the ANP has played a large role in the country’s politics since independence in 1962, including coups in 1965 and 1991; it was a key backer of BOUTEFLIKA’s election in 1999 and remained a center of power during his 20-year rule; the military was instrumental in BOUTEFLIKA’s resignation in 2019 when it withdrew support and called for him to be removed from office
the ANP traditionally has focused on internal stability and on Morocco where relations as of 2022 remained tense over Western Sahara and Algerian accusations that Morocco supports the Movement for the Autonomy of Kabylie (MAK), a separatist group in Algeria’s Kabylie region; however, following the Arab Spring events of 2011 and a series of cross-border terrorist attacks emanating from Mali in 2012-2013, particularly the 2013 attack on a commercial gas plant by al-Qa’ida-linked terrorists that resulted in the deaths of 35 hostages and 29 jihadists, it has made a concerted effort to beef up security along its other borders and promote regional security cooperation; since 2013, additional Army and paramilitary forces were deployed to the borders with Tunisia, Libya, Niger, and Mali to interdict and deter cross-border attacks by Islamic militant groups; in addition, Algeria has provided security assistance to some neighboring countries, particularly Tunisia, and conducted joint military/counter-terrorism operations
" diff --git a/africa/ao.json b/africa/ao.json index 1256e363..53af95a9 100644 --- a/africa/ao.json +++ b/africa/ao.json @@ -591,10 +591,10 @@ "text": "Council of Ministers appointed by the president" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "the candidate of the winning party or coalition in the last legislative election becomes the president; president serves a 5-year term (eligible for a second consecutive or discontinuous term); last held on 23 August 2017 (next to be held in 2022)" + "text": "the candidate of the winning party or coalition in the last legislative election becomes the president; president serves a 5-year term (eligible for a second consecutive or discontinuous term); last held on 23 August 2017 (next to be held in 24 August 2022)" }, "election results": { - "text": "Joao Manuel Goncalves LOURENCO (MPLA) elected president by the winning party following the 23 August 2017 general election" + "text": "Joao Manuel Goncalves LOURENCO (MPLA) elected president by then winning party following the 23 August 2017 general election" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -923,7 +923,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "kwanza (AOA) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/africa/bc.json b/africa/bc.json index 69a9207a..5e34e965 100644 --- a/africa/bc.json +++ b/africa/bc.json @@ -573,16 +573,16 @@ "text": "President Mokgweetse Eric MASISI (since 1 April 2018); Vice President Slumber TSOGWANE (since 4 April 2018); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government" }, "head of government": { - "text": "President Mokgweetse Eric MASISI (since 1 April 2018); Vice President Slumber TSOGWANE (since 4 April 2018); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government" + "text": "President Mokgweetse Eric MASISI (since 1 April 2018); Vice President Slumber TSOGWANE (since 4 April 2018); " }, "cabinet": { "text": "Cabinet appointed by the president" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 24 October 2014 (next to be held on 31 October 2019); vice president appointed by the president" + "text": "president indirectly elected by the National Assembly for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 23 October 2019 (next to be held in 2024 October); vice president appointed by the president" }, "election results": { - "text": "President Seretse Khama Ian KHAMA (since 1 April 2008) stepped down on 1 April 2018 having completed the constitutionally mandated 10-year term limit; upon his retirement, then Vice President MASISI became president; national elections held on 23 October 2019 gave MASISI'S BPD 38 seats in the National Assembly which then selected MASISI as President" + "text": "President Seretse Khama Ian KHAMA (since 1 April 2008) stepped down on 1 April 2018 having completed the constitutionally mandated 10-year term limit; upon his retirement, then Vice President MASISI became president; national elections held on 23 October 2019 gave MASISI'S BPD 38 seats in the National Assembly which then selected MASISI as President (2019)" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -673,7 +673,7 @@ "text": "2 (1 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Tsodilo Hills (c), Okavango Delta (n)" + "text": "Tsodilo Hills (c); Okavango Delta (n)" } } }, @@ -908,7 +908,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "pulas (BWP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1192,7 +1192,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Botswana Defense Force (BDF): Ground Forces Command, Air Arm Command, Defense Logistics Command (2022)", - "note": "note - both the armed forces and the Botswana Police Service report to the Ministry of Defense, Justice, and Security" + "note": "note: both the BDF and the Botswana Police Service report to the Ministry of Defense, Justice, and Security" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { diff --git a/africa/bn.json b/africa/bn.json index 42f5cdfa..d616c2fc 100644 --- a/africa/bn.json +++ b/africa/bn.json @@ -607,7 +607,7 @@ "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); last held on 11 April 2021 (next to be held in April 2026)" }, "election results": { - "text": "Patrice TALON elected to a second term; percent of vote - Patrice TALON (independent) 86.4%, Alassane SOUMANOU (FCBE) 11.3%, other 2.3%" + "text": "Patrice TALON elected to a second term; percent of vote - Patrice TALON (independent) 86.4%, Alassane SOUMANOU (FCBE) 11.3%, other 2.3% (2021)" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -697,7 +697,7 @@ "text": "2 (1 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Royal Palaces of Abomey (c), W-Arly-Pendjari Complex (n)" + "text": "Royal Palaces of Abomey (c); W-Arly-Pendjari Complex (n)" } } }, @@ -921,7 +921,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Communaute Financiere Africaine francs (XOF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/africa/by.json b/africa/by.json index f7924037..8e5efbf4 100644 --- a/africa/by.json +++ b/africa/by.json @@ -529,7 +529,7 @@ "text": "Burundi" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Republique du Burundi/Republika y'u Burundi" + "text": "Republique du Burundi (French)/ Republika y'u Burundi (Kirundi)" }, "local short form": { "text": "Burundi" @@ -609,7 +609,7 @@ "text": "Council of Ministers appointed by president" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 20 May 2020 (next to be held in 2025); vice presidents nominated by the president, endorsed by Parliament; note - a 2018 constitutional referendum effective for the 2020 election, increased the presidential term from 5 to 7 years with a 2-consecutive-term limit, reinstated the position of the prime minister position, and reduced the number of vice presidents from 2 to 1" + "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 20 May 2020 (next to be held in 2025); vice presidents nominated by the president, endorsed by Parliament; note - a 2018 constitutional referendum effective for the 2020 election, increased the presidential term from 5 to 7 years with a 2-consecutive-term limit, reinstated the position of the prime minister position, and reduced the number of vice presidents from 2 to 1 (2020)" }, "election results": { "text": "Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE elected president; percent of vote - Evariste NDAYISHIMIYE (CNDD-FDD) 71.5%, Agathon RWASA (CNL) 25.2%, Gaston SINDIMWO (UPRONA) 1.7%, OTHER 1.6%" @@ -911,7 +911,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Burundi francs (BIF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/africa/cd.json b/africa/cd.json index 67c0d741..dcac93e3 100644 --- a/africa/cd.json +++ b/africa/cd.json @@ -710,7 +710,7 @@ "text": "2 (1 natural, 1 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Ennedi Massif: Natural and Cultural Landscape (m)" + "text": "Lakes of Ounianga (n); Ennedi Massif: Natural and Cultural Landscape (m)" } } }, @@ -926,7 +926,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1195,7 +1195,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Chadian National Army (Armee Nationale du Tchad, ANT): Ground Forces (l'Armee de Terre, AdT), Chadian Air Force (l'Armee de l'Air Tchadienne, AAT), General Direction of the Security Services of State Institutions (Direction Generale des Services de Securite des Institutions de l'Etat, GDSSIE); National Gendarmerie; Ministry of Public Security and Immigration: National Nomadic Guard of Chad (GNNT), Chadian National Police (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the GDSSIE, formerly known as the Republican Guard, is the presidential guard force and is considered to be Chad's elite military unit; it is reportedly a division-size unit with infantry, armor, and special forces/anti-terrorism regiments (known as the Special Anti-Terrorist Group or SATG, aka Division of Special Anti-Terrorist Groups or DGSAT)" + "note": "note: the GDSSIE, formerly known as the Republican Guard, is the presidential guard force and is considered to be Chad's elite military unit; it is reportedly a division-size unit with infantry, armor, and special forces/anti-terrorism regiments (known as the Special Anti-Terrorist Group or SATG, aka Division of Special Anti-Terrorist Groups or DGSAT)" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { diff --git a/africa/cf.json b/africa/cf.json index 31e22b86..f59c779f 100644 --- a/africa/cf.json +++ b/africa/cf.json @@ -615,7 +615,7 @@ "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for 2 additional terms); election last held on 21 March 2021 (next to be held on 21 March 2026)" }, "election results": { - "text": "Denis SASSOU-Nguesso reelected president in the first round; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-Nguesso (PCT) 88.4%, Guy Price Parfait KOLELAS (MCDDI) 8.0%, turnout is 67.6%." + "text": "Denis SASSOU-Nguesso reelected president in the first round; percent of vote - Denis SASSOU-Nguesso (PCT) 88.4%, Guy Price Parfait KOLELAS (MCDDI) 8.0%, other 3.6% (2021)" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -925,7 +925,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Cooperation Financiere en Afrique Centrale francs (XAF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1270,7 +1270,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "29,132 (Central African Republic), 22,123 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (refugees and asylum seekers) (2022)" + "text": "29,185 (Central African Republic), 22,133 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (refugees and asylum seekers) (2022)" }, "IDPs": { "text": "159,830 (multiple civil wars since 1992) (2022)" diff --git a/africa/cg.json b/africa/cg.json index bc75da65..1b5f8b47 100644 --- a/africa/cg.json +++ b/africa/cg.json @@ -639,7 +639,7 @@ "text": "president directly elected by simple majority vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 30 December 2018 (next to be held in December 2023); prime minister appointed by the president" }, "election results": { - "text": "Felix TSHISEKEDI elected president; percent of vote - Felix TSHISEKEDI (UDPS) 38.6%, Martin FAYULU (Lamuka coalition) 34.8%, Emmanuel Ramazani SHADARY (PPRD) 23.9%, other 2.7%; note - election marred by serious voting irregularities" + "text": "Felix TSHISEKEDI elected president; percent of vote - Felix TSHISEKEDI (UDPS) 38.6%, Martin FAYULU (Lamuka coalition) 34.8%, Emmanuel Ramazani SHADARY (PPRD) 23.9%, other 2.7%; note - election marred by serious voting irregularities (2018)" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -730,7 +730,7 @@ "text": "5 (all natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Garamba National Park, Kahuzi-Biega National Park, Okapi Wildlife Reserve, Salonga National Park, Virunga National Park" + "text": "Garamba National Park; Kahuzi-Biega National Park; Okapi Wildlife Reserve; Salonga National Park; Virunga National Park" } } }, @@ -960,7 +960,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Congolese francs (CDF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1270,8 +1270,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Forces d'Armees de la Republique Democratique du Congo, FARDC): Land Forces, National Navy (La Marine Nationale), Congolese Air Force (Force Aerienne Congolaise, FAC); Republican Guard; Ministry of Interior: Congolese National Police, Directorate General for Migration (2022)(2022)" + "text": "the 2013 coup resulted in the institutional collapse of the FACA; its forces were overwhelmed and forced to flee to neighboring countries; reportedly only 10% of the FACA returned after the coup, and it has struggled to rebuild in the years of instability since; the European Union, France, Russia, the UN, and the US have provided various levels of security assistance
in 2020-2021, the EDF assisted the Ethiopian Government in its war with the Tigray regional government, providing ground forces and combat aircraft; during the fighting, the EDF was accused of committing human rights abuses against civilians
" diff --git a/africa/et.json b/africa/et.json index 665a3d75..8259296b 100644 --- a/africa/et.json +++ b/africa/et.json @@ -977,7 +977,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "birr (ETB) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1270,7 +1270,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Ethiopian National Defense Force (ENDF): Ground Forces, Ethiopian Air Force (Ye Ityopya Ayer Hayl, ETAF) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - in January 2020 the Ethiopian Government announced it had re-established a navy, which was disbanded in 1996; in March 2019 Ethiopia signed a defense cooperation agreement with France which stipulated that France would support the establishment of an Ethiopian navy, which will reportedly be based out of DjiboutiIn 788, about a century after the Arab conquest of North Africa, a series of Moroccan Muslim dynasties began to rule in Morocco. In the 16th century, the Sa'adi monarchy, particularly under Ahmad al-MANSUR (1578-1603), repelled foreign invaders and inaugurated a golden age. The Alaouite Dynasty, to which the current Moroccan royal family belongs, dates from the 17th century. In 1860, Spain occupied northern Morocco and ushered in a half-century of trade rivalry among European powers that saw Morocco's sovereignty steadily erode; in 1912, the French imposed a protectorate over the country. A protracted independence struggle with France ended successfully in 1956. The internationalized city of Tangier and most Spanish possessions were turned over to the new country that same year. Sultan MOHAMMED V, the current monarch's grandfather, organized the new state as a constitutional monarchy and in 1957 assumed the title of king. Since Spain's 1976 withdrawal from what is today called Western Sahara, Morocco has extended its de facto administrative control to roughly 75% of this territory; however, the UN does not recognize Morocco as the administering power for Western Sahara. The UN since 1991 has monitored a cease-fire between Morocco and the Polisario Front - an organization advocating the territory’s independence - and restarted negotiations over the status of the territory in December 2018. On 10 December 2020, the US recognized Morocco's sovereignty over all of Western Sahara.
King MOHAMMED VI in early 2011 responded to the spread of pro-democracy protests in the North Africa region by implementing a reform program that included a new constitution, passed by popular referendum in July 2011, under which some new powers were extended to parliament and the prime minister, but ultimate authority remains in the hands of the monarch. In November 2011, the Justice and Development Party (PJD) - a moderate Islamist party - won the largest number of seats in parliamentary elections, becoming the first Islamist party to lead the Moroccan Government. In September 2015, Morocco held its first direct elections for regional councils, one of the reforms included in the 2011 constitution. The PJD again won the largest number of seats in nationwide parliamentary elections in October 2016, but it lost its plurality to the probusiness National Rally of Independents (RNI) in September 2021. In December 2020, Morocco signed a normalization agreement with Israel, similar to those that Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Sudan had concluded with Israel earlier in 2020.
" + "text": "In 788, about a century after the Arab conquest of North Africa, a series of Moroccan Muslim dynasties began to rule in Morocco. In the 16th century, the Sa'adi monarchy, particularly under Ahmad al-MANSUR (1578-1603), repelled foreign invaders and inaugurated a golden age. The Alaouite Dynasty, to which the current Moroccan royal family belongs, dates from the 17th century. In 1860, Spain occupied northern Morocco and ushered in a half-century of trade rivalry among European powers that saw Morocco's sovereignty steadily erode; in 1912, the French imposed a protectorate over the country. A protracted independence struggle with France ended successfully in 1956. The internationalized city of Tangier and most Spanish possessions were turned over to the new country that same year. Sultan MOHAMMED V, the current monarch's grandfather, organized the new state as a constitutional monarchy and in 1957 assumed the title of king. Since Spain's 1976 withdrawal from Western Sahara, Morocco has extended its de facto administrative control to roughly 75% of this territory; however, the UN does not recognize Morocco as the administering power for Western Sahara. The UN since 1991 has monitored a cease-fire between Morocco and the Polisario Front - an organization advocating the territory’s independence - and restarted negotiations over the status of the territory in December 2018. On 10 December 2020, the US recognized Morocco's sovereignty over all of Western Sahara.
King MOHAMMED VI in early 2011 responded to the spread of pro-democracy protests in the North Africa region by implementing a reform program that included a new constitution, passed by popular referendum in July 2011, under which some new powers were extended to parliament and the prime minister, but ultimate authority remains in the hands of the monarch. In November 2011, the Justice and Development Party (PJD) - a moderate Islamist party - won the largest number of seats in parliamentary elections, becoming the first Islamist party to lead the Moroccan Government. In September 2015, Morocco held its first direct elections for regional councils, one of the reforms included in the 2011 constitution. The PJD again won the largest number of seats in nationwide parliamentary elections in October 2016, but it lost its plurality to the probusiness National Rally of Independents (RNI) in September 2021. In December 2020, Morocco signed a normalization agreement with Israel, similar to those that Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, and Sudan had concluded with Israel earlier in 2020.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -190,7 +190,7 @@ "female": { "text": "29.6 years (2020 est.)" }, - "note": "note: does not include data from the former Western Sahara" + "note": "note: does not include data from the former Western Sahara" }, "Population growth rate": { "text": "0.91% (2022 est.)", @@ -206,7 +206,7 @@ }, "Net migration rate": { "text": "-1.74 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2022 est.)", - "note": "note: does not include data from the former Western Sahara" + "note": "note: does not include data from the former Western Sahara" }, "Population distribution": { "text": "the highest population density is found along the Atlantic and Mediterranean coasts; a number of densely populated agglomerations are found scattered through the Atlas Mountains as shown in this population distribution map" @@ -664,7 +664,7 @@ }, "Diplomatic representation from the US": { "chief of mission": { - "text": "Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires David GREENE (since 21 January 2021)" + "text": "Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Lawrence M. RANDOLPH (since 4 January 2021)" }, "embassy": { "text": "Km 5.7 Avenue Mohammed VI, Souissi, Rabat 10170" @@ -705,7 +705,7 @@ "text": "9 (all cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Medina of Fez, Medina of Marrakesh, Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou, Historic City of Meknes, Archaeological Site of Volubilis, Medina of Tétouan (formerly known as Titawin), Medina of Essaouira (formerly Mogador), Portuguese City of Mazagan (El Jadida), Historic and Modern Rabat" + "text": "Medina of Fez; Medina of Marrakesh; Ksar of Ait-Ben-Haddou; Historic City of Meknes; Archaeological Site of Volubilis; Medina of Tétouan (formerly known as Titawin); Medina of Essaouira (formerly Mogador); Portuguese City of Mazagan (El Jadida); Historic and Modern Rabat" } } }, @@ -950,7 +950,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Moroccan dirhams (MAD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1256,7 +1256,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Royal Armed Forces: Royal Moroccan Army (includes the Moroccan Royal Guard), Royal Moroccan Navy (includes Coast Guard, marines), Royal Moroccan Air Force; Ministry of Defense (aka Administration of National Defense): Royal Moroccan Gendarmerie; Ministry of Interior: National Police, Auxiliary Forces (provides support to the Gendarmerie and National Police; includes a Mobile Intervention Corps, a motorized paramilitary security force that supplements the military and the police as needed) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the National Police manages internal law enforcement in cities; the Royal Gendarmerie is responsible for law enforcement in rural regions and on national highwaysAlthough known to Arab and European sailors since at least the early 1500s, the island of Mauritius was uninhabited until 1638 when the Dutch established a settlement named in honor of Prince Maurits van NASSAU. Their presence led to the rapid disappearance of the flightless dodo bird that has since become one of the most well-known examples of extinction in modern times. The Dutch abandoned their financially distressed settlement in 1710, although a number of formerly enslaved people remained. In 1722, the French established what would become a highly profitable settlement focused on sugar cane plantations that were reliant on the labor of enslaved people brought to Mauritius from other parts of Africa. In the 1790s, the island had a brief period of autonomous rule when plantation owners rejected French control because of laws ending slavery that were temporarily in effect during the French Revolution. Britain captured the Island in 1810 as part of the Napoleonic Wars, but kept most of the French administrative structure which remains to this day in the form of the country’s legal codes and widespread use of French Creole language. The abolition of slavery in 1835 - later than most other British colonies - led to increased reliance on contracted laborers from the Indian subcontinent to work on plantations. Today their descendants form the majority of the population. Mauritius remained a strategically important British naval base, and later an air station, playing a role during World War II for anti-submarine and convoy operations, as well as for the collection of signals intelligence.
