to Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry during the NATO airstrikes in 1999 left the economy worse off than it was in 1990. In 2015, Serbia’s GDP was 27.5% below where it was in 1989.</p><p></p><p>After former Federal Yugoslav President MILOSEVIC was ousted in September 2000, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) coalition government implemented stabilization measures and embarked on a market reform program. Serbia renewed its membership in the IMF in December 2000 and rejoined the World Bank and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. Serbia has made progress in trade liberalization and enterprise restructuring and privatization, but many large enterprises - including the power utilities, telecommunications company, natural gas company, and others - remain state-owned. Serbia has made some progress towards EU membership, gaining candidate status in March 2012. In January 2014, Serbia's EU accession talks officially opened and, as of December 2017, Serbia had opened 12 negotiating chapters including one on foreign trade. Serbia's negotiations with the WTO are advanced, with the country's complete ban on the trade and cultivation of agricultural biotechnology products representing the primary remaining obstacle to accession. Serbia maintains a three-year Stand-by Arrangement with the IMF worth approximately $1.3 billion that is scheduled to end in February 2018. The government has shown progress implementing economic reforms, such as fiscal consolidation, privatization, and reducing public spending.</p><p></p><p>Unemployment in Serbia, while relatively low (16% in 2017) compared with its Balkan neighbors, remains significantly above the European average. Serbia is slowly implementing structural economic reforms needed to ensure the country's long-term prosperity. Serbia reduced its budget deficit to 1.7% of GDP and its public debt to 71% of GDP in 2017. Public debt had more than doubled between 2008 and 2015. Serbia's concerns about inflation and exchange-rate stability preclude the use of expansionary monetary policy.</p><p></p><p>Major economic challenges ahead include: stagnant household incomes; the need for private sector job creation; structural reforms of state-owned companies; strategic public sector reforms; and the need for new foreign direct investment. Other serious longer-term challenges include an inefficient judicial system, high levels of corruption, and an aging population. Factors favorable to Serbia's economic growth include the economic reforms it is undergoing as part of its EU accession process and IMF agreement, its strategic location, a relatively inexpensive and skilled labor force, and free trade agreements with the EU, Russia, Turkey, and countries that are members of the Central European Free Trade Agreement.</p>"
"text":"Serbia's integration with the EU helped regulator reforms and promotion of telecom; EU development loans for broadband to rural areas; pandemic spurred use of mobile data and other services; wireless service is available through multiple providers; national coverage is growing rapidly; best telecom services are centered in urban centers; 4G/LTE mobile network launched; 5G tests ongoing with Ericsson and Huawei (2020)"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> the COVID-19 pandemic continues to have a significant impact on production and supply chains globally; since 2020, some aspects of the telecom sector have experienced downturn, particularly in mobile device production; many network operators delayed upgrades to infrastructure; progress towards 5G implementation was postponed or slowed in some countries; consumer spending on telecom services and devices was affected by large-scale job losses and the consequent restriction on disposable incomes; the crucial nature of telecom services as a tool for work and school from home became evident, and received some support from governments"
"text":"3,809 km 1.435-m gauge (3,526 km one-track lines and 283 km double-track lines) out of which 1,279 km electrified (1,000 km one-track lines and 279 km double-track lines) (2015)"
"text":"Serbian Armed Forces (Vojska Srbije, VS): Land Forces (includes Riverine Component, consisting of a river flotilla on the Danube), Air and Air Defense Forces, Serbian Guard; Ministry of Interior: Gendarmerie (2021)",
"text":"the inventory of the Serbian Armed Forces consists of Russian and Soviet-era weapons systems; since 2010, most of its weapons imports have come from Russia (2021)"
"text":"<p>Serbia with several other states protest the US and other states' recognition of Kosovo's declaration of its status 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 Kosovo Force peacekeepers under UN Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo authority continue to keep the peace within Kosovo between the ethnic Albanian majority and the Serb minority in Kosovo; Serbia delimited about half of the boundary with Bosnia and Herzegovina, but sections along the Drina River remain in dispute</p>"
"note":"<strong>note:</strong> 820,038 estimated refugee and migrant arrivals (January 2015-February 2022); Serbia is predominantly a transit country and hosts an estimated 4,865 migrants and asylum seekers as of January 2022"
"text":"<p>drug trafficking groups are major players in the procurement and transportation of of large quantities of cocaine destined for European markets</p>"