Mauritius gained independence from the UK in 1968 as a Parliamentary Republic and has remained a stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record. The country also attracted considerable foreign investment and now has one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Mauritius’ often fractious coalition politics has been dominated by two prominent families each of which has had father-son pairs who have been prime minister over multiple, often nonconsecutive, terms. Seewoosagur Ramgoolam (1968-76) was Mauritius’ first prime minister and he was succeeded by Anerood Jugnauth (1982-95, 2000-03, 2014-17); his son Navin Ramgoolam (1995-2000, 2005-14); and Paul Raymond Berenger (2003-05), the only non-Hindu prime minister of post-independence Mauritius. In 2017, Pravind Jugnauth became prime minister after his father stepped down short of completing his term, and he was elected in his own right in 2019. Mauritius claims the French island of Tromelin and the British Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory). Since 2017, Mauritius has secured favorable UN General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions and an International Court of Justice (ICJ) advisory opinion relating to its sovereignty dispute with the UK.
" + "text": "Although known to Arab and European sailors since at least the early 1500s, the island of Mauritius was uninhabited until 1638 when the Dutch established a settlement named in honor of Prince Maurits van NASSAU. Their presence led to the rapid disappearance of the flightless dodo bird that has since become one of the most well-known examples of extinction in modern times. The Dutch abandoned their financially distressed settlement in 1710, although a number of formerly enslaved people remained. In 1722, the French established what would become a highly profitable settlement focused on sugar cane plantations that were reliant on the labor of enslaved people brought to Mauritius from other parts of Africa. In the 1790s, the island had a brief period of autonomous rule when plantation owners rejected French control because of laws ending slavery that were temporarily in effect during the French Revolution. Britain captured the Island in 1810 as part of the Napoleonic Wars, but kept most of the French administrative structure which remains to this day in the form of the country’s legal codes and widespread use of French Creole language. The abolition of slavery in 1835 - later than most other British colonies - led to increased reliance on contracted laborers from the Indian subcontinent to work on plantations. Today their descendants form the majority of the population. Mauritius remained a strategically important British naval base, and later an air station, playing a role during World War II for anti-submarine and convoy operations, as well as for the collection of signals intelligence.
Mauritius gained independence from the UK in 1968 as a Parliamentary Republic and has remained a stable democracy with regular free elections and a positive human rights record. The country also attracted considerable foreign investment and now has one of Africa's highest per capita incomes. Mauritius’ often fractious coalition politics has been dominated by two prominent families each of which has had father-son pairs who have been prime minister over multiple, often nonconsecutive, terms. Seewoosagur RAMGOOLAM (1968-76) was Mauritius’ first prime minister and he was succeeded by Anerood JUGNAUTH (1982-95, 2000-03, 2014-17); his son Navin RAMGOOLAM (1995-2000, 2005-14); and Paul Raymond BERENGER (2003-05), the only non-Hindu prime minister of post-independence Mauritius. In 2017, Pravind JUGNAUTH became prime minister after his father stepped down short of completing his term, and he was elected in his own right in 2019. Mauritius claims the French island of Tromelin and the British Chagos Archipelago (British Indian Ocean Territory). Since 2017, Mauritius has secured favorable UN General Assembly resolutions and an International Court of Justice advisory opinion relating to its sovereignty dispute with the UK.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -549,7 +549,7 @@ "text": "last held on 7 November 2019 (next to be held by late 2024)" }, "election results": { - "text": "percent of vote by party - MSM 61%, Mauritius Labour Party 23%, MMM 13%, OPR 3%; elected seats by party as of - the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) wins 38 seats, the Mauritius Labour Party (PTR) or (MLP) 14, Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) 8 and the Rodrigues People's Organization (OPR) 2; composition - men 49, women 13; percent of women 20% (2019)" + "text": "percent of vote by party - MSM 61%, Mauritius Labour Party 23%, MMM 13%, OPR 3%; elected seats by party as of - the Militant Socialist Movement (MSM) wins 38 seats, the Mauritius Labour Party (PTR) or (MLP) 14, Mauritian Militant Movement (MMM) 8 and the Rodrigues People's Organization (OPR) 2; composition as of July 2022 - men 56, women 14, percent of women 20% (2019)" } }, "Judicial branch": { @@ -627,7 +627,7 @@ "text": "2 (both cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Aapravasi Ghat, Le Morne Cultural Landscape" + "text": "Aapravasi Ghat; Le Morne Cultural Landscape" } } }, @@ -859,7 +859,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Mauritian rupees (MUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/africa/mr.json b/africa/mr.json index 08c3f644..ed1f7500 100644 --- a/africa/mr.json +++ b/africa/mr.json @@ -619,13 +619,13 @@ }, "Legislative branch": { "description": { - "text": "unicameral Parliament or Barlamane consists of the National Assembly or Al Jamiya Al Wataniya (157 seats; 113 members in single- and multi-seat constituencies directly elected by a combination of plurality and proportional representation voting systems, 40 members in a single, nationwide constituency directly elected by proportional representation vote, and 4 members directly elected by the diaspora; all members serve 5-year terms)" + "text": "unicameral Parliament or Barlamane consists of the National Assembly or Al Jamiya Al Wataniya (157 seats statutory, 153 current term; 113 members in single- and multi-seat constituencies directly elected by a combination of plurality and proportional representation voting systems, 40 members in a single, nationwide constituency directly elected by proportional representation vote (20 seats are reserved for women candidates in the nationwide constituency) , and 4 members directly elected by the diaspora; all members serve 5-year terms)" }, "elections": { "text": "first held as the unicameral National Assembly in 2 rounds on 1 and 15 September 2018 (next to be held in 2023)" }, "election results": { - "text": "National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UPR 95, Tawassoul 14, UDP 6, El Karama 6, AND 4, PUCM 4, RFD 3, UFP 3, Shura Party for Development 3, Burst of Youth for the Nation 3, SAWAB 3, APP 3, DIL 2, El Wiam 2, AJD/MR 2, Coalition of Wava Mauritanian Party 1, El Ghad 1, National Democratic Union 1, Ravah Party 1, Party of Peace and Democratic Progress 1, El Islah 1" + "text": "National Assembly - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - UPR 95, Tawassoul 14, UDP 6, El Karama 6, AND 4, PUCM 4, RFD 3, UFP 3, Shura Party for Development 3, Burst of Youth for the Nation 3, SAWAB 3, APP 3, DIL 2, El Wiam 2, AJD/MR 2, Coalition of Wava Mauritanian Party 1, El Ghad 1, National Democratic Union 1, Ravah Party 1, Party of Peace and Democratic Progress 1, El Islah 1; composition - men, 122, women 31, percent of women 20.3%" }, "note": "note: a referendum held in August 2017 approved a constitutional amendment to change the Parliament structure from bicameral to unicameral by abolishing the Senate and creating Regional Councils for local development" }, @@ -937,7 +937,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "ouguiyas (MRO) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1231,7 +1231,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Mauritanian Armed Forces: Army, Mauritanian Navy (Marine Mauritanienne), Islamic Republic of Mauritania Air Group (Groupement Aerienne Islamique de Mauritanie, GAIM); Gendarmerie (Ministry of Defense); Ministry of Interior and Decentralization: National Guard, General Group for Road Safety (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Gendarmerie is responsible for maintaining civil order around metropolitan areas and providing law enforcement services in rural areas; the National Guard performs a limited police function in keeping with its peacetime role of providing security at government facilities, to include prisons; the General Group for Road Safety maintains security on roads and operates checkpoints throughout the country" + "note": "note 1: the Gendarmerie is responsible for maintaining civil order around metropolitan areas and providing law enforcement services in rural areasIn the first half of the second millennium A.D., northern Mozambican port towns were frequented by traders from Somalia, Ethiopia, Egypt, Arabia, Persia, and India. The Portuguese were able to wrest much of the coastal trade from Arab Muslims in the centuries after 1500 and to set up their own colonies. Portugal did not relinquish Mozambique until 1975. Large-scale emigration, economic dependence on South Africa, a severe drought, and a prolonged civil war hindered the country's development until the mid-1990s. The ruling Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) party formally abandoned Marxism in 1989, and a new constitution the following year provided for multiparty elections and a free market economy. A UN-negotiated peace agreement between FRELIMO and rebel Mozambique National Resistance (RENAMO) forces ended the fighting in 1992. In 2004, Mozambique underwent a delicate transition as Joaquim CHISSANO stepped down after 18 years in office. His elected successor, Armando GUEBUZA, served two terms and then passed executive power to Filipe NYUSI in 2015. RENAMO’s residual armed forces intermittently engaged in a low-level insurgency after 2012, but a late December 2016 ceasefire eventually led to the two sides signing a comprehensive peace deal in August 2019. Elections in October 2019, challenged by Western observers and civil society as being problematic, resulted in resounding wins for NYUSI and FRELIMO across the country. Since October 2017, violent extremists - who an official ISIS media outlet recognized as ISIS's network in Mozambique for the first time in June 2019 - have been conducting attacks against civilians and security services in the northern province of Cabo Delgado. In 2021, Rwanda and the Southern African Development Community deployed forces to support Mozambique’s efforts to counter the extremist group.
" + "text": "In the first half of the second millennium A.D., northern Mozambican port towns were frequented by traders from Somalia, Ethiopia, Egypt, Arabia, Persia, and India. The Portuguese were able to wrest much of the coastal trade from Arab Muslims in the centuries after 1500 and to set up their own colonies. Portugal did not relinquish Mozambique until 1975. Large-scale emigration, economic dependence on South Africa, a severe drought, and a prolonged civil war hindered the country's development until the mid-1990s. The ruling Front for the Liberation of Mozambique (FRELIMO) party formally abandoned Marxism in 1989, and a new constitution the following year provided for multiparty elections and a free market economy. A UN-negotiated peace agreement between FRELIMO and rebel Mozambique National Resistance (RENAMO) forces ended the fighting in 1992. In 2004, Mozambique underwent a delicate transition as Joaquim CHISSANO stepped down after 18 years in office. His elected successor, Armando GUEBUZA, served two terms and then passed executive power to Filipe NYUSI in 2015. RENAMO’s residual armed forces intermittently engaged in a low-level insurgency after 2012, but a late December 2016 cease-fire eventually led to the two sides signing a comprehensive peace deal in August 2019. Elections in October 2019, challenged by Western observers and civil society as being problematic, resulted in resounding wins for NYUSI and FRELIMO across the country. Since October 2017, violent extremists - who an official ISIS media outlet recognized as ISIS's network in Mozambique for the first time in June 2019 - have been conducting attacks against civilians and security services in the northern province of Cabo Delgado. In 2021, Rwanda and the Southern African Development Community deployed forces to support Mozambique’s efforts to counter the extremist group.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -944,7 +944,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "meticais (MZM) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1249,8 +1249,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "Armed Defense Forces of Mozambique (Forcas Armadas de Defesa de Mocambique, FADM): Mozambique Army, Mozambique Navy (Marinha de Guerra de Mocambique, MGM), Mozambique Air Force (Forca Aerea de Mocambique, FAM)the Nigerian military traces its origins to the Nigeria Regiment of the West African Frontier Force (WAFF), a multi-regiment force formed by the British colonial office in 1900 to garrison the West African colonies of Nigeria (Lagos and the protectorates of Northern and Southern Nigeria), Gold Coast, Sierra Leone, and Gambia; the WAFF served with distinction in both East and West Africa during World War I; in 1928, it received royal recognition and was re-named the Royal West African Frontier Force (RWAFF); the RWAFF went on to serve in World War II as part of the British 81st and 82nd (West African) divisions in the East Africa and Burma campaigns; in 1956, the Nigeria Regiment of the RWAFF was renamed the Nigerian Military Forces (NMF) and in 1958, the colonial government of Nigeria took over control of the NMF from the British War Office; the Nigerian Armed Forces were established following independence in 1960
" + "text": "as of 2022, the Nigerian military was sub-Saharan Africa’s largest and regarded as one of its most capable forces; it was focused largely on internal security and faced a number of challenges that have stretched its resources, however; the Army was deployed in all 36 of the country's states; in the northeast, it was conducting counterinsurgency/counter-terrorist operations against the Boko Haram (BH) and Islamic State in West Africa (ISWA) terrorist groups, where it has deployed as many as 70,000 troops at times and jihadist-related violence has killed an estimated 35-40,000 people, mostly civilians, since 2009 (as of 2022); in the northwest, it faced growing threats from criminal gangs, bandits, and violence associated with historical and ongoing farmer-herder conflicts, as well as BH and ISWA terrorists; bandits in the northwest were estimated to number in the low 10,000s and violence there has killed more than 10,000 since the mid-2010s; the military also continued to protect the oil industry in the Niger Delta region against militants and criminal activity, although the levels of violence there have decreased in recent years; beginning in May 2021, a contingent of military troops and police were deployed to eastern Nigeria to quell renewed agitation for a state of Biafra (Biafra seceded from Nigeria in the late 1960s, sparking a civil war that caused more than 1 million deaths)the International Maritime Bureau reports the territorial and offshore waters in the Niger Delta and Gulf of Guinea remain a very high risk for piracy and armed robbery of ships; in 2021, there were 34 reported incidents of piracy and armed robbery at sea in the Gulf of Guinea region; although a significant decrease from the total number of 81 incidents in 2020, it included the one hijacking and three of five ships fired upon worldwide; while boarding and attempted boarding to steal valuables from ships and crews are the most common types of incidents, almost a third of all incidents involve a hijacking and/or kidnapping; in 2021, 57 crew members were kidnapped in seven separate incidents in the Gulf of Guinea, representing 100% of kidnappings worldwide; Nigerian pirates in particular are well armed and very aggressive, operating as far as 200 nm offshore; the Maritime Administration of the US Department of Transportation has issued a Maritime Advisory (2022-001 - Gulf of Guinea-Piracy/Armed Robbery/Kidnapping for Ransom) effective 4 January 2022, which states in part, \"Piracy, armed robbery, and kidnapping for ransom continue to serve as significant threats to US-flagged vessels transiting or operating in the Gulf of Guinea\"
" diff --git a/africa/od.json b/africa/od.json index 824a88c9..059b9cb8 100644 --- a/africa/od.json +++ b/africa/od.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "South Sudan, which gained independence from Sudan on 9 July 2011, is the world’s newest country. Home to a diverse array of mainly Nilotic ethnolinguistic groups that settled in the territory in the 15th through 19th centuries, South Sudanese society is heavily dependent on seasonal fluctuations in precipitation and seasonal migration. The land comprising modern-day South Sudan was conquered first by Egypt and later ruled jointly by Egyptian-British colonial administrators in the late 19th century. Christian missionaries propagated the spread of English and Christianity, rather than Arabic and Islam, leading to significant cultural differences between the northern and southern parts of Sudan. When Sudan gained its independence in 1956, the Southern region received assurances that it would participate fully in the political system. However, the Arab government in Khartoum reneged on its promises, prompting two periods of civil war (1955-1972 and 1983-2005) in which as many as 2.5 million people died - mostly civilians - due to starvation and drought. The Second Sudanese civil war was one of the deadliest since WWII, and left Southern Sudanese society devastated by humanitarian crises and economic deterioration. Peace talks resulted in a US-backed Comprehensive Peace Agreement, signed in January 2005, which granted the South a six-year period of autonomy followed by a referendum on final status. The result of this referendum, held in January 2011, was a vote of 98% in favor of secession.
Since independence, South Sudan has struggled to form a viable governing system and has been plagued by widespread corruption, political conflict, and communal violence. In December 2013, conflict erupted between forces loyal to President Salva KIIR a Dinka, and forces loyal to Vice President Riek MACHAR, a Nuer. The conflict quickly spread throughout the country and unfolded along ethnic lines, killing tens of thousands and creating a dire humanitarian crisis, with millions of South Sudanese displaced and food insecure. KIIR and MACHAR signed a peace agreement in August 2015 that created a Transitional Government of National Unity in April 2016. However, in July 2016, renewed fighting broke out in Juba between KIIR and MACHAR’s forces, plunging the country back into conflict and drawing in additional armed opposition groups, including those in the southern Equatoria region that had largely stayed out of the first round of civil war. A \"revitalized\" peace agreement was signed in September 2018, which mostly ended the fighting. The government and most armed opposition groups agreed that they would form a unified national army, create a transitional government by May 2019, and prepare for elections in December 2022. Subsequent extensions pushed elections to late 2023, and the transitional government was formed in February 2020, when MACHAR returned to Juba as First Vice President. Since 2020, implementation of the peace agreement has been stalled as the parties wrangle over power-sharing arrangements, contributing to an uptick in communal violence and the country’s worst food security crisis since independence, with 7 of 11 million South Sudanese citizens in need of humanitarian assistance.
South Sudan, which gained independence from Sudan on 9 July 2011, is the world’s newest country. Home to a diverse array of mainly Nilotic ethnolinguistic groups that settled in the territory in the 15th through 19th centuries, South Sudanese society is heavily dependent on seasonal fluctuations in precipitation and seasonal migration. The land comprising modern-day South Sudan was conquered first by Egypt and later ruled jointly by Egyptian-British colonial administrators in the late 19th century. Christian missionaries propagated the spread of English and Christianity, rather than Arabic and Islam, leading to significant cultural differences between the northern and southern parts of Sudan. When Sudan gained its independence in 1956, the Southern region received assurances that it would participate fully in the political system. However, the Arab government in Khartoum reneged on its promises, prompting two periods of civil war (1955-1972 and 1983-2005) in which as many as 2.5 million people died - mostly civilians - due to starvation and drought. The Second Sudanese civil war was one of the deadliest since WWII, and left Southern Sudanese society devastated by humanitarian crises and economic deterioration. Peace talks resulted in a US-backed Comprehensive Peace Agreement, signed in January 2005, which granted the South a six-year period of autonomy followed by a referendum on final status. The result of this referendum, held in January 2011, was a vote of 98% in favor of secession.
Since independence, South Sudan has struggled to form a viable governing system and has been plagued by widespread corruption, political conflict, and communal violence. In December 2013, conflict erupted between forces loyal to President Salva KIIR, a Dinka, and forces loyal to Vice President Riek MACHAR, a Nuer. The conflict quickly spread throughout the country and unfolded along ethnic lines, killing tens of thousands and creating a dire humanitarian crisis, with millions of South Sudanese displaced and food insecure. KIIR and MACHAR signed a peace agreement in August 2015 that created a Transitional Government of National Unity in April 2016. However, in July 2016, renewed fighting broke out in Juba between KIIR and MACHAR’s forces, plunging the country back into conflict and drawing in additional armed opposition groups, including those in the southern Equatoria region that had largely stayed out of the first round of civil war. A \"revitalized\" peace agreement was signed in September 2018, which mostly ended the fighting. The government and most armed opposition groups agreed that they would form a unified national army, create a transitional government by May 2019, and prepare for elections in December 2022. Subsequent extensions pushed elections to late 2023, and the transitional government was formed in February 2020, when MACHAR returned to Juba as first vice president. Since 2020, implementation of the peace agreement has been stalled as the parties wrangle over power-sharing arrangements, contributing to an uptick in communal violence and the country’s worst food security crisis since independence, with 7 of 11 million South Sudanese citizens in need of humanitarian assistance.
the Rwandan Armed Forces (FAR) were established following independence in 1962; after the 1990-1994 civil war and genocide, the victorious Tutsi-dominated Rwandan Patriotic Front's military wing, the Rwandan Patriotic Army (RPA), became the country's military force; the RPA participated in the First (1996-1997) and Second (1998-2003) Congolese Wars; the RPA was renamed the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF) in 2003, by which time it had assumed a more national character with the inclusion of many former Hutu officers as well as newly recruited soldiers
the RDF is widely regarded as one of Africa’s best trained and most capable and professional military forces; as of 2022, over 5,000 RDF personnel were deployed on missions in Africa
Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory consisting of Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Saint Helena: Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. During the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, several thousand Boer prisoners were confined on the island between 1900 and 1903.;
Saint Helena is one of the most remote populated places in the world. The British Government committed to building an airport on Saint Helena in 2005. After more than a decade of delays and construction, a commercial air service to South Africa via Namibia was inaugurated in October of 2017. The weekly service to Saint Helena from Johannesburg via Windhoek in Namibia takes just over six hours (including the refueling stop in Windhoek) and replaces the mail ship that had made a five-day journey to the island every three weeks.;
Ascension Island: This barren and uninhabited island was discovered and named by the Portuguese in 1503. The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of Napoleon from Saint Helena. It served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol. The island remained under Admiralty control until 1922, when it became a dependency of Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield on Ascension in support of transatlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an essential staging area for British forces during the Falklands War. It remains a critical refueling point in the air-bridge from the UK to the South Atlantic.;
The island hosts one of four dedicated ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system (the others are on Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory), Kwajalein (Marshall Islands), and at Cape Canaveral, Florida (US)). NASA and the US Air Force also operate a Meter-Class Autonomous Telescope (MCAT) on Ascension as part of the deep space surveillance system for tracking orbital debris, which can be a hazard to spacecraft and astronauts.
Tristan da Cunha: The island group consists of Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale, Inaccessible, and Gough Islands. Tristan da Cunha, named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506), was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue Napoleon from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island.
" + "text": "Saint Helena is a British Overseas Territory consisting of Saint Helena and Ascension Islands, and the island group of Tristan da Cunha.
Saint Helena: Uninhabited when first discovered by the Portuguese in 1502, Saint Helena was garrisoned by the British during the 17th century. It acquired fame as the place of Napoleon BONAPARTE's exile from 1815 until his death in 1821, but its importance as a port of call declined after the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869. During the Anglo-Boer War in South Africa, several thousand Boer prisoners were confined on the island between 1900 and 1903.
Saint Helena is one of the most remote populated places in the world. The British Government committed to building an airport on Saint Helena in 2005. After more than a decade of delays and construction, a commercial air service to South Africa via Namibia was inaugurated in October of 2017. The weekly service to Saint Helena from Johannesburg via Windhoek in Namibia takes just over six hours (including the refueling stop in Windhoek) and replaces the mail ship that had made a five-day journey to the island every three weeks.
Ascension Island: This barren and uninhabited island was discovered and named by the Portuguese in 1503. The British garrisoned the island in 1815 to prevent a rescue of NAPOLEON from Saint Helena. It served as a provisioning station for the Royal Navy's West Africa Squadron on anti-slavery patrol. The island remained under Admiralty control until 1922, when it became a dependency of Saint Helena. During World War II, the UK permitted the US to construct an airfield on Ascension in support of transatlantic flights to Africa and anti-submarine operations in the South Atlantic. In the 1960s the island became an important space tracking station for the US. In 1982, Ascension was an essential staging area for British forces during the Falklands War. It remains a critical refueling point in the air-bridge from the UK to the South Atlantic.
The island hosts one of four dedicated ground antennas that assist in the operation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) navigation system (the others are on Diego Garcia (British Indian Ocean Territory), Kwajalein (Marshall Islands), and at Cape Canaveral, Florida (US)). NASA and the US Air Force also operate a Meter-Class Autonomous Telescope (MCAT) on Ascension as part of the deep space surveillance system for tracking orbital debris, which can be a hazard to spacecraft and astronauts.
Tristan da Cunha: The island group consists of Tristan da Cunha, Nightingale, Inaccessible, and Gough Islands. Tristan da Cunha, named after its Portuguese discoverer (1506), was garrisoned by the British in 1816 to prevent any attempt to rescue NAPOLEON from Saint Helena. Gough and Inaccessible Islands have been designated World Heritage Sites. South Africa leases a site for a meteorological station on Gough Island.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -583,7 +583,7 @@ "text": "NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Saint Helenian pounds (SHP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/africa/sl.json b/africa/sl.json index ed8c79ef..9fdc835f 100644 --- a/africa/sl.json +++ b/africa/sl.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Continuously populated for at least 2,500 years, the dense jungle in the area of Sierra Leone allowed the region to remain relatively protected from invaders from empires in West Africa. Traders introduced Sierra Leone to Islam, which occupies a central role in Sierra Leonean culture and history. In the 17th century, the British set up a trading post near present-day Freetown. The trade originally involved timber and ivory, but later expanded to enslaved people. In 1787, following the American Revolution, Sierra Leone became a destination for Black British loyalists from the new United States. After the abolition of the slave trade in 1807, British ships delivered thousands of liberated Africans to Sierra Leone. During the 19th century, the colony gradually expanded inland.
In 1961, Sierra Leone became independent of the UK. While Sierra Leone held free and fair elections in 1962 and 1967, Siaka STEVENS - Sierra Leone’s second prime minister - quickly reverted to authoritarian tendencies, outlawing most political parties and ruling from 1967 to 1985. In 1991, Sierra Leonean soldiers launched a civil war against STEVENS’ ruling party. The war caused tens of thousands of deaths and displaced more than 2 million people (about one-third of the population). In 1998, a Nigerian-led West African coalition military force intervened, installing Tejan KABBAH - who was originally elected in 1996 - as prime minister. In 2002, KABBAH officially announced the end of the war. Since 1998, Sierra Leone has conducted uninterrupted democratic elections, dominated by the two main political parties. In 2018, Julius Maada BIO of the Sierra Leone People’s Party won the presidential election that saw a high voter turnout despite some allegations of voter intimidation. The next presidential election is scheduled for March 2023.
" + "text": "Continuously populated for at least 2,500 years, the dense jungle in the area of Sierra Leone allowed the region to remain relatively protected from invaders from empires in West Africa. Traders introduced Sierra Leone to Islam, which occupies a central role in Sierra Leonean culture and history. In the 17th century, the British set up a trading post near present-day Freetown. The trade originally involved timber and ivory but later expanded to enslaved people. In 1787, following the American Revolution, Sierra Leone became a destination for Black British loyalists from the new United States. After the abolition of the slave trade in 1807, British ships delivered thousands of liberated Africans to Sierra Leone. During the 19th century, the colony gradually expanded inland.
In 1961, Sierra Leone became independent of the UK. While Sierra Leone held free and fair elections in 1962 and 1967, Siaka STEVENS - Sierra Leone’s second prime minister - quickly reverted to authoritarian tendencies, outlawing most political parties and ruling from 1967 to 1985. In 1991, Sierra Leonean soldiers launched a civil war against STEVENS’ ruling party. The war caused tens of thousands of deaths and displaced more than 2 million people (about one third of the population). In 1998, a Nigerian-led West African coalition military force intervened, installing Tejan KABBAH - who was originally elected in 1996 - as prime minister. In 2002, KABBAH officially announced the end of the war. Since 1998, Sierra Leone has conducted uninterrupted democratic elections, dominated by the two main political parties. In 2018, Julius Maada BIO of the Sierra Leone People’s Party won the presidential election that saw a high voter turnout despite some allegations of voter intimidation. The next presidential election is scheduled for March 2023.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -585,16 +585,16 @@ }, "Executive branch": { "chief of state": { - "text": "President Julius Maada BIO (since 4 April 2018); Vice President Mohamed Juldeh JALLOH (since 4 April 2018) ; note - the president is both chief of state, head of government, and minister of defense " + "text": "President Julius Maada BIO (since 4 April 2018); Vice President Mohamed Juldeh JALLOH (since 4 April 2018) ; note - the president is both chief of state, head of government, and minister of defense" }, "head of government": { "text": "President Julius Maada BIO (since 4 April 2018); Vice President Mohamed Juldeh JALLOH (since 4 April 2018)" }, "cabinet": { - "text": "Ministers of State appointed by the president, approved by Parliament; the cabinet is responsible to the president " + "text": "Ministers of State appointed by the president, approved by Parliament; the cabinet is responsible to the president" }, "elections/appointments": { - "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 4 April 2018 (next to be in 2023)" + "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 4 April 2018 (next to be in 2023) (2018)" }, "election results": { "text": "Julius Maada BIO elected president in second round; percent of vote - Julius Maada BIO (SLPP) 51.8%, Samura KAMARA (APC) 48.2%" @@ -901,7 +901,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "leones (SLL) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/africa/so.json b/africa/so.json index 18a96887..64dab2b1 100644 --- a/africa/so.json +++ b/africa/so.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Ancient Egypt trade expeditions along the northeastern coast of Africa - including today's Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia - occurred at various times between the 25th and 12th centuries B.C. Between A.D. 800 and 1100, immigrant Muslim Arabs and Persians set up coastal trading posts along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, solidifying Somalia’s close trading relationship with the Arab Peninsula. In the late 19th century, Britain and Italy established colonies in the Somali Peninsula, where they remained until 1960, when British Somaliland gained independence and joined with Italian Somaliland to form the Republic of Somalia. The country functioned as a parliamentary democracy until 1969, when General Mohamed SIAD Barre took control in a coup, beginning a 22-year authoritarian socialist dictatorship. In an effort to centralize power, SIAD called for the eradication of the clan, the key cultural and social organizing principle in Somali society. Resistance to SIAD’s socialist leadership, which was causing a rapid deterioration of the country, prompted allied clan militias to overthrow SIAD in early 1991, resulting in state collapse. Subsequent fighting between rival clans for resources and territory overwhelmed the country, resulting in a manmade famine and prompting international intervention. Beginning in 1993, the UN spearheaded a humanitarian mission supported by international forces, but the international community largely withdrew by 1995 following Black Hawk Down - an incident in which two American Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters were shot down in Mogadishu, killing 21 international forces and wounding 82.
International peace conferences in the 2000s resulted in a number of transitional governments that operated outside of Somalia. Left largely to themselves, Somalis in the country established alternative governance structures; some areas formed their own administrations, such as Somaliland and Puntland, while others developed localized institutions. Many local populations turned to using sharia courts, an Islamic judicial system that implements religious law. Several of these courts came together in 2006 to form the Islamic Courts Union (ICU). The ICU established order in many areas of central and southern Somalia, including Mogadishu, but was forced out when Ethiopia intervened militarily in December 2006 on behalf of the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG). While the TFG settled in the capital, the ICU fled to rural areas or from Somalia altogether, reemerging less than a year later as the Islamic insurgent and terrorist movement al-Shabaab, which is still active today. In January 2007, the African Union (AU) established the AU Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) peacekeeping force, which allowed Ethiopia to withdraw its forces, took over security responsibility for the country, and gave the TFG space to develop Somalia’s new government. By 2012, Somali powerbrokers agreed on a provisional constitution with a loose federal structure and established the central government in Mogadishu. Since then, four interim regional administrations have been established and there have been two presidential elections. However, significant and fundamental governance and security problems remain.
.
Ancient Egypt trade expeditions along the northeastern coast of Africa - including today's Eritrea, Djibouti, and Somalia - occurred at various times between the 25th and 12th centuries B.C. Between A.D. 800 and 1100, immigrant Muslim Arabs and Persians set up coastal trading posts along the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean, solidifying Somalia’s close trading relationship with the Arab Peninsula. In the late 19th century, Britain and Italy established colonies in the Somali Peninsula, where they remained until 1960, when British Somaliland gained independence and joined with Italian Somaliland to form the Republic of Somalia. The country functioned as a parliamentary democracy until 1969, when General Mohamed SIAD Barre took control in a coup, beginning a 22-year authoritarian socialist dictatorship. In an effort to centralize power, SIAD called for the eradication of the clan, the key cultural and social organizing principle in Somali society. Resistance to SIAD’s socialist leadership, which was causing a rapid deterioration of the country, prompted allied clan militias to overthrow SIAD in early 1991, resulting in state collapse. Subsequent fighting between rival clans for resources and territory overwhelmed the country, resulting in a manmade famine and prompting international intervention. Beginning in 1993, the UN spearheaded a humanitarian mission supported by international forces, but the international community largely withdrew by 1995 following Black Hawk Down - an incident in which two American Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk helicopters were shot down in Mogadishu, killing 21 international forces and wounding 82.
International peace conferences in the 2000s resulted in a number of transitional governments that operated outside of Somalia. Left largely to themselves, Somalis in the country established alternative governance structures; some areas formed their own administrations, such as Somaliland and Puntland, while others developed localized institutions. Many local populations turned to using sharia courts, an Islamic judicial system that implements religious law. Several of these courts came together in 2006 to form the Islamic Courts Union (ICU). The ICU established order in many areas of central and southern Somalia, including Mogadishu, but was forced out when Ethiopia intervened militarily in December 2006 on behalf of the Somali Transitional Federal Government (TFG). While the TFG settled in the capital, the ICU fled to rural areas or from Somalia altogether, reemerging less than a year later as the Islamic insurgent and terrorist movement al-Shabaab, which is still active today. In January 2007, the African Union (AU) established the AU Mission in Somalia peacekeeping force, which allowed Ethiopia to withdraw its forces, took over security responsibility for the country, and gave the TFG space to develop Somalia’s new government. By 2012, Somali powerbrokers agreed on a provisional constitution with a loose federal structure and established the central government in Mogadishu. Since then, four interim regional administrations have been established and there have been two presidential elections. However, significant and fundamental governance and security problems remain.
.
Long referred to as Nubia, modern-day Sudan was the site of the Kingdom of Kerma (ca. 2500-1500 B.C.) until it was absorbed into the New Kingdom of Egypt. By the 11th century B.C., the Kingdom of Kush gained independence from Egypt; it lasted in various forms until the middle of the 4th century A.D. After the fall of Kush, the Nubians formed three Christian kingdoms of Nobatia, Makuria, and Alodia. The latter two endured until around 1500. Between the 14th and 15th centuries much of Sudan was settled by Arab nomads, and between the 16th–19th centuries it underwent extensive Islamization. Following Egyptian occupation early in the 19th century, the British established an Anglo-Egyptian Sudan - nominally a condominium, but in effect a British colony.
Military regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national politics since Sudan gained independence from Anglo-Egyptian co-rule in 1956. The 30-year reign of President Omar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR, following months of nationwide protests, ended with the military forcing him out in April 2019. In July 2019, the country’s Transitional Military Council signed an agreement with the Forces for Freedom and Change (an umbrella group of civilian actors) to form a transitional government under a Constitutional Declaration. Economist and former international civil servant Abdalla HAMDOUK al-Kinani was selected to serve as prime minister of a civilian-led transitional government, which was to have guided the country to credible democratic elections in late 2022. In October 2021, the Sudanese military organized a takeover that ousted Prime Minister HAMDOUK and his government and replaced civilian members of the Sovereign Council (Sudan’s collective Head of State) with individuals selected by the military. HAMDOUK was briefly reinstated in November 2021, but resigned in January 2022.
As of March 2022, General Abd-al-Fatah al-BURHAN Abd-al-Rahman, the Chair of Sudan’s Sovereign Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, serves as de facto head of state and government. He presides over a Sovereign Council consisting of military leaders, former armed opposition group representatives, and civilians appointed by the military. A cabinet of acting ministers handles day-to-day administration. These acting ministers are either senior civil servants (some appointed by former Prime Minister HAMDOUK and some selected by the military) or hold-over ministers from Prime Minister HAMDOUK’s former cabinet who were appointed by former armed opposition groups that the military allowed to remain in their positions. The UN, the African Union, and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development are currently facilitating a Sudanese-led political process intended to enable Sudanese civilian and military stakeholders to agree on the framework for a new civilian-led transitional government.
During most of the second half of the 20th century, Sudan was embroiled in two prolonged civil wars rooted in northern economic, political, and social domination of the largely non-Muslim, non-Arab southern portion of the country. The first civil war ended in 1972, but another broke out in 1983. Peace talks gained momentum in 2002-04, and the final North/South Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in January 2005, granted the southern rebels autonomy for six years followed by a referendum on independence for Southern Sudan. South Sudan became independent on 9 July 2011, but Sudan and South Sudan have yet to fully implement security and economic agreements relating to the normalization of relations between the two countries.
In the 21st century, Sudan faced conflict in Darfur, Southern Kordofan, and Blue Nile starting in 2003. Together, these conflicts displaced more than 3 million people; while some repatriation has taken place, about 2.28 million IDPs remained in Sudan as of December 2020. Sudan also faces refugee influxes from neighboring countries, primarily Central African Republic, Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia, and South Sudan.
" + "text": "
Long referred to as Nubia, modern-day Sudan was the site of the Kingdom of Kerma (ca. 2500-1500 B.C.) until it was absorbed into the New Kingdom of Egypt. By the 11th century B.C., the Kingdom of Kush gained independence from Egypt; it lasted in various forms until the middle of the 4th century A.D. After the fall of Kush, the Nubians formed three Christian kingdoms of Nobatia, Makuria, and Alodia. The latter two endured until around 1500. Between the 14th and 15th centuries much of Sudan was settled by Arab nomads, and between the 16th–19th centuries it underwent extensive Islamization. Following Egyptian occupation early in the 19th century, the British established an Anglo-Egyptian Sudan - nominally a condominium, but in effect a British colony.
Military regimes favoring Islamic-oriented governments have dominated national politics since Sudan gained independence from Anglo-Egyptian co-rule in 1956. The 30-year reign of President Omar Hassan Ahmad al-BASHIR, following months of nationwide protests, ended with the military forcing him out in April 2019. In July 2019, the country’s Transitional Military Council signed an agreement with the Forces for Freedom and Change (an umbrella group of civilian actors) to form a transitional government under a Constitutional Declaration. Economist and former international civil servant Abdalla HAMDOUK al-Kinani was selected to serve as prime minister of a civilian-led transitional government, which was to have guided the country to credible democratic elections in late 2022. In October 2021, the Sudanese military organized a takeover that ousted Prime Minister HAMDOUK and his government and replaced civilian members of the Sovereign Council (Sudan’s collective Head of State) with individuals selected by the military. HAMDOUK was briefly reinstated in November 2021 but resigned in January 2022.
As of March 2022, General Abd-al-Fatah al-BURHAN Abd-al-Rahman, the Chair of Sudan’s Sovereign Council and Commander-in-Chief of the Sudanese Armed Forces, serves as de facto head of state and government. He presides over a Sovereign Council consisting of military leaders, former armed opposition group representatives, and civilians appointed by the military. A cabinet of acting ministers handles day-to-day administration. These acting ministers are either senior civil servants (some appointed by former Prime Minister HAMDOUK and some selected by the military) or holdover ministers from Prime Minister HAMDOUK’s former cabinet who were appointed by former armed opposition groups that the military allowed to remain in their positions. The UN, the African Union, and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development are currently facilitating a Sudanese-led political process intended to enable Sudanese civilian and military stakeholders to agree on the framework for a new civilian-led transitional government.
During most of the second half of the 20th century, Sudan was embroiled in two prolonged civil wars rooted in northern economic, political, and social domination of the largely non-Muslim, non-Arab southern portion of the country. The first civil war ended in 1972, but another broke out in 1983. Peace talks gained momentum in 2002-04, and the final North/South Comprehensive Peace Agreement (CPA), signed in January 2005, granted the southern rebels autonomy for six years followed by a referendum on independence for Southern Sudan. South Sudan became independent on 9 July 2011, but Sudan and South Sudan have yet to fully implement security and economic agreements relating to the normalization of relations between the two countries.
In the 21st century, Sudan faced conflict in Darfur, Southern Kordofan, and Blue Nile starting in 2003. Together, these conflicts displaced more than 3 million people; while some repatriation has taken place, about 3.04 million IDPs remained in Sudan as of February 2022. Sudan also faces refugee influxes from neighboring countries, primarily Central African Republic, Eritrea, Ethiopia, South Sudan, and Syria.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -684,7 +684,7 @@ "text": "3 (2 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Gebel Barkal and the Sites of the Napatan Region (c), Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe (c), Sanganeb Marine National Park and Dungonab Bay – Mukkawar Island Marine National Park (n)" + "text": "Gebel Barkal and the Sites of the Napatan Region (c); Archaeological Sites of the Island of Meroe (c); Sanganeb Marine National Park and Dungonab Bay – Mukkawar Island Marine National Park (n)" } } }, @@ -908,7 +908,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Sudanese pounds (SDG) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1218,7 +1218,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF): Ground Force, Navy, Sudanese Air Force; Rapid Support Forces (RSF), Border Guards
Portugal discovered and colonized the uninhabited islands in the late 15th century, setting up a sugar-based economy that gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with African plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and four failed, non-violent coup attempts in 1995, 1998, 2003, and 2009. In 2012, three opposition parties combined in a no confidence vote to bring down the majority government of former Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA, but in 2014, legislative elections returned him to the office. President Evaristo CARVALHO, of the same political party as Prime Minister TROVOADA, was elected in September 2016, marking a rare instance in which the positions of president and prime minister are held by the same party. Prime Minister TROVOADA resigned at the end of 2018 and was replaced by Jorge BOM JESUS. Carlos Vila NOVA was elected president in early September 2021 and was inaugurated 2 October 2021. New oil discoveries in the Gulf of Guinea may attract increased attention to the small island nation.
" + "text": "Portugal discovered and colonized the uninhabited islands in the late 15th century, setting up a sugar-based economy that gave way to coffee and cocoa in the 19th century - all grown with African plantation slave labor, a form of which lingered into the 20th century. While independence was achieved in 1975, democratic reforms were not instituted until the late 1980s. The country held its first free elections in 1991, but frequent internal wrangling between the various political parties precipitated repeated changes in leadership and four failed, non-violent coup attempts in 1995, 1998, 2003, and 2009. In 2012, three opposition parties combined in a no confidence vote to bring down the majority government of former Prime Minister Patrice TROVOADA, but in 2014, legislative elections returned him to the office. President Evaristo CARVALHO, of the same political party as Prime Minister TROVOADA, was elected in September 2016, marking a rare instance in which the positions of president and prime minister were held by the same party. Prime Minister TROVOADA resigned at the end of 2018 and was replaced by Jorge BOM JESUS. Carlos Vila NOVA was elected president in early September 2021 and was inaugurated 2 October 2021. New oil discoveries in the Gulf of Guinea may attract increased attention to the small island nation.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -874,7 +874,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "dobras (STD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/africa/ts.json b/africa/ts.json index 9220a480..00b798a4 100644 --- a/africa/ts.json +++ b/africa/ts.json @@ -514,7 +514,7 @@ }, "Constitution": { "history": { - "text": "history: several previous; latest approved by Constituent Assembly 26 January 2014, signed by the president, prime minister, and Constituent Assembly speaker on 27 January 2014; note - in September 2021, President Kais SAIED issued a decree granting him certain executive, legislative, and judiciary powers, and the authority to rule by decree, but allowed continued implementation of the preamble and chapters one and two of the Constitution, which guarantee rights and freedoms; in mid-December 202, SAIED announced that a constitutional referendum would be held on 25 July 2022
" + "text": "history: several previous; latest approved by Constituent Assembly 26 January 2014, signed by the president, prime minister, and Constituent Assembly speaker on 27 January 2014; note - in September 2021, President Kais SAIED issued a decree granting him certain executive, legislative, and judiciary powers, and the authority to rule by decree, but allowed continued implementation of the preamble and chapters one and two of the Constitution, which guarantee rights and freedoms; note - in a 25 July 2022 referendum, voters supported a new constitution proposed by the president
" }, "amendments": { "text": "proposed by the president of the republic or by one third of the Assembly of the Representatives of the People membership; following review by the Constitutional Court, approval to proceed requires an absolute majority vote by the Assembly and final passage requires a two-thirds majority vote by the Assembly; the president can opt to submit an amendment to a referendum, which requires an absolute majority of votes cast for passage" @@ -647,7 +647,7 @@ "text": "8 (7 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Amphitheatre of El Jem (c), Archaeological Site of Carthage (c), Medina of Tunis (c), Ichkeul National Park (n), Punic Town of Kerkuane (c), Kairouan (c), Medina of Sousse (c), Dougga / Thugga (c)" + "text": "Amphitheatre of El Jem (c); Archaeological Site of Carthage (c); Medina of Tunis (c); Ichkeul National Park (n); Punic Town of Kerkuane (c); Kairouan (c); Medina of Sousse (c); Dougga / Thugga (c)" } } }, @@ -885,7 +885,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Tunisian dinars (TND) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1179,7 +1179,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Tunisian Armed Forces (Forces Armées Tunisiennes, FAT): Tunisian Army (includes Air Defense Force), Tunisian Navy, Tunisia Air Force; Ministry of Interior: National Police, National Guard (2022)", - "note": "note - the National Police has primary responsibility for law enforcement in the major cities, while the National Guard (gendarmerie) oversees border security and patrols smaller towns and rural areas" + "note": "note: the National Police has primary responsibility for law enforcement in the major cities, while the National Guard (gendarmerie) oversees border security and patrols smaller towns and rural areas" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1206,7 +1206,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "men 20-23 years of age for compulsory service, 1-year service obligation; individuals engaged in higher education or vocational training programs prior to their military drafting are allowed to delay service until they have completed their programs; 18-23 years of age for voluntary service; women may volunteer (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - as of 2021, approximately 20-25,000 active military personnel were conscripts; women have been allowed in the service since 1975 as volunteers only, although as recently as 2018, the Tunisian Government has discussed the possibility of conscripting women; as of 2018, women constituted less than 7% of the military and served in all three services" + "note": "note 1: as of 2021, approximately 20-25,000 active military personnel were conscriptsas of 2022, the Tunisian military’s primary operational areas of focus were counter-terrorism, counterinsurgency, and border security; it was conducting counter-terrorism and counterinsurgency operations against al-Qa’ida in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) and Islamic State of ash-Sham (ISIS)-linked militants who have been fighting a low-intensity insurgency, mostly in the mountainous region along the border with Algeria, particularly the Chaambi Mountains near the city of Kasserine; the military maintained the lead role for security in this area and also routinely conducted joint operations with Algerian security forces against these groups, as well to counter smuggling and trafficking activities; the military in recent years also has increased its role in securing the southern border against militant activity, smuggling, and trafficking from war-torn Libya; since 2015, Tunisia has constructed a complex structure of berms, trenches, and water-filled moats, complemented by electronic surveillance equipment such as motion detectors, ground surveillance radars, and infrared sensors along the 220-kilometer border with Libya; in the remote southern areas of the border with Libya, buffer/exclusion zones have also been established where the military has the lead for counter-terrorism efforts; outside of these border areas, the Ministry of Interior has the lead responsibility for counter-terrorism in Tunisia, particularly for urban areas; the National Police Anti-Terrorism Brigade (BAT) and the National Guard Special Unit have the lead for MOI counterterrorism operations
Tunisia has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US; MNNA is a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation; while MNNA status provides military and economic privileges, it does not entail any security commitments
Tanzania contains some of Africa’s most iconic national parks and famous archeological sites, and its diverse cultural heritage reflects the multiple ethnolinguistic groups that live in the country. Its long history of integration into trade networks spanning the Indian Ocean and the African interior led to the development of Swahili as a common language in much of east Africa and the introduction of Islam into the region. A number of independent coastal and island trading posts in what is now Tanzania came under Portuguese control after 1498 when they began to take control of much of the coast and Indian Ocean trade. By 1700, the Sultanate of Oman had become the dominant power in the region after ousting the Portuguese who were also facing a series of local uprisings. During the following hundred years, Zanzibar - an archipelago off the coast of Tanzania - became a hub of Indian Ocean trade, with Arab and Indian traders establishing and consolidating trade routes with communities in mainland Tanzania that contributed to the expansion of the slave trade. Zanzibar briefly become the capital of the Sultanate of Oman before it split into separate Omani and Zanzibar Sultanates in 1856. Beginning in the mid-1800s, European explorers, traders, and Christian missionaries became more active in the region. The Germans eventually established control over mainland Tanzania - which they called Tanganyika - and the British established control over Zanzibar. Tanganyika later came under British administration after the German defeat in World War I.
Tanganyika gained independence from Great Britain in 1961, and Zanzibar followed in 1963 as a constitutional monarchy. In Tanganyika, Julius NYERERE, a charismatic and idealistic socialist, established a one-party political system that centralized power and encouraged national self-reliance and rural development. In 1964, a popular uprising overthrew the Sultan in Zanzibar and either killed or expelled many of the Arabs and Indians who had dominated the isles for more than 200 years. Later that year, Tanganyika and Zanzibar combined to form the United Republic of Tanzania, but Zanzibar retained considerable autonomy. Their two ruling parties combined to form the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party in 1977. NYERERE handed over power to Ali Hassan MWINYI in 1985 and remained CCM chair until 1990. Tanzania held its first multi-party elections in 1995, but CCM candidates have continued to dominate politics. Political opposition in Zanzibar has led to four contentious elections since 1995, in which the ruling party claimed victory despite international observers' claims of voting irregularities. In 2001, 35 people in Zanzibar died when soldiers fired on protestors following the 2000 election. John MAGUFULI won the 2015 presidential election and the CCM won a two-thirds majority in Parliament. He was reelected in 2020 and the CCM increased its majority in an election that was also critiqued by observers. MAGUFULI died in March 2021 while in office and was constitutionally succeeded by his vice president, Samia Suluhu HASSAN.
" + "text": "Tanzania contains some of Africa’s most iconic national parks and famous paleoanthropological sites, and its diverse cultural heritage reflects the multiple ethnolinguistic groups that live in the country. Its long history of integration into trade networks spanning the Indian Ocean and the African interior led to the development of Swahili as a common language in much of east Africa and the introduction of Islam into the region. A number of independent coastal and island trading posts in what is now Tanzania came under Portuguese control after 1498 when they began to take control of much of the coast and Indian Ocean trade. By 1700, the Sultanate of Oman had become the dominant power in the region after ousting the Portuguese who were also facing a series of local uprisings. During the following hundred years, Zanzibar - an archipelago off the coast of Tanzania - became a hub of Indian Ocean trade, with Arab and Indian traders establishing and consolidating trade routes with communities in mainland Tanzania that contributed to the expansion of the slave trade. Zanzibar briefly become the capital of the Sultanate of Oman before it split into separate Omani and Zanzibar Sultanates in 1856. Beginning in the mid-1800s, European explorers, traders, and Christian missionaries became more active in the region. The Germans eventually established control over mainland Tanzania - which they called Tanganyika - and the British established control over Zanzibar. Tanganyika later came under British administration after the German defeat in World War I.
Tanganyika gained independence from Great Britain in 1961, and Zanzibar followed in 1963 as a constitutional monarchy. In Tanganyika, Julius NYERERE, a charismatic and idealistic socialist, established a one-party political system that centralized power and encouraged national self-reliance and rural development. In 1964, a popular uprising overthrew the Sultan in Zanzibar and either killed or expelled many of the Arabs and Indians who had dominated the isles for more than 200 years. Later that year, Tanganyika and Zanzibar combined to form the United Republic of Tanzania, but Zanzibar retained considerable autonomy. Their two ruling parties combined to form the Chama Cha Mapinduzi (CCM) party in 1977. NYERERE handed over power to Ali Hassan MWINYI in 1985 and remained CCM chair until 1990. Tanzania held its first multi-party elections in 1995, but CCM candidates have continued to dominate politics. Political opposition in Zanzibar has led to four contentious elections since 1995, in which the ruling party claimed victory despite international observers' claims of voting irregularities. In 2001, 35 people in Zanzibar died when soldiers fired on protestors following the 2000 election. John MAGUFULI won the 2015 presidential election, and the CCM won a two-thirds majority in Parliament. He was reelected in 2020 and the CCM increased its majority in an election that was also critiqued by observers. MAGUFULI died in March 2021 while in office and was constitutionally succeeded by his vice president, Samia Suluhu HASSAN.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -627,12 +627,12 @@ "text": "Cabinet appointed by the president from among members of the National Assembly" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot by simple majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 28 October, 2020 (next to be held in October 2025); prime minister appointed by the president" + "text": "president and vice president directly elected on the same ballot by simple majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 28 October 2020 (next to be held in October 2025); prime minister appointed by the president" }, "election results": { "text": "John MAGUFULI elected president; percent of vote - John MAGUFULI (CCM) 58.5%, Edward LOWASSA (CHADEMA) 40%, other 1.5%" }, - "note": "note: Zanzibar elects a president as head of government for internal matters; elections were held on 28 October, 2020 and CCM candidate Hussein MWINYI won with 76 percent of the vote followed by ACT-Wazalendo candidate Maalim Seif SHARIF with 19 percent of the vote" + "note": "note: Zanzibar elects a president as head of government for internal matters; elections were held on 28 October 2020; Hussein MWINYI (CCM) 76.3%, Maalim Seif SHARIF (ACT-Wazalendo) 19.9%, other 3.8%" }, "Legislative branch": { "description": { @@ -719,7 +719,7 @@ "text": "7 (3 cultural, 3 natural, 1 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Ngorongoro Conservation Area (m), Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Songo Mnara (c), Serengeti National Park (n), Selous Game Reserve (n), Kilimanjaro National Park (n), Stone Town of Zanzibar (c), Kondoa Rock-Art Sites (c)" + "text": "Ngorongoro Conservation Area (m); Ruins of Kilwa Kisiwani and Songo Mnara (c); Serengeti National Park (n); Selous Game Reserve (n); Kilimanjaro National Park (n); Stone Town of Zanzibar (c); Kondoa Rock-Art Sites (c)" } } }, @@ -949,7 +949,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Tanzanian shillings (TZS) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1258,7 +1258,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Tanzania People's Defense Forces (TPDF or Jeshi la Wananchi la Tanzania, JWTZ): Land Forces, Naval Forces, Air Force, National Building Army (Jeshi la Kujenga Taifa, JKT), People's Militia (Reserves); Ministry of Home Affairs: Tanzania Police force (includes paramilitary Police Field Force) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the National Building Army is a paramilitary organization under the Defense Forces that provides 6 months of military and vocational training to individuals as part of their 2 years of public service; after completion of training, some graduates join the regular Defense Forces while the remainder become part of the People's (or Citizen's) Militia; the Police Field Force (aka Field Force Unit) is a special police division with the responsibility for controlling unlawful demonstrations and riots" + "note": "note 1: the National Building Army is a paramilitary organization under the Defense Forces that provides 6 months of military and vocational training to individuals as part of their 2 years of public service; after completion of training, some graduates join the regular Defense Forces while the remainder become part of the People's (or Citizen's) Militiathe Namibian Defense Force (NDF) was created in 1990, largely from demobilized former members of the People's Liberation Army of Namibia (PLAN) and the South West Africa Territorial Force (SWATF); PLAN was the armed wing of the South West Africa People’s Organization (SWAPO), while SWATF was an auxiliary of the South African Defense Force and comprised the armed forces of the former South West Africa, 1977-1989; from 1990-1995, the British military assisted with the forming and training the NDF
" @@ -1263,7 +1263,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "5,962 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (refugees and asylum seekers) (2022)" + "text": "5,982 (Democratic Republic of the Congo) (refugees and asylum seekers) (2022)" } } } diff --git a/africa/wz.json b/africa/wz.json index f712e172..e0d3b086 100644 --- a/africa/wz.json +++ b/africa/wz.json @@ -879,7 +879,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "emalangeni per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1162,7 +1162,7 @@ "text": "18-30 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; no conscription (2021)" }, "Military - note": { - "text": "the UEDF was originally created in 1973 as the Royal Swaziland Defense Force; the UEDF’s primary mission is external security but it also has domestic security responsibilities, including protecting members of the royal family; the king is the UEDF commander in chief and holds the position of minister of defense, although the UEDF reports to the Army commander and principal undersecretary of defense for day-to-day operations; the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) is responsible for maintaining internal security as well as migration and border crossing enforcement; it is under the prime minister, although the king is the force’s titular commissioner in chief
(2022)" + "text": "the UEDF was originally created in 1973 as the Royal Swaziland Defense Force; the UEDF’s primary mission is external security but it also has domestic security responsibilities, including protecting members of the royal family; the king is the UEDF commander in chief and holds the position of minister of defense, although the UEDF reports to the Army commander and principal undersecretary of defense for day-to-day operations; the Royal Eswatini Police Service (REPS) is responsible for maintaining internal security as well as migration and border crossing enforcement; it is under the prime minister, although the king is the force’s titular commissioner in chief (2022)" } }, "Transnational Issues": { diff --git a/africa/za.json b/africa/za.json index 033995cc..85efa00f 100644 --- a/africa/za.json +++ b/africa/za.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Multiple waves of Bantu-speaking groups moved into and through what is now Zambia over the past thousand years. In the 1880s, the British began securing mineral and other economic concessions from various local leaders and the territory that is now Zambia eventually came under the control of the former British South Africa Company and was incorporated as the protectorate of Northern Rhodesia in 1911. Administrative control was taken over by the UK in 1924. During the 1920s and 1930s, advances in mining spurred development and immigration.
The hunter-gatherer San people first inhabited the area that eventually became Zimbabwe. Farming communities migrated to the area around A.D. 500 during the Bantu expansion, and Shona-speaking societies began to develop in the Limpopo valley and Zimbabwean highlands around the 9th century. These societies traded with Arab merchants on the Indian Ocean coast and organized under the Kingdom of Mapungubwe in the 11th century. A series of powerful trade-oriented Shona states succeeded Mapungubwe, including the Kingdom of Zimbabwe (ca. 1220-1450), Kingdom of Mutapa (ca. 1450-1760), and the Rozwi Empire. The Rozwi Empire expelled Portuguese colonists from the Zimbabwean plateau but was eventually conquered in 1838 by the Ndebele clan of Zulu general MZILIKAZI during the era of conflict and population displacement known as the Mfecane. In the 1880s, colonists arrived with the British South Africa Company (BSAC) and obtained a written concession for mining rights from Ndebele King LOBENGULA. The king later disavowed the concession and accused the BSAC agents of deceit. The BSAC annexed Mashonaland and subsequently conquered Matabeleland by force during the First Matabele War of 1893-1894 to establish company rule over the territory. BSAC holdings south of the Zambezi River were annexed by the UK in 1923 and became the British colony of Southern Rhodesia. The 1930 Land Apportionment Act restricted black land ownership and established structural racial inequalities that would favor the White minority for decades. A new constitution in 1961 further cemented White minority rule.
In 1965, the government under white Prime Minister Ian SMITH unilaterally declared its independence from the UK. London did not recognize Rhodesia’s independence and demanded more voting rights for the Black majority in the country. International diplomacy and a liberation struggle by Black Zimbabweans finally led to biracial elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, who led the uprising and became the nation's first prime minister, was the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) from independence until his forced resignation in November 2017. In the mid-1980s, the government tortured and killed thousands of civilians in a crackdown on dissent known as the Gukurahundi campaign. Economic mismanagement and chaotic land redistribution policies following independence periodically crippled the economy and resulted in widespread shortages of basic commodities. General elections in 2002, 2008, and 2013 were severely flawed and widely condemned but allowed MUGABE to remain president. In November 2017, Vice President Emmerson MNANGAGWA became president following a military intervention that forced MUGABE to resign, and MNANGAGWA cemented power by sidelining rivals Grace MUGABE (Robert MUGABE’s wife) and Jonathan MOYO of the G40 faction of the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front party. In July 2018, MNANGAGWA won the presidential election after a close contest with opposition candidate Nelson CHAMISA. MNANGAGWA has resorted to the government's longstanding practice of violently disrupting protests and opposition rallies. Economic conditions remained dire under MNANGAGWA, with inflation soaring in 2019 and the country’s export revenues declining dramatically in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
The hunter-gatherer San people first inhabited the area that eventually became Zimbabwe. Farming communities migrated to the area around A.D. 500 during the Bantu expansion, and Shona-speaking societies began to develop in the Limpopo valley and Zimbabwean highlands around the 9th century. These societies traded with Arab merchants on the Indian Ocean coast and organized under the Kingdom of Mapungubwe in the 11th century. A series of powerful trade-oriented Shona states succeeded Mapungubwe, including the Kingdom of Zimbabwe (ca. 1220-1450), Kingdom of Mutapa (ca. 1450-1760), and the Rozwi Empire. The Rozwi Empire expelled Portuguese colonists from the Zimbabwean plateau but was eventually conquered in 1838 by the Ndebele clan of Zulu general MZILIKAZI during the era of conflict and population displacement known as the Mfecane. In the 1880s, colonists arrived with the British South Africa Company (BSAC) and obtained a written concession for mining rights from Ndebele King LOBENGULA. The king later disavowed the concession and accused the BSAC agents of deceit. The BSAC annexed Mashonaland and subsequently conquered Matabeleland by force during the First Matabele War of 1893-1894 to establish company rule over the territory. BSAC holdings south of the Zambezi River were annexed by the UK in 1923 and became the British colony of Southern Rhodesia. The 1930 Land Apportionment Act restricted Black land ownership and established structural racial inequalities that would favor the White minority for decades. A new constitution in 1961 further cemented White minority rule.
In 1965, the government under White Prime Minister Ian SMITH unilaterally declared its independence from the UK. London did not recognize Rhodesia’s independence and demanded more voting rights for the Black majority in the country. International diplomacy and a liberation struggle by Black Zimbabweans finally led to biracial elections in 1979 and independence (as Zimbabwe) in 1980. Robert MUGABE, who led the uprising and became the nation's first prime minister, was the country's only ruler (as president since 1987) from independence until his forced resignation in November 2017. In the mid-1980s, the government tortured and killed thousands of civilians in a crackdown on dissent known as the Gukurahundi campaign. Economic mismanagement and chaotic land redistribution policies following independence periodically crippled the economy and resulted in widespread shortages of basic commodities. General elections in 2002, 2008, and 2013 were severely flawed and widely condemned but allowed MUGABE to remain president. In November 2017, Vice President Emmerson MNANGAGWA became president following a military intervention that forced MUGABE to resign, and MNANGAGWA cemented power by sidelining rivals Grace MUGABE (Robert MUGABE’s wife) and Jonathan MOYO of the G40 faction of the ruling Zimbabwe African National Union-Patriotic Front party. In July 2018, MNANGAGWA won the presidential election after a close contest with opposition candidate Nelson CHAMISA. MNANGAGWA has resorted to the government's longstanding practice of violently disrupting protests and opposition rallies. Economic conditions remained dire under MNANGAGWA, with inflation soaring in 2019 and the country’s export revenues declining dramatically in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Antarctic Treaty Summary - the Antarctic region is governed by a system known as the Antarctic Treaty system; the system includes: 1. the Antarctic Treaty, signed on 1 December 1959 and entered into force on 23 June 1961, which establishes the legal framework for the management of Antarctica, 2. Measures, Decisions, and Resolutions adopted at Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings, 3. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972), 4. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980), and 5. The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (1991); the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings operate by consensus (not by vote) of all consultative parties at annual Treaty meetings; by January 2022, there were 54 treaty member nations: 29 consultative and 25 non-consultative; consultative (decision-making) members include the seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica as national territory (some claims overlap) and 22 non-claimant nations; the US and Russia have reserved the right to make claims; the US does not recognize the claims of others; Antarctica is administered through meetings of the consultative member nations; measures adopted at these meetings are carried out by these member nations (with respect to their own nationals and operations) in accordance with their own national laws; the years in parentheses indicate when a consultative member-nation acceded to the Treaty and when it was accepted as a consultative member, while no date indicates the country was an original 1959 treaty signatory; claimant nations are - Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, and the UK; nonclaimant consultative nations are - Belgium, Brazil (1975/1983), Bulgaria (1978/1998), China (1983/1985), Czech Republic (1962/2014), Ecuador (1987/1990), Finland (1984/1989), Germany (1979/1981), India (1983/1983), Italy (1981/1987), Japan, South Korea (1986/1989), Netherlands (1967/1990), Peru (1981/1989), Poland (1961/1977), Russia, South Africa, Spain (1982/1988), Sweden (1984/1988), Ukraine (1992/2004), Uruguay (1980/1985), and the US; non-consultative members, with year of accession in parentheses, are - Austria (1987), Belarus (2006), Canada (1988), Colombia (1989), Cuba (1984), Denmark (1965), Estonia (2001), Greece (1987), Guatemala (1991), Hungary (1984), Iceland (2015), Kazakhstan (2015), North Korea (1987), Malaysia (2011), Monaco (2008), Mongolia (2015), Pakistan (2012), Papua New Guinea (1981), Portugal (2010), Romania (1971), Slovakia (1962/1993), Slovenia (2019), Switzerland (1990), Turkey (1996), and Venezuela (1999); note - Czechoslovakia acceded to the Treaty in 1962 and separated into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993; Article 1 - area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for scientific research or any other peaceful purpose; Article 2 - freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue; Article 3 - free exchange of information and personnel, cooperation with the UN and other international agencies; Article 4 - does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force; Article 5 - prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes;Article 6 - includes under the treaty all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees 00 minutes south and reserves high seas rights; Article 7 - treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations, and equipment; advance notice of all expeditions and of the introduction of military personnel must be given; Article 8 - allows for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states; Article 9 - frequent consultative meetings take place among member nations; Article 10 - treaty states will discourage activities by any country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty; Article 11 - disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or, ultimately, by the ICJ; Articles 12, 13, 14 - deal with upholding, interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations; other agreements - some 200 measures adopted at treaty consultative meetings and approved by governments; the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed 4 October 1991 and entered into force 14 January 1998; this agreement provides for the protection of the Antarctic environment and includes five annexes that have entered into force: 1) environmental impact assessment, 2) conservation of Antarctic fauna and flora, 3) waste disposal and waste management, 4) prevention of marine pollution, 5) area protection and management; a sixth annex addressing liability arising from environmental emergencies has yet to enter into force; the Protocol prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific research; a permanent Antarctic Treaty Secretariat was established in 2004 in Buenos Aires, Argentina
" + "text": "Antarctic Treaty Summary - the Antarctic region is governed by a system known as the Antarctic Treaty system; the system includes: 1. the Antarctic Treaty, signed on 1 December 1959 and entered into force on 23 June 1961, which establishes the legal framework for the management of Antarctica, 2. Measures, Decisions, and Resolutions adopted at Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings, 3. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972), 4. The Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980), and 5. The Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty (1991); the Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings operate by consensus (not by vote) of all consultative parties at annual Treaty meetings; by January 2022, there were 54 treaty member nations: 29 consultative and 25 non-consultative; consultative (decision-making) members include the seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica as national territory (some claims overlap) and 22 non-claimant nations; the US and Russia have reserved the right to make claims; the US does not recognize the claims of others; Antarctica is administered through meetings of the consultative member nations; measures adopted at these meetings are carried out by these member nations (with respect to their own nationals and operations) in accordance with their own national laws; the years in parentheses indicate when a consultative member-nation acceded to the Treaty and when it was accepted as a consultative member, while no date indicates the country was an original 1959 treaty signatory; claimant nations are - Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, NZ, Norway, and the UK; nonclaimant consultative nations are - Belgium, Brazil (1975/1983), Bulgaria (1978/1998), China (1983/1985), Czechia (1962/2014), Ecuador (1987/1990), Finland (1984/1989), Germany (1979/1981), India (1983/1983), Italy (1981/1987), Japan, South Korea (1986/1989), Netherlands (1967/1990), Peru (1981/1989), Poland (1961/1977), Russia, South Africa, Spain (1982/1988), Sweden (1984/1988), Ukraine (1992/2004), Uruguay (1980/1985), and the US; non-consultative members, with year of accession in parentheses, are - Austria (1987), Belarus (2006), Canada (1988), Colombia (1989), Cuba (1984), Denmark (1965), Estonia (2001), Greece (1987), Guatemala (1991), Hungary (1984), Iceland (2015), Kazakhstan (2015), North Korea (1987), Malaysia (2011), Monaco (2008), Mongolia (2015), Pakistan (2012), Papua New Guinea (1981), Portugal (2010), Romania (1971), Slovakia (1962/1993), Slovenia (2019), Switzerland (1990), Turkey (1996), and Venezuela (1999); note - Czechoslovakia acceded to the Treaty in 1962 and separated into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993; Article 1 - area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for scientific research or any other peaceful purpose; Article 2 - freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue; Article 3 - free exchange of information and personnel, cooperation with the UN and other international agencies; Article 4 - does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force; Article 5 - prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes; Article 6 - includes under the treaty all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees 00 minutes south and reserves high seas rights; Article 7 - treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations, and equipment; advance notice of all expeditions and of the introduction of military personnel must be given; Article 8 - allows for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states; Article 9 - frequent consultative meetings take place among member nations; Article 10 - treaty states will discourage activities by any country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty; Article 11 - disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or, ultimately, by the International Court of Justice; Articles 12, 13, 14 - deal with upholding, interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations; other agreements - some 200 measures adopted at treaty consultative meetings and approved by governments; the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed 4 October 1991 and entered into force 14 January 1998; this agreement provides for the protection of the Antarctic environment and includes five annexes that have entered into force: 1) environmental impact assessment, 2) conservation of Antarctic fauna and flora, 3) waste disposal and waste management, 4) prevention of marine pollution, 5) area protection and management; a sixth annex addressing liability arising from environmental emergencies has yet to enter into force; the Protocol prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific research; a permanent Antarctic Treaty Secretariat was established in 2004 in Buenos Aires, Argentina
" }, "Legal system": { "text": "Antarctica is administered through annual meetings - known as Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meetings - which include consultative member nations, non-consultative member nations, observer organizations, and expert organizations; decisions from these meetings are carried out by these member nations (with respect to their own nationals and operations) in accordance with their own national laws; more generally, the Antarctic Treaty area, that is to all areas between 60 and 90 degrees south latitude, is subject to a number of relevant legal instruments and procedures adopted by the states party to the Antarctic Treaty; note - US law, including certain criminal offenses by or against US nationals, such as murder, may apply extraterritoriality; some US laws directly apply to Antarctica; for example, the Antarctic Conservation Act, 16 U.S.C. section 2401 et seq., provides civil and criminal penalties for the following activities unless authorized by regulation or statute: the taking of native mammals or birds; the introduction of nonindigenous plants and animals; entry into specially protected areas; the discharge or disposal of pollutants; and the importation into the US of certain items from Antarctica; violation of the Antarctic Conservation Act carries penalties of up to $10,000 in fines and one year in prison; the National Science Foundation and Department of Justice share enforcement responsibilities; Public Law 95-541, the US Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978, as amended in 1996, requires expeditions from the US to Antarctica to notify, in advance, the Office of Oceans and Polar Affairs, Room 2665, Department of State, Washington, DC 20520, which reports such plans to other nations as required by the Antarctic Treaty; for more information, contact antarctica@state.gov" diff --git a/australia-oceania/aq.json b/australia-oceania/aq.json index 2aa4e85e..27d44be4 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/aq.json +++ b/australia-oceania/aq.json @@ -377,7 +377,7 @@ } }, "Government type": { - "text": "unincorporated, unorganized Territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches;" + "text": "unincorporated, unorganized Territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches" }, "Dependency status": { "text": "unincorporated, unorganized Territory of the US; administered by the Office of Insular Affairs, US Department of the Interior" diff --git a/australia-oceania/as.json b/australia-oceania/as.json index ff0835a4..22390fbc 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/as.json +++ b/australia-oceania/as.json @@ -679,7 +679,7 @@ "text": "20 (4 cultural, 12 natural, 4 mixed); note - includes one site on Heard Island and McDonald Islands" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Great Barrier Reef (n), Greater Blue Mountains Area (n), Fraser Island (n), Gondwana Rainforests (n), Lord Howe Island Group (n), Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens (c), Shark Bay (n), Sydney Opera House (c), Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park (m), Kakadu National Park (m)" + "text": "Great Barrier Reef (n); Greater Blue Mountains Area (n); Fraser Island (n); Gondwana Rainforests (n); Lord Howe Island Group (n); Royal Exhibition Building and Carlton Gardens (c); Shark Bay (n); Sydney Opera House (c); Uluṟu-Kata Tjuṯa National Park (m); Kakadu National Park (m)" } } }, @@ -920,7 +920,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1264,7 +1264,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "17 years of age for voluntary military service (with parental consent); no conscription (abolished 1973); women allowed to serve in all roles, including combat arms since 2013 (2022)", - "note": "note - in 2020-2021, women comprised nearly 20% of the ADF" + "note": "note: in 2020-2021, women comprised nearly 20% of the ADF" }, "Military - note": { "text": "Australia has been part of the Australia, New Zealand, and US Security (ANZUS) Treaty since 1951; Australia is also is a member of the Five Powers Defense Arrangements (FPDA), a series of mutual assistance agreements reached in 1971 embracing Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the UK; the FPDA commits the members to consult with one another in the event or threat of an armed attack on any of the members and to mutually decide what measures should be taken, jointly or separately; there is no specific obligation to intervene militarilySettlers from Papua arrived on Solomon Islands around 30,000 years ago. About 6,000 years ago, Austronesian settlers came to Solomon Islands and the two groups mixed extensively. Despite significant inter-island trade, no attempts were made to unite the islands into a single political entity. In 1568, Spanish explorer Alvaro de MENDANA became the first European to spot the islands. After a failed Spanish attempt at creating a permanent European settlement on the islands in the late 1500s, Solomon Islands remained free of European contact until 1767 when British explorer Philip CARTERET sailed by the islands. The islands were regularly visited by European explorers and American and British whaling ships into the 1800s, followed by missionaries in the 1850s.
Germany declared a protectorate over the northern Solomon Islands in 1885 and the UK established a protectorate over the southern islands in 1893. In 1899, Germany transferred its Solomon Islands to the UK in exchange for the UK relinquishing all claims in Samoa. The UK tried to encourage plantation farming but few Europeans were willing to go to Solomon Islands and the UK left most services - such as education and medical services - to missionaries. In 1942, Japan invaded Solomon Islands and significant battles against Allied forces during the Guadalcanal Campaign proved a turning point in the Pacific war. World War II destroyed large parts of Solomon Islands and a nationalism movement emerged near the end of the war. By 1960, the British relented to allow for some local autonomy. The islands were granted self-government in 1976 and independence two years later under Prime Minister Sir Peter KENILOREA.
In 1999, longstanding ethnic tensions between ethnic Guale in Honiara and ethnic Malaitans in Honiara’s suburbs erupted in civil war, leading thousands of Malaitans to take refuge in Honiara and Guale to flee the city. In 2000, newly-elected Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE focused on peace agreements and distributing resources equally among groups, but his actions bankrupted the government in 2001 and led to SOGAVARE’s ouster. In 2003, Solomon Islands requested international assistance to reestablish law and order. The Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands (RAMSI), which ended in 2017, was generally effective in improving the security situation. In 2006, riots broke out in Honiara and the city’s Chinatown burned over allegations that the prime minister took money from China. SOGAVARE was reelected prime minister for a fourth time following elections in 2019 and that same year announced Solomon Islands would switch diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China. In late November 2021, protestors, mostly from the island of Malaita calling for SOGAVARE’s removal and more development in Malaita, sparked rioting in Honiara.
Settlers from Papua arrived on Solomon Islands around 30,000 years ago. About 6,000 years ago, Austronesian settlers came to Solomon Islands and the two groups mixed extensively. Despite significant inter-island trade, no attempts were made to unite the islands into a single political entity. In 1568, Spanish explorer Alvaro de MENDANA became the first European to spot the islands. After a failed Spanish attempt at creating a permanent European settlement on the islands in the late 1500s, Solomon Islands remained free of European contact until 1767 when British explorer Philip CARTERET sailed by the islands. The islands were regularly visited by European explorers and American and British whaling ships into the 1800s, followed by missionaries in the 1850s.
Germany declared a protectorate over the northern Solomon Islands in 1885, and the UK established a protectorate over the southern islands in 1893. In 1899, Germany transferred its Solomon Islands to the UK in exchange for the UK relinquishing all claims in Samoa. The UK tried to encourage plantation farming, but few Europeans were willing to go to Solomon Islands and the UK left most services - such as education and medical services - to missionaries. In 1942, Japan invaded Solomon Islands and significant battles against Allied forces during the Guadalcanal Campaign proved a turning point in the Pacific war. World War II destroyed large parts of Solomon Islands and a nationalism movement emerged near the end of the war. By 1960, the British relented to allow for some local autonomy. The islands were granted self-government in 1976 and independence two years later under Prime Minister Sir Peter KENILOREA.
In 1999, longstanding ethnic tensions between ethnic Guale in Honiara and ethnic Malaitans in Honiara’s suburbs erupted in civil war, leading thousands of Malaitans to take refuge in Honiara and Guale to flee the city. In 2000, newly-elected Prime Minister Manasseh SOGAVARE focused on peace agreements and distributing resources equally among groups, but his actions bankrupted the government in 2001 and led to SOGAVARE’s ouster. In 2003, Solomon Islands requested international assistance to reestablish law and order. The Australian-led Regional Assistance Mission to the Solomon Islands, which ended in 2017, was generally effective in improving the security situation. In 2006, riots broke out in Honiara and the city’s Chinatown burned over allegations that the prime minister took money from China. SOGAVARE was reelected prime minister for a fourth time following elections in 2019 and that same year announced Solomon Islands would switch diplomatic recognition from Taiwan to China. In late November 2021, protestors, mostly from the island of Malaita, calling for SOGAVARE’s removal and more development in Malaita, sparked rioting in Honiara.
The Northern Mariana Islands were settled by Austronesian people around 1500 B.C. These people became the indigenous Chamorro and were influenced by later migrations, including of Micronesians in the first century A.D., and island Southeast Asians around 900. Spanish explorer Ferdinand MAGELLAN sailed through the Mariana Islands in 1521 and Spain claimed them in 1565. Spain formally colonized the Mariana Islands in 1668 and administered the archipelago from Guam. Spain’s brutal repression of Chamorro, along with new diseases and intermittent warfare, reduced the indigenous population by about 90% in the 1700s. With a similar dynamic occurring on Guam, Spain forced Chamorro from the Northern Mariana Islands to resettle on Guam and prevented them from returning to their home islands. By the time the Northern Mariana Islands’ Chamorro returned, many other Micronesians, including Chuukese and Yapese, had already settled on their islands.
In 1898, Spain ceded Guam to the US following the Spanish-American War but sold the Northern Mariana Islands to Germany under the German-Spanish Treaty of 1899. Germany administered the territory from German New Guinea but took a hands-off approach to day-to-day life. Following World War I, Japan administered the islands under a League of Nations mandate. Japan focused on sugar production and brought in thousands of Japanese laborers, who quickly outnumbered the Chamorro on the islands. During World War II, Japan invaded Guam from the Northern Mariana Islands and used Marianan Chamorro as translators with Guamanian Chamorro, creating friction between the two Chamorro communities that continues to this day. The US captured the Northern Mariana Islands in 1944 after the Battle of Saipan and administered them post-World War II as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI).
On four occasions in the 1950s and 1960s, voters opted for integration with Guam, although Guam rejected it in 1969. In 1978, the Northern Mariana Islands was granted self-government separate from the rest of the TTPI and in 1986, islanders were granted US citizenship and the territory came under US sovereignty as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). In 2009, the CNMI became the final US territory to elect a nonvoting delegate to the US Congress.
The Northern Mariana Islands were settled by Austronesian people around 1500 B.C. These people became the indigenous Chamorro and were influenced by later migrations, including of Micronesians in the first century A.D., and island Southeast Asians around 900. Spanish explorer Ferdinand MAGELLAN sailed through the Mariana Islands in 1521 and Spain claimed them in 1565. Spain formally colonized the Mariana Islands in 1668 and administered the archipelago from Guam. Spain’s brutal repression of the Chamorro, along with new diseases and intermittent warfare, reduced the indigenous population by about 90% in the 1700s. With a similar dynamic occurring on Guam, Spain forced the Chamorro from the Northern Mariana Islands to resettle on Guam and prevented them from returning to their home islands. By the time the Northern Mariana Islands’ Chamorro returned, many other Micronesians, including Chuukese and Yapese, had already settled on their islands.
In 1898, Spain ceded Guam to the US following the Spanish-American War but sold the Northern Mariana Islands to Germany under the German-Spanish Treaty of 1899. Germany administered the territory from German New Guinea but took a hands-off approach to day-to-day life. Following World War I, Japan administered the islands under a League of Nations mandate. Japan focused on sugar production and brought in thousands of Japanese laborers, who quickly outnumbered the Chamorro on the islands. During World War II, Japan invaded Guam from the Northern Mariana Islands and used Marianan Chamorro as translators with Guamanian Chamorro, creating friction between the two Chamorro communities that continues to this day. The US captured the Northern Mariana Islands in 1944 after the Battle of Saipan and administered them post-World War II as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (TTPI).
On four occasions in the 1950s and 1960s, voters opted for integration with Guam, although Guam rejected it in 1969. In 1978, the Northern Mariana Islands was granted self-government separate from the rest of the TTPI and in 1986, islanders were granted US citizenship and the territory came under US sovereignty as the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). In 2009, the CNMI became the final US territory to elect a nonvoting delegate to the US Congress.
the RFMF has a history of intervening in the country’s politics since the late 1980s, including coups in 1987 and 2006, and a mutiny in 2000
the RFMF also has a long tradition of participating in UN peacekeeping operations; since its first deployment of troops to South Lebanon in 1978 under the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL), it has deployed troops on nearly 20 additional UN missions
" + "text": "the RFMF has a history of intervening in the country’s politics since the late 1980s, including coups in 1987 and 2006, and a mutiny in 2000Each of the four states that compose the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) - Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap - has its own unique history and cultural traditions. The first humans arrived in what is now the FSM in the second millennium B.C. In the 800s A.D., construction of the artificial islets at the Nan Madol complex in Pohnpei began, with the main architecture being built around 1200. At its height, Nan Madol united the approximately 25,000 people of Pohnpei under the Saudeleur Dynasty. Around the same time, Kosrae was united in a kingdom centered in Leluh by 1250. Yap’s society became strictly hierarchical, with chiefs receiving tributes from islands up to 1,100 km (700 mi) away. Widespread human settlement in Chuuk began in the 1300s, and the different islands in the Chuuk Lagoon were frequently at war with one another.
Portuguese and Spanish explorers visited a few of the islands in the 1500s and Spain began exerting nominal, but not day-to-day, control over some of the islands - which they named the Caroline Islands - in the 1600s. Christian missionaries arrived in the 1800s, in particular to Chuuk and Kosrae. By the 1870s, nearly every Kosraean had converted to Christianity and religion continues to play an important role in daily life on the island. In 1899, Spain sold all of the FSM to Germany. Japan seized the islands in 1914 and was granted a League of Nations mandate to administer them in 1920. The Japanese navy built bases across most of the islands and headquartered their Pacific naval operations in Chuuk. The US bombed Chuuk in 1944 during Operation Hailstone in World War II, destroying 250 Japanese planes and 40 ships. The US military largely bypassed the other islands in its leapfrog campaign across the Pacific.
The FSM came under US administration as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in 1947, which comprised six districts: Chuuk, the Marshall Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Pohnpei, and Yap; Kosrae was separated from Pohnpei into a separate district in 1977. In 1979, Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap ratified the FSM Constitution and declared independence while the other three districts opted to pursue separate political statuses. In 1982, the FSM signed a Compact of Free Association (COFA) with the US, which granted the FSM financial assistance and access to many US domestic programs in exchange for exclusive US military access and defense responsibilities; the COFA entered into force in 1986 and its funding was renewed in 2003. There are significant inter-island rivalries stemming from their different histories and cultures. Chuuk, the most populous but poorest state, is planning an independence referendum for 2022.
Eligible Micronesians can live, work, and study in any part of the US and its territories without a visa - this privilege reduces stresses on the island economy and the environment. Micronesians serve in the US armed forces and military recruiting from the FSM, per capita, is higher than many US states.
Each of the four states that compose the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) - Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap - has its own unique history and cultural traditions. The first humans arrived in what is now the FSM in the second millennium B.C. In the 800s A.D., construction of the artificial islets at the Nan Madol complex in Pohnpei began, with the main architecture being built around 1200. At its height, Nan Madol united the approximately 25,000 people of Pohnpei under the Saudeleur Dynasty. Around the same time, Kosrae was united in a kingdom centered in Leluh by 1250. Yap’s society became strictly hierarchical, with chiefs receiving tributes from islands up to 1,100 km (700 mi) away. Widespread human settlement in Chuuk began in the 1300s, and the different islands in the Chuuk Lagoon were frequently at war with one another.
Portuguese and Spanish explorers visited a few of the islands in the 1500s and Spain began exerting nominal, but not day-to-day, control over some of the islands - which they named the Caroline Islands - in the 1600s. Christian missionaries arrived in the 1800s, in particular to Chuuk and Kosrae. By the 1870s, nearly every Kosraean had converted to Christianity and religion continues to play an important role in daily life on the island. In 1899, Spain sold all of the FSM to Germany. Japan seized the islands in 1914 and was granted a League of Nations mandate to administer them in 1920. The Japanese navy built bases across most of the islands and headquartered their Pacific naval operations in Chuuk. The US bombed Chuuk in 1944 during Operation Hailstone in World War II, destroying 250 Japanese planes and 40 ships. The US military largely bypassed the other islands in its leapfrog campaign across the Pacific.
The FSM came under US administration as part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in 1947, which comprised six districts: Chuuk, the Marshall Islands, the Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Pohnpei, and Yap; Kosrae was separated from Pohnpei into a separate district in 1977. In 1979, Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap ratified the FSM Constitution and declared independence while the other three districts opted to pursue separate political statuses. In 1982, the FSM signed a Compact of Free Association (COFA) with the US, which granted the FSM financial assistance and access to many US domestic programs in exchange for exclusive US military access and defense responsibilities; the COFA entered into force in 1986 and its funding was renewed in 2003. There are significant inter-island rivalries stemming from their different histories and cultures. Chuuk, the most populous but poorest state, has pushed for secession, but an independence referendum has been repeatedly postponed and may not be held.
Eligible Micronesians can live, work, and study in any part of the US and its territories without a visa - this privilege reduces stresses on the island economy and the environment. Micronesians serve in the US armed forces and military recruiting from the FSM, per capita, is higher than many US states.
NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/kr.json b/australia-oceania/kr.json index c48dd3cd..235432af 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/kr.json +++ b/australia-oceania/kr.json @@ -822,7 +822,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/kt.json b/australia-oceania/kt.json index b7b064b4..5d655d74 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/kt.json +++ b/australia-oceania/kt.json @@ -396,7 +396,7 @@ "text": "refined petroleum, cars, iron structures, aircraft, crustaceans (2019)" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/nc.json b/australia-oceania/nc.json index 5d268616..9d86dd42 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/nc.json +++ b/australia-oceania/nc.json @@ -737,7 +737,7 @@ "note": "$79 million (31 December 1998 est.)" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/ne.json b/australia-oceania/ne.json index 86c3fb39..13a2e424 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/ne.json +++ b/australia-oceania/ne.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Voyagers from Samoa first settled on Niue around A.D. 900 and a second main group of settlers came from Tonga around 1500. With only one reliable source of fresh water, conflict was high on the island. There was continued contact with both Samoa and Tonga, and customs from those islands heavily influenced Niuean culture, including the formation of an island-wide kingship system in the early 1700s. These kings, or patu-iki, were elected by Niueans. In 1774, British explorer James COOK abandoned attempts to land on the island after several unsuccessful tries, and he named it Savage Island because of the warlike appearance of the Niueans. Missionaries arrived in 1830 but were also largely unsuccessful at staying on the island until 1846, when a Niuean trained as a Samoan missionary returned to the island and provided a space from which the missionaries could work. In addition to converting the population, the missionaries worked to stop the violent conflicts between Niueans and helped establish the first parliament in 1849.
In 1889, King FATAAIKI and other chiefs asked the UK for protectorate status, a request that was repeated in 1895. The UK finally agreed in 1900 and King TOGIA-PULU-TOAKI formally ceded Niue that year. In 1901, Niue was annexed to New Zealand and included as part of the Cook Islands. Niue’s remoteness and cultural and linguistic differences with the Cook Islands led New Zealand to separate Niue into its own administration in 1904. The island became internally self-governing in 1974; it is an independent member of international organizations, but is in free association with New Zealand, which is responsible for defense and foreign affairs.
Economic opportunities in Niue are sparse. The population has trended downwards over recent decades, with substantial emigration to New Zealand. In 2004, a cyclone destroyed much of the southern part of the capital, Alofi, and left about 15% of the population homeless. Many chose not to rebuild and instead moved to New Zealand (2,400 km to the southwest), where approximately 90% of all ethnic Niueans live.
" + "text": "Voyagers from Samoa first settled on Niue around A.D. 900 and a second main group of settlers came from Tonga around 1500. With only one reliable source of fresh water, conflict was high on the island. There was continued contact with both Samoa and Tonga, and customs from those islands heavily influenced Niuean culture, including the formation of an island-wide kingship system in the early 1700s. These kings, or patu-iki, were elected by Niueans. In 1774, British explorer James COOK abandoned attempts to land on the island after several unsuccessful tries, and he named it Savage Island because of the warlike appearance of the Niueans. Missionaries arrived in 1830 but were also largely unsuccessful at staying on the island until 1846, when a Niuean trained as a Samoan missionary returned to the island and provided a space from which the missionaries could work. In addition to converting the population, the missionaries worked to stop the violent conflicts between Niueans and helped establish the first parliament in 1849.
In 1889, King FATAAIKI and other chiefs asked the UK for protectorate status, a request that was repeated in 1895. The UK finally agreed in 1900 and King TOGIA-PULU-TOAKI formally ceded Niue that year. In 1901, Niue was annexed to New Zealand and included as part of the Cook Islands. Niue’s remoteness and cultural and linguistic differences with the Cook Islands led New Zealand to separate Niue into its own administration in 1904. The island became internally self-governing in 1974; it is an independent member of international organizations but is in free association with New Zealand, which is responsible for defense and foreign affairs.
Economic opportunities in Niue are sparse. The population has trended downwards over recent decades, with substantial emigration to New Zealand. In 2004, a cyclone destroyed much of the southern part of the capital, Alofi, and left about 15% of the population homeless. Many chose not to rebuild and instead moved to New Zealand (2,400 km to the southwest), where approximately 90% of all ethnic Niueans live.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -592,7 +592,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "New Zealand dollars (NZD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/nf.json b/australia-oceania/nf.json index 096ca14c..52a3e766 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/nf.json +++ b/australia-oceania/nf.json @@ -487,7 +487,7 @@ "text": "NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/nh.json b/australia-oceania/nh.json index 4ef5d911..e600fc64 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/nh.json +++ b/australia-oceania/nh.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Vanuatu was first settled around 2000 B.C. by Austronesian speakers from Solomon Islands. By around 1000, localized chieftain systems began to develop on the islands. In the mid-1400s, the Kuwae Volcano erupted, causing frequent conflict and internal strife amid declining food availability, especially on Efate Island. Around 1600, Chief ROI MATA united Efate under his rule. In 1606, Portuguese explorer Pedro Fernandes de QUEIROS was the first European to see the Banks Islands and Espiritu Santo, setting up a short-lived settlement on the latter. The next European explorers arrived in the 1760s, and in 1774, British navigator James COOK named the islands the New Hebrides. The islands were frequented by whalers in the 1800s and interest in harvesting the islands’ sandalwood trees caused conflict between Europeans and local Ni-Vanuatu. Catholic and Protestant missionaries arrived in the 1840s but faced difficulties converting the locals. In the 1860s, European planters in Australia, Fiji, New Caledonia, and Samoa needed labor and kidnapped almost half the adult males of the islands and forced them to work as indentured servants.
With growing and overlapping interests in the islands, France and the UK agreed that the New Hebrides would be neutral in 1878 and established a joint naval commission in 1887. In 1906, the two countries created the British-French Condominium to jointly administer the islands and they established separate laws, police forces, currencies, and education and health systems. The condominium arrangement was dysfunctional and the UK used France’s defeat to Germany in World War II to assert greater control over the islands. As Japan pushed into Melanesia, the US stationed up to 50,000 soldiers in Vanuatu to prevent further advances. In 1945, US troops withdrew and sold their equipment, leading to the rise of political and religious cargo cults, such as the John Frum movement.
The France-UK condominium was reestablished after World War II. The UK was interested in moving the condominium toward independence in the 1960s but France was hesitant and political parties agitating independence began to form, largely divided along linguistic lines. France eventually relented and elections were held in 1974 with independence granted in 1980 as Vanuatu under English-speaking Prime Minister Walter LINI. At independence, the Nagriamel Movement, with support from French-speaking landowners, declared Espiritu Santo independent, but the short-lived state was dissolved 12 weeks later. Linguistic divisions have lessened over time but highly fractious political parties have led to weak coalition governments that require support from both Anglophone and Francophone parties. Since 2008, prime ministers have been ousted through no-confidence motions or temporary procedural issues 10 times.
Vanuatu was first settled around 2000 B.C. by Austronesian speakers from Solomon Islands. By around 1000, localized chieftain systems began to develop on the islands. In the mid-1400s, the Kuwae Volcano erupted, causing frequent conflict and internal strife amid declining food availability, especially on Efate Island. Around 1600, Chief ROI MATA united Efate under his rule. In 1606, Portuguese explorer Pedro Fernandes de QUEIROS was the first European to see the Banks Islands and Espiritu Santo, setting up a short-lived settlement on the latter. The next European explorers arrived in the 1760s, and in 1774, British navigator James COOK named the islands the New Hebrides. The islands were frequented by whalers in the 1800s and interest in harvesting the islands’ sandalwood trees caused conflict between Europeans and local Ni-Vanuatu. Catholic and Protestant missionaries arrived in the 1840s but faced difficulties converting the locals. In the 1860s, European planters in Australia, Fiji, New Caledonia, and Samoa needed labor and kidnapped almost half the adult males of the islands and forced them to work as indentured servants.
With growing and overlapping interests in the islands, France and the UK agreed that the New Hebrides would be neutral in 1878 and established a joint naval commission in 1887. In 1906, the two countries created the British-French Condominium to jointly administer the islands and they established separate laws, police forces, currencies, and education and health systems. The condominium arrangement was dysfunctional and the UK used France’s defeat to Germany in World War II to assert greater control over the islands. As Japan pushed into Melanesia, the US stationed up to 50,000 soldiers in Vanuatu to prevent further advances. In 1945, US troops withdrew and sold their equipment, leading to the rise of political and religious cargo cults, such as the John Frum movement.
The France-UK condominium was reestablished after World War II. The UK was interested in moving the condominium toward independence in the 1960s, but France was hesitant and political parties agitating independence began to form, largely divided along linguistic lines. France eventually relented and elections were held in 1974 with independence granted in 1980 as Vanuatu under English-speaking Prime Minister Walter LINI. At independence, the Nagriamel Movement, with support from French-speaking landowners, declared Espiritu Santo independent, but the short-lived state was dissolved 12 weeks later. Linguistic divisions have lessened over time but highly fractious political parties have led to weak coalition governments that require support from both Anglophone and Francophone parties. Since 2008, prime ministers have been ousted through no-confidence motions or temporary procedural issues 10 times.
Tokelau, which comprises three atolls, was first settled by Polynesians around A.D. 1000. The three atolls operated relatively independently but had contact with one another, intermarrying and occasionally fighting wars. Fakaofo Atoll eventually subjugated the other two. British explorer John BYRON was the first European to see Atafu Atoll in 1765. British naval officer Edward EDWARDS saw Nukunonu Atoll in 1791, and ships occasionally continued to pass by Atafu and Nukunonu. In 1835, a US whaling ship became the first non-Pacific island ship to pass by Fakaofo. Catholic and Protestant missionaries arrived in 1845 and converted the population on the islands on which they landed. To this day, Nukunonu is predominantly Catholic while Atafu is mostly Protestant; Catholic and Protestnat missionaries both worked in Fakaofo, and the population there is more mixed.
In 1863, Peruvian slave traders, masquerading as missionaries, kidnapped nearly all the men from Tokelau, and local governance moved to a system based on a Council of Elders, which still exists today. The atolls were repopulated when new Polynesian settlers and American and European migrants intermarried with local Tokelauan women. Tokelau became a British protectorate in 1889 and included in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Protectorate - later a colony - in 1908. In 1925, the UK placed Tokealu under New Zealand administration. The Tokelau Islands Act of 1948 formally transferred sovereignty from the UK to New Zealand and Tokelauans were granted New Zealand citizenship. In 1979, the US relinquished its claims over Tokelau in the Treaty of Tokehega, and Tokelau relinquished its claims over Swains Island, which is part of American Samoa.
Economic opportunities in Tokelau are sparse, and about 80% of Tokelauans live in New Zealand. Tokelau held two self-governance referendums in 2006 and 2007, in which more than 60% of voters chose to go into free association with New Zealand; however, the referendums failed to achieve the two-thirds majority necessary to enact a status change. Tokelau lacks an airport and is only accessible via a day-long boat trip from Samoa, although a site for an airstrip on Nukunonu was selected in 2019. Because of its dependency on Samoa for transportation, in 2011, Tokelau followed Samoa’s lead and shifted the international date line to its east, skipping December 30 and becoming one hour ahead of New Zealand rather than 23 hours behind.
Tokelau, which comprises three atolls, was first settled by Polynesians around A.D. 1000. The three atolls operated relatively independently but had contact with one another, intermarrying and occasionally fighting wars. Fakaofo Atoll eventually subjugated the other two. British explorer John BYRON was the first European to see Atafu Atoll in 1765. British naval officer Edward EDWARDS saw Nukunonu Atoll in 1791, and ships occasionally continued to pass by Atafu and Nukunonu. In 1835, a US whaling ship became the first non-Pacific island ship to pass by Fakaofo. Catholic and Protestant missionaries arrived in 1845 and converted the population on the islands on which they landed. To this day, Nukunonu is predominantly Catholic while Atafu is mostly Protestant; Catholic and Protestant missionaries both worked in Fakaofo, and the population there is more mixed.
In 1863, Peruvian slave traders, masquerading as missionaries, kidnapped nearly all the men from Tokelau, and local governance moved to a system based on a Council of Elders, which still exists today. The atolls were repopulated when new Polynesian settlers and American and European migrants intermarried with local Tokelauan women. Tokelau became a British protectorate in 1889 and included in the Gilbert and Ellice Islands Protectorate - later a colony - in 1908. In 1925, the UK placed Tokelau under New Zealand administration. The Tokelau Islands Act of 1948 formally transferred sovereignty from the UK to New Zealand and Tokelauans were granted New Zealand citizenship. In 1979, the US relinquished its claims over Tokelau in the Treaty of Tokehega, and Tokelau relinquished its claims over Swains Island, which is part of American Samoa.
Economic opportunities in Tokelau are sparse, and about 80% of Tokelauans live in New Zealand. Tokelau held two self-governance referendums in 2006 and 2007, in which more than 60% of voters chose to go into free association with New Zealand; however, the referendums failed to achieve the two-thirds majority necessary to enact a status change. Tokelau lacks an airport and is only accessible via a day-long boat trip from Samoa, although a site for an airstrip on Nukunonu was selected in 2019. Because of its dependency on Samoa for transportation, in 2011, Tokelau followed Samoa’s lead and shifted the international date line to its east, skipping December 30 and becoming one hour ahead of New Zealand rather than 23 hours behind.
NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Tuvaluan dollars or Australian dollars (AUD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/um.json b/australia-oceania/um.json index 7c410cb4..e88336d0 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/um.json +++ b/australia-oceania/um.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "All of the following US Pacific island territories except Midway Atoll constitute the Pacific Remote Islands National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex and as such are managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior. Midway Atoll NWR has been included in a Refuge Complex with the Hawaiian Islands NWR and also designated as part of Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. These remote refuges are the most widespread collection of marine- and terrestrial-life protected areas on the planet under a single country's jurisdiction. They sustain many endemic species including corals, fish, shellfish, marine mammals, seabirds, water birds, land birds, insects, and vegetation not found elsewhere.
Baker Island: The US took possession of the island in 1857. Its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization began on this island but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. The island was established as a NWR in 1974.;
Howland Island: Discovered by the US early in the 19th century, the uninhabited atoll was officially claimed by the US in 1857. Both US and British companies mined for guano deposits until about 1890. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization began on this island, similar to the effort on nearby Baker Island, but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. The famed American aviatrix Amelia EARHART disappeared while seeking out Howland Island as a refueling stop during her 1937 round-the-world flight; Earhart Light, a day beacon near the middle of the west coast, was named in her memory. The island was established as a NWR in 1974.;
Jarvis Island: First discovered by the British in 1821, the uninhabited island was annexed by the US in 1858 but abandoned in 1879 after tons of guano had been removed. The UK annexed the island in 1889 but never carried out plans for further exploitation. The US occupied and reclaimed the island in 1935. It was abandoned in 1942 during World War II. The island was established as a NWR in 1974.;
Johnston Atoll: Both the US and the Kingdom of Hawaii annexed Johnston Atoll in 1858, but it was the US that mined the guano deposits until the late 1880s. Johnston and Sand Islands were designated wildlife refuges in 1926. The US Navy took over the atoll in 1934. Subsequently, the US Air Force assumed control in 1948. The site was used for high-altitude nuclear tests in the 1950s and 1960s. Until late in 2000 the atoll was maintained as a storage and disposal site for chemical weapons. Munitions destruction, cleanup, and closure of the facility were completed by May 2005. The Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Air Force are currently discussing future management options; in the interim, Johnston Atoll and the three-mile Naval Defensive Sea around it remain under the jurisdiction and administrative control of the US Air Force.;
Kingman Reef: The US annexed the reef in 1922. Its sheltered lagoon served as a way station for flying boats on Hawaii-to-American Samoa flights during the late 1930s. There are no terrestrial plants on the reef, which is frequently awash, but it does support abundant and diverse marine fauna and flora. In 2001, the waters surrounding the reef out to 12 nm were designated a NWR.;
Midway Islands: The US took formal possession of the islands in 1867. The laying of the transpacific cable, which passed through the islands, brought the first residents in 1903. Between 1935 and 1947, Midway was used as a refueling stop for transpacific flights. The US naval victory over a Japanese fleet off Midway in 1942 was one of the turning points of World War II. The islands continued to serve as a naval station until closed in 1993. Today the islands are a NWR and are the site of the world's largest Laysan albatross colony.;
Palmyra Atoll: The Kingdom of Hawaii claimed the atoll in 1862, and the US included it among the Hawaiian Islands when it annexed the archipelago in 1898. The Hawaii Statehood Act of 1959 did not include Palmyra Atoll, which is now partly privately owned by the Nature Conservancy with the rest owned by the Federal government and managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. These organizations are managing the atoll as a wildlife refuge. The lagoons and surrounding waters within the 12-nm US territorial seas were transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife Service and designated a NWR in January 2001.
" + "text": "All of the following US Pacific island territories except Midway Atoll constitute the Pacific Remote Islands National Wildlife Refuge (NWR) Complex and as such are managed by the Fish and Wildlife Service of the US Department of the Interior. Midway Atoll NWR has been included in a Refuge Complex with the Hawaiian Islands NWR and also designated as part of Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument. These remote refuges are the most widespread collection of marine- and terrestrial-life protected areas on the planet under a single country's jurisdiction. They sustain many endemic species including corals, fish, shellfish, marine mammals, seabirds, water birds, land birds, insects, and vegetation not found elsewhere.
Baker Island: The US took possession of the island in 1857. Its guano deposits were mined by US and British companies during the second half of the 19th century. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization began on this island but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. The island was established as a NWR in 1974.
Howland Island: Discovered by the US early in the 19th century, the uninhabited atoll was officially claimed by the US in 1857. Both US and British companies mined for guano deposits until about 1890. In 1935, a short-lived attempt at colonization began on this island, similar to the effort on nearby Baker Island, but was disrupted by World War II and thereafter abandoned. The famed American aviatrix Amelia EARHART disappeared while seeking out Howland Island as a refueling stop during her 1937 round-the-world flight; Earhart Light, a day beacon near the middle of the west coast, was named in her memory. The island was established as a NWR in 1974.
Jarvis Island: First discovered by the British in 1821, the uninhabited island was annexed by the US in 1858 but abandoned in 1879 after tons of guano had been removed. The UK annexed the island in 1889 but never carried out plans for further exploitation. The US occupied and reclaimed the island in 1935. It was abandoned in 1942 during World War II. The island was established as a NWR in 1974.
Johnston Atoll: Both the US and the Kingdom of Hawaii annexed Johnston Atoll in 1858, but it was the US that mined the guano deposits until the late 1880s. Johnston and Sand Islands were designated wildlife refuges in 1926. The US Navy took over the atoll in 1934. Subsequently, the US Air Force assumed control in 1948. The site was used for high-altitude nuclear tests in the 1950s and 1960s. Until late in 2000 the atoll was maintained as a storage and disposal site for chemical weapons. Munitions destruction, cleanup, and closure of the facility were completed by May 2005. The Fish and Wildlife Service and the US Air Force are currently discussing future management options; in the interim, Johnston Atoll and the three-mile Naval Defensive Sea around it remain under the jurisdiction and administrative control of the US Air Force.
Kingman Reef: The US annexed the reef in 1922. Its sheltered lagoon served as a way station for flying boats on Hawaii-to-American Samoa flights during the late 1930s. There are no terrestrial plants on the reef, which is frequently awash, but it does support abundant and diverse marine fauna and flora. In 2001, the waters surrounding the reef out to 12 nm were designated a NWR.
Midway Islands: The US took formal possession of the islands in 1867. The laying of the transpacific cable, which passed through the islands, brought the first residents in 1903. Between 1935 and 1947, Midway was used as a refueling stop for transpacific flights. The US naval victory over a Japanese fleet off Midway in 1942 was one of the turning points of World War II. The islands continued to serve as a naval station until closed in 1993. Today the islands are a NWR and are the site of the world's largest Laysan albatross colony.
Palmyra Atoll: The Kingdom of Hawaii claimed the atoll in 1862, and the US included it among the Hawaiian Islands when it annexed the archipelago in 1898. The Hawaii Statehood Act of 1959 did not include Palmyra Atoll, which is now partly privately owned by the Nature Conservancy with the rest owned by the Federal government and managed by the US Fish and Wildlife Service. These organizations are managing the atoll as a wildlife refuge. The lagoons and surrounding waters within the 12-nm US territorial seas were transferred to the US Fish and Wildlife Service and designated a NWR in January 2001.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -110,6 +110,9 @@ "Birth rate": { "text": "NA" }, + "Death rate": { + "text": "NA" + }, "Contraceptive prevalence rate": { "text": "NA" }, diff --git a/australia-oceania/wf.json b/australia-oceania/wf.json index 7ba2eba9..3b7ca166 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/wf.json +++ b/australia-oceania/wf.json @@ -628,7 +628,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Comptoirs Francais du Pacifique francs (XPF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2015": { diff --git a/australia-oceania/wq.json b/australia-oceania/wq.json index edca54e7..89d84225 100644 --- a/australia-oceania/wq.json +++ b/australia-oceania/wq.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Wake Island was probably visited by Micronesian and Polynesian settlers, and oral legends tell of periodic voyages to the islands by people from the Marshall Islands. Wake Island was uninhabited when Spanish explorer Alvaro de Mendana de NEYRA became the first European to see it in 1568 and still had no humans when English captain Samuel WAKE sailed by it in 1796. The United States Exploring Expedition visited the island in 1841 and the US annexed it in 1899 to use as a cable and refueling station between its newly acquired Pacific territories of Hawaii and the Philippines and Guam. In the 1930s, Pan-American Airways built facilities on Wake Island so that it could be used as a stopover for flights from the US to China. In January 1941, the US began to install military assets on Wake Island and in early December of that year, Japan attacked Wake Island, capturing it by the end of the month after a heroic resistance. Japan held Wake Island until the end of World War II, and in 1946, commercial airlines once again used Wake Island as a refueling stop.
In 1973, the Marshall Islands claimed Wake Island based on the oral legends, although the US has not recognized these claims. In 1974, the US military took exclusive control of the island’s airstrip and restricted visitors. In 1978, Bikini Islanders from the Marshall Islands, who were evacuated in the 1950s and 1960s because of US nuclear tests, considered rehoming on Wake Island, but the US military rejected that plan. Since the 1970s, the island has been important for missile defense testing. In 2009, Wake Island was included in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.
Wake Island was probably visited by Micronesian and Polynesian settlers, and oral legends tell of periodic voyages to the islands by people from the Marshall Islands. Wake Island was uninhabited when Spanish explorer Alvaro de Mendana de NEYRA became the first European to see it in 1568 and still had no human inhabitants when English captain Samuel WAKE sailed by it in 1796. The United States Exploring Expedition visited the island in 1841 and the US annexed it in 1899 to use as a cable and refueling station between its newly acquired Pacific territories of Hawaii and the Philippines and Guam. In the 1930s, Pan American Airways built facilities on Wake Island so that it could be used as a stopover for flights from the US to China. In January 1941, the US began to install military assets on Wake Island and in early December of that year, Japan attacked Wake Island, capturing it by the end of the month after a heroic resistance. Japan held Wake Island until the end of World War II, and in 1946, commercial airlines once again used Wake Island as a refueling stop.
In 1973, the Marshall Islands claimed Wake Island based on the oral legends, although the US has not recognized these claims. In 1974, the US military took exclusive control of the island’s airstrip and restricted visitors. In 1978, Bikini Islanders from the Marshall Islands, who were evacuated in the 1950s and 1960s because of US nuclear tests, considered rehoming on Wake Island, but the US military rejected that plan. Since the 1970s, the island has been important for missile defense testing. In 2009, Wake Island was included in the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument.
" + "note": "note: the Haitian National Police (under the Ministry of Justice and Public Security) has a number of specialized units, including a coast guard, a presidential guard, and a paramilitary rapid-response Motorized Intervention Unit or BIM
" }, "Military expenditures": { "text": "not available" @@ -1162,7 +1162,7 @@ "text": "not available" }, "Military - note": { - "text": "
according to the Haitian Government, the mission of the reconstituted armed forces will focus on patrolling the border with the Dominican Republic, combating smuggling, and executing recovery efforts after natural disasters
the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) operated in Haiti from 2004 until 2017; its mission was to help restore stability after President Bertrand ARISTIDE fled the country, including assisting with the political process, strengthening government institutions, and promoting and protecting human rights; following the completion of MINUSTAH’s mandate in 2017, a smaller peacekeeping mission, the UN Mission for Justice Support in Haiti (MINUJUSTH), operated until 2019; its mission was to assist with the further development and strengthening of the national police, as well as Haiti’s justice and prison systems, and to promote and protect human rights; in 2019, the UN established the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) with the political mission of advising the Haiti Government in elections, governance, and security; BINUH's current mandate ends in July 2022 unless extended
according to the Haitian Government, the mission of the reconstituted armed forces will focus on patrolling the border with the Dominican Republic, combating smuggling, and executing recovery efforts after natural disasters
the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) operated in Haiti from 2004 until 2017; its mission was to help restore stability after President Bertrand ARISTIDE fled the country, including assisting with the political process, strengthening government institutions, and promoting and protecting human rights; following the completion of MINUSTAH’s mandate in 2017, a smaller peacekeeping mission, the UN Mission for Justice Support in Haiti (MINUJUSTH), operated until 2019; its mission was to assist with the further development and strengthening of the national police, as well as Haiti’s justice and prison systems, and to promote and protect human rights; in 2019, the UN established the UN Integrated Office in Haiti (BINUH) with the political mission of advising the Haiti Government in elections, governance, and security; BINUH's current mandate last until July 2023
.sx; note - IANA has designated .sx for Sint Maarten, but has not yet assigned it to a sponsoring organization
" + }, + "Internet users": { + "total": { + "text": "39,100 (March 2022)" + }, + "percent of population": { + "text": "89.5% (March 2022)" + } } }, "Transportation": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/nu.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/nu.json index c61a468b..4ae19c8b 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/nu.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/nu.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought a civic-military coalition, spearheaded by the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas led by Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador prompted the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA was elected president in 2006, 2011, 2016, and most recently in 2021. Municipal, regional, and national-level elections since 2008 have been marred by widespread irregularities. Democratic institutions have weakened under the ORTEGA administration as the president has garnered full control over all branches of government, especially after cracking down on a nationwide pro-democracy protest movement in 2018. In the lead-up to the 2021 presidential election, authorities arrested over 40 individuals linked to the political opposition, including presidential candidates, private sector leaders, NGO workers, human rights defenders, and journalists. Only five lesser-known presidential candidates of mostly small parties allied to ORTEGA's Sandinistas were allowed to run against ORTEGA in the November 2021 election." + "text": "The Pacific coast of Nicaragua was settled as a Spanish colony from Panama in the early 16th century. Independence from Spain was declared in 1821 and the country became an independent republic in 1838. Britain occupied the Caribbean Coast in the first half of the 19th century, but gradually ceded control of the region in subsequent decades. Violent opposition to governmental manipulation and corruption spread to all classes by 1978 and resulted in a short-lived civil war that brought a civic-military coalition, spearheaded by the Marxist Sandinista guerrillas led by Daniel ORTEGA Saavedra to power in 1979. Nicaraguan aid to leftist rebels in El Salvador prompted the US to sponsor anti-Sandinista contra guerrillas through much of the 1980s. After losing free and fair elections in 1990, 1996, and 2001, former Sandinista President Daniel ORTEGA was elected president in 2006, 2011, 2016, and most recently in 2021. Municipal, regional, and national-level elections since 2008 have been marred by widespread irregularities. Democratic institutions have weakened under the ORTEGA regime as the president has garnered full control over all branches of government, especially after cracking down on a nationwide pro-democracy protest movement in 2018. In the lead-up to the 2021 presidential election, authorities arrested over 40 individuals linked to the political opposition, including presidential candidates, private sector leaders, NGO workers, human rights defenders, and journalists. Only five lesser-known presidential candidates of mostly small parties allied to ORTEGA's Sandinistas were allowed to run against ORTEGA in the November 2021 election." } }, "Geography": { @@ -648,7 +648,7 @@ "text": "2 (both cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Ruins of León Viejo, León Cathedral" + "text": "Ruins of León Viejo; León Cathedral" } } }, @@ -894,7 +894,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "cordobas (NIO) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1183,7 +1183,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Army of Nicaragua (Ejercito de Nicaragua, EN): Land Forces (Fuerza Terrestre); Naval Forces (Fuerza Naval); Air Forces (Fuerza Aérea); Special Operations Command (Comando de Operaciones Especiales); Nicaraguan National Police (2022)", - "note": "note - both the military and the police report directly to the president" + "note": "note: both the military and the police report directly to the president" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/pm.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/pm.json index fcb2301e..c72c0d15 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/pm.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/pm.json @@ -670,7 +670,7 @@ "text": "5 (2 cultural, 3 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Caribbean Fortifications (c), Darien National Park (n), Talamanca Range-La Amistad National Park (n), Panamá Viejo and Historic District of Panamá (c), Coiba National Park (n)" + "text": "Caribbean Fortifications (c); Darien National Park (n); Talamanca Range-La Amistad National Park (n); Panamá Viejo and Historic District of Panamá (c); Coiba National Park (n)" } } }, @@ -914,7 +914,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "balboas (PAB) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1215,7 +1215,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "no regular military forces; Ministry of Public Security: the Panama National Police (La Policía Nacional de Panamá, PNP), National Air-Naval Service (Servicio Nacional Aeronaval, SENAN), National Border Service (Servicio Nacional de Fronteras, SENAFRONT) (2022)", - "note": "note - the PNP includes paramilitary special forces units for counterterrorism and counternarcotics missions; in addition to its 3 regionally-based border security brigades, SENAFRONT includes a special forces brigade, which is comprised of special forces, counternarcotics, maritime, and rapid reaction units" + "note": "note: the PNP includes paramilitary special forces units for counterterrorism and counternarcotics missions; in addition to its 3 regionally-based border security brigades, SENAFRONT includes a special forces brigade, which is comprised of special forces, counternarcotics, maritime, and rapid reaction units" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/rn.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/rn.json index 43809efa..d41350a4 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/rn.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/rn.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Although sighted by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 and claimed for Spain, it was the Dutch who occupied the island in 1631 to exploit its salt deposits. The Spanish retook the island in 1633, but continued to be harassed by the Dutch. The Spanish finally relinquished Saint Martin to the French and Dutch, who divided it between themselves in 1648. Friction between the two sides caused the border to frequently fluctuate over the next two centuries, with the French eventually holding the greater portion of the island (about 61%). The cultivation of sugar cane introduced African slavery to the island in the late 18th century; the practice was not abolished until 1848. The island became a free port in 1939; the tourism industry was dramatically expanded during the 1970s and 1980s. In 2003, the populace of Saint Martin voted to secede from Guadeloupe and in 2007, the northern portion of the island became a French overseas collectivity. In 2010, the southern Dutch portion of the island became the independent nation of Sint Maarten within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. On 6 September 2017, Hurricane Irma passed over the island of Saint Martin causing extensive damage to roads, communications, electrical power, and housing; the UN estimated that 90% of the buildings were damaged or destroyed." + "text": "Although sighted by Christopher COLUMBUS in 1493 and claimed for Spain, it was the Dutch who occupied the island in 1631 to exploit its salt deposits. The Spanish retook the island in 1633 but continued to be harassed by the Dutch. The Spanish finally relinquished Saint Martin to the French and Dutch, who divided it between themselves in 1648. Friction between the two sides caused the border to frequently fluctuate over the next two centuries, with the French eventually holding the greater portion of the island (about 61%). The cultivation of sugarcane introduced African slavery to the island in the late 18th century; the practice was not abolished until 1848. The island became a free port in 1939; the tourism industry was dramatically expanded during the 1970s and 1980s. In 2003, the populace of Saint Martin voted to secede from Guadeloupe and in 2007, the northern portion of the island became a French overseas collectivity. In 2010, the southern Dutch portion of the island became the independent nation of Sint Maarten within the Kingdom of the Netherlands. On 6 September 2017, Hurricane Irma passed over the island of Saint Martin causing extensive damage to roads, communications, electrical power, and housing; the UN estimated that 90% of the buildings were damaged or destroyed." } }, "Geography": { @@ -449,7 +449,7 @@ "text": "jewelry, diamonds, pearls, recreational boats, cars (2019)" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -502,6 +502,14 @@ }, "Internet country code": { "text": ".mf; note - .gp, the Internet country code for Guadeloupe, and .fr, the Internet country code for France, might also be encountered" + }, + "Internet users": { + "total": { + "text": "19,300 (March 2022 est.)" + }, + "percent of population": { + "text": "48.5% (March 2022 est.)" + } } }, "Transportation": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/rq.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/rq.json index d54739da..339098b8 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/rq.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/rq.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following Christopher COLUMBUS' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self-government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose not to alter the existing political status with the US, but the results of a 2012 vote left open the possibility of American statehood. Economic recession on the island has led to a net population loss since about 2005, as large numbers of residents moved to the US mainland. The trend has accelerated since 2010; in 2014, Puerto Rico experienced a net population loss to the mainland of 64,000, more than double the net loss of 26,000 in 2010. Hurricane Maria struck the island on 20 September 2017 causing catastrophic damage, including destruction of the electrical grid that had been cripled by Hurricane Irma just two weeks before. It was the worst storm to hit the island in eight decades, and damage is estimated in the tens of billions of dollars. A referendum held in late 2020 showed a narrow preference for American statehood." + "text": "Populated for centuries by aboriginal peoples, the island was claimed by the Spanish Crown in 1493 following Christopher COLUMBUS' second voyage to the Americas. In 1898, after 400 years of colonial rule that saw the indigenous population nearly exterminated and African slave labor introduced, Puerto Rico was ceded to the US as a result of the Spanish-American War. Puerto Ricans were granted US citizenship in 1917. Popularly elected governors have served since 1948. In 1952, a constitution was enacted providing for internal self-government. In plebiscites held in 1967, 1993, and 1998, voters chose not to alter the existing political status with the US, but the results of a 2012 vote left open the possibility of American statehood. Economic recession on the island has led to a net population loss since about 2005, as large numbers of residents moved to the US mainland. The trend has accelerated since 2010; in 2014, Puerto Rico experienced a net population loss to the mainland of 64,000, more than double the net loss of 26,000 in 2010. Hurricane Maria struck the island on 20 September 2017 causing catastrophic damage, including destruction of the electrical grid that had been crippled by Hurricane Irma just two weeks before. It was the worst storm to hit the island in eight decades, and damage is estimated in the tens of billions of dollars. A referendum held in late 2020 showed a narrow preference for American statehood." } }, "Geography": { @@ -434,8 +434,7 @@ } }, "Government type": { - "text": "unincorporated organized territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches", - "note": "Note: reference Puerto Rican Federal Relations Act, 2 March 1917, as amended by Public Law 600, 3 July 1950" + "text": "unincorporated organized territory of the US with local self-government; republican form of territorial government with separate executive, legislative, and judicial branches; note - reference Puerto Rican Federal Relations Act, 2 March 1917, as amended by Public Law 600, 3 July 1950" }, "Dependency status": { "text": "unincorporated organized territory of the US with commonwealth status; policy relations between Puerto Rico and the US conducted under the jurisdiction of the Office of the President" diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/sc.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/sc.json index 8e3c030f..f503e727 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/sc.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/sc.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Carib Indians occupied the islands of the West Indies for hundreds of years before the British and French began settlement in 1623. During the course of 17th century, Saint Kitts became the premier base for English and French expansion into the Caribbean. The French ceded the territory to the UK in 1713. At the turn of the 18th century, Saint Kitts was the richest British Crown Colony per capita in the Caribbean, a result of the sugar trade. Although small in size and separated by only 3 km (2 mi) of water, Saint Kitts and Nevis were viewed and governed as different states until the late-19th century, when the British forcibly unified them along with the island of Anguilla. In 1967, the island territory of Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla became an associated state of the UK with full internal autonomy. The island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. The remaining islands achieved independence in 1983 as Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 1998, a referendum on Nevis to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority vote needed." + "text": "Carib Indians occupied the islands of the West Indies for hundreds of years before the British and French began settlement in 1623. During the course of the 17th century, Saint Kitts became the premier base for English and French expansion into the Caribbean. The French ceded the territory to the UK in 1713. At the turn of the 18th century, Saint Kitts was the richest British Crown Colony per capita in the Caribbean, a result of the sugar trade. Although small in size and separated by only 3 km (2 mi) of water, Saint Kitts and Nevis were viewed and governed as different states until the late-19th century, when the British forcibly unified them along with the island of Anguilla. In 1967, the island territory of Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla became an associated state of the UK with full internal autonomy. The island of Anguilla rebelled and was allowed to secede in 1971. The remaining islands achieved independence in 1983 as Saint Kitts and Nevis. In 1998, a referendum on Nevis to separate from Saint Kitts fell short of the two-thirds majority vote needed." } }, "Geography": { @@ -431,7 +431,7 @@ "etymology": { "text": "Saint Kitts was, and still is, referred to as Saint Christopher and this name was well established by the 17th century (although who first applied the name is unclear); in the 17th century a common nickname for Christopher was Kit or Kitt, so the island began to be referred to as \"Saint Kitt's Island\" or just \"Saint Kitts\"; Nevis is derived from the original Spanish name \"Nuestra Senora de las Nieves\" (Our Lady of the Snows) and refers to the white halo of clouds that generally wreathes Nevis Peak" }, - "note": "note: Nevis is pronounced neevis" + "note": "note: Nevis is pronounced nee-vis" }, "Government type": { "text": "federal parliamentary democracy under a constitutional monarchy; a Commonwealth realm" @@ -768,7 +768,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/st.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/st.json index 2b846d6c..e2dace02 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/st.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/st.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries and burgeoning sugar industry, was contested between England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814 and became part of the British Windward Islands colony. Even after the abolition of slavery on its plantations in 1834, Saint Lucia remained an agricultural island, dedicated to producing tropical commodity crops. In the mid-20th century, Saint Lucia joined the West Indies Federation (1958–1962) and in 1967 became one of the six members of the West Indies Associated States, with internal self-government. In 1979, Saint Lucia gained full independence." + "text": "The island, with its fine natural harbor at Castries and burgeoning sugar industry, was contested by England and France throughout the 17th and early 18th centuries (changing possession 14 times); it was finally ceded to the UK in 1814 and became part of the British Windward Islands colony. Even after the abolition of slavery on its plantations in 1834, Saint Lucia remained an agricultural island, dedicated to producing tropical commodity crops. In the mid-20th century, Saint Lucia joined the West Indies Federation (1958–1962) and in 1967 became one of the six members of the West Indies Associated States, with internal self-government. In 1979, Saint Lucia gained full independence." } }, "Geography": { @@ -806,7 +806,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/tb.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/tb.json index 95edd46a..137c1840 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/tb.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/tb.json @@ -282,7 +282,7 @@ "text": "Saint-Barthelemy" }, "abbreviation": { - "text": "Saint-Barth (French); St. Barts or St. Barths (English)" + "text": "Saint-Barth (French)/ St. Barts or St. Barths (English)" }, "etymology": { "text": "explorer Christopher COLUMBUS named the island in honor of his brother Bartolomeo's namesake saint in 1493" diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/td.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/td.json index 16f45882..c3500dc4 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/td.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/td.json @@ -821,7 +821,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Trinidad and Tobago dollars (TTD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1088,7 +1088,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Trinidad and Tobago Defense Force (TTDF): Army/Land Forces (Trinidad and Tobago Regiment), Coast Guard, Air Guard, Defense Force Reserves; Trinidad and Tobago Police Service (TTPS) (2022)", - "note": "note - the Ministry of National Security oversees defense, immigration, and the police" + "note": "note: the Ministry of National Security oversees defense, immigration, and the police" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2020": { @@ -1115,7 +1115,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-25 years of age for voluntary military service (men and women; some age variations between services, reserves); no conscription (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2017, women comprised about 14% of the active military" + "note": "note: as of 2017, women comprised about 14% of the active military" }, "Military - note": { "text": "the primary responsibilities for the TTDF are conducting border and maritime security, providing disaster relief, and countering narcotics trafficking in support of law enforcement (2022)" diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/tk.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/tk.json index c50454e5..81d3a4e5 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/tk.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/tk.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate Crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands remain a British overseas territory. Grand Turk island suffered extensive damage from Hurricane Maria on 22 September 2017 resulting in loss of power and communications as well as damage to housing and businesses." + "text": "The islands were part of the UK's Jamaican colony until 1962, when they assumed the status of a separate Crown colony upon Jamaica's independence. The governor of The Bahamas oversaw affairs from 1965 to 1973. With Bahamian independence, the islands received a separate governor in 1973. Although independence was agreed upon for 1982, the policy was reversed and the islands remain a British overseas territory. Grand Turk island suffered extensive damage from Hurricane Maria on 22 September 2017 resulting in loss of power and communications, as well as damage to housing and businesses." } }, "Geography": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/uc.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/uc.json index 8010238b..40f6ae8d 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/uc.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/uc.json @@ -352,10 +352,10 @@ "text": "Curacao" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Land Curacao (Dutch); Pais Korsou (Papiamento)" + "text": "Land Curacao (Dutch)/ Pais Korsou (Papiamento)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Curacao (Dutch); Korsou (Papiamento)" + "text": "Curacao (Dutch)/ Korsou (Papiamento)" }, "former": { "text": "Netherlands Antilles; Curacao and Dependencies" @@ -674,7 +674,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Netherlands Antillean guilders (ANG) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/vc.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/vc.json index 9d675b22..8487c083 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/vc.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/vc.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Resistance by native Caribs prevented colonization on Saint Vincent until 1719. Disputed between France and the UK for most of the 18th century, the island was ceded to the latter in 1783. The British prized Saint Vincent due to its fertile soil, which allowed for thriving slave-run plantations of sugar, coffee, indigo, tobacco, cotton, and cocoa. In 1834, the British abolished slavery. Immigration of indentured servants eased the ensuing labor shortage, as did subsequent Portuguese immigrants from Madeira and East Indian laborers. Conditions remained harsh for both former slaves and immigrant agricultural workers, however, as depressed world sugar prices kept the economy stagnant until the early 1900s. The economy then went into a period of decline with many landowners abandoning their estates and leaving the land to be cultivated by liberated slaves. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. In April 2021, the explosive eruption of the La Soufrière volcano in the north of Saint Vincent destroyed much of Saint Vincent’s most productive agricultural lands. Unlike most of its tourism-dependent neighbors, the Vincentian economy is primarily agricultural. The US provided $4.7 million in humanitarian support after the eruption." + "text": "Resistance by native Caribs prevented colonization on Saint Vincent until 1719. Disputed by France and the UK for most of the 18th century, the island was ceded to the latter in 1783. The British prized Saint Vincent due to its fertile soil, which allowed for thriving slave-run plantations of sugar, coffee, indigo, tobacco, cotton, and cocoa. In 1834, the British abolished slavery. Immigration of indentured servants eased the ensuing labor shortage, as did subsequent Portuguese immigrants from Madeira and East Indian laborers. Conditions remained harsh for both former slaves and immigrant agricultural workers, however, as depressed world sugar prices kept the economy stagnant until the early 1900s. The economy then went into a period of decline with many landowners abandoning their estates and leaving the land to be cultivated by liberated slaves. Between 1960 and 1962, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines was a separate administrative unit of the Federation of the West Indies. Autonomy was granted in 1969 and independence in 1979. In April 2021, the explosive eruption of the La Soufrière volcano in the north of Saint Vincent destroyed much of Saint Vincent’s most productive agricultural lands. Unlike most of its tourism-dependent neighbors, the Vincentian economy is primarily agricultural. The US provided $4.7 million in humanitarian support after the eruption." } }, "Geography": { @@ -763,7 +763,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "East Caribbean dollars (XCD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-america-n-caribbean/vq.json b/central-america-n-caribbean/vq.json index 23292235..1465f588 100644 --- a/central-america-n-caribbean/vq.json +++ b/central-america-n-caribbean/vq.json @@ -423,7 +423,7 @@ }, "Executive branch": { "chief of state": { - "text": "President Joseph R. BIDEN Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021)" + "text": "President Joseph R. BIDEN, Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021)" }, "head of government": { "text": "Governor Albert BRYAN, Jr. (since 7 January 2019), Lieutenant Governor Tregenza ROACH (since 7 January 2019)" @@ -435,7 +435,7 @@ "text": "president and vice president indirectly elected on the same ballot by an Electoral College of 'electors' chosen from each state; president and vice president serve a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); under the US Constitution, residents of the Virgin Islands do not vote in elections for US president and vice president; however, they may vote in the Democratic and Republican presidential primary elections; governor and lieutenant governor directly elected on the same ballot by absolute majority vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 6 November 2018 with a runoff on 20 November 2018 (next to be held in November 2022)" }, "election results": { - "text": "Albert BRYAN, Jr. elected governor in the second round; percent of vote in first round - Albert BRYAN, Jr. (Democratic Party) 38.1%, Kenneth MAPP (independent) 33.5%, Adlah \"Foncie\" DONASTORG, Jr. (independent) 16.5%, other 11.9%; percent of vote in second round- Albert BRYAN, Jr. (Democratic Party) 54.5%, Kenneth MAPP (independent) 45.2%, other .3%
" + "text": "Albert BRYAN, Jr. elected governor in the second round; percent of vote in first round - Albert BRYAN, Jr. (Democratic Party) 38.1%, Kenneth MAPP (independent) 33.5%, Adlah \"Foncie\" DONASTORG, Jr. (independent) 16.5%, other 11.9%; percent of vote in second round- Albert BRYAN, Jr. (Democratic Party) 54.5%, Kenneth MAPP (independent) 45.2%, other 0.3%
" } }, "Legislative branch": { diff --git a/central-asia/kg.json b/central-asia/kg.json index d42aa145..0a55a912 100644 --- a/central-asia/kg.json +++ b/central-asia/kg.json @@ -496,7 +496,7 @@ "text": "Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic" }, "etymology": { - "text": "a combination of the Turkic words \"kyrg\" (forty) and \"-yz\" (tribes) with the Persian suffix \"-stan\" (country) creating the meaning \"Land of the Forty Tribes\"; the name refers to the 40 clans united by the mythic Kyrgyz hero, Manas" + "text": "a combination of the Turkic words \"kyrg\" (forty) and \"-yz\" (tribes) with the Persian suffix \"-stan\" (country) creating the meaning \"Land of the Forty Tribes\"; the name refers to the 40 clans united by the mythic Kyrgyz hero, MANAS" } }, "Government type": { @@ -900,7 +900,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "soms (KGS) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-asia/kz.json b/central-asia/kz.json index b7bbf227..0d7ef8fd 100644 --- a/central-asia/kz.json +++ b/central-asia/kz.json @@ -673,7 +673,7 @@ "text": "5 (3 cultural, 2 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi (c), Petroglyphs at Tanbaly (c), Saryarka - Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan (n), Silk Roads: the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor (c), Western Tien-Shan (n)" + "text": "Mausoleum of Khoja Ahmed Yasawi (c); Petroglyphs at Tanbaly (c); Saryarka - Steppe and Lakes of Northern Kazakhstan (n); Silk Roads: the Chang'an-Tianshan Corridor (c); Western Tien-Shan (n)" } } }, @@ -917,7 +917,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "tenge (KZT) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/central-asia/rs.json b/central-asia/rs.json index 3acef391..ad37d4e0 100644 --- a/central-asia/rs.json +++ b/central-asia/rs.json @@ -968,7 +968,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Russian rubles (RUB) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1293,7 +1293,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Armed Forces of the Russian Federation: Ground Troops (Sukhoputnyye Voyskia, SV), Navy (Voyenno-Morskoy Flot, VMF), Aerospace Forces (Vozdushno-Kosmicheskiye Sily, VKS); Airborne Troops (Vozdushno-Desantnyye Voyska, VDV), and Missile Troops of Strategic Purpose (Raketnyye Voyska Strategicheskogo Naznacheniya, RVSN) referred to commonly as Strategic Rocket Forces, are independent \"combat arms,\" not subordinate to any of the three branchesThe Tajik people came under Russian imperial rule in the 1860s and 1870s, but Russia's hold on Central Asia weakened following the Revolution of 1917. At that time, bands of indigenous guerrillas (known as \"basmachi\") fiercely contested Bolshevik control of the area, which was not fully reestablished until 1925. Tajikistan was first created as an autonomous republic within Uzbekistan in 1924, but in 1929 the USSR designated Tajikistan a separate republic and transferred to it much of present-day Sughd province. Ethnic Uzbeks form a substantial minority in Tajikistan, and ethnic Tajiks an even larger minority in Uzbekistan. Tajikistan became independent in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union, and experienced a civil war between political, regional, and religious factions from 1992 to 1997.
Though the country holds general elections for both the presidency (once every seven years) and legislature (once every five years), observers note an electoral system rife with irregularities and abuse, with results that are neither free nor fair. President Emomali RAHMON, who came to power in 1992 during the civil war and was first elected president in 1994, used an attack planned by a disaffected deputy defense minister in 2015 to ban the last major opposition political party in Tajikistan. In December 2015, RAHMON further strengthened his position by having himself declared \"Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation,\" with limitless terms and lifelong immunity through constitutional amendments ratified in a referendum. The referendum also lowered the minimum age required to run for president from 35 to 30, which made RAHMON's first-born son Rustam EMOMALI, the mayor of the capital city of Dushanbe, eligible to run for president in 2020. In April 2020, RAHMON orchestrated EMOMALI's selection as Chairman of the Majlisi Milli (Tajikistan's senate), positioning EMOMALI as next in line of succession for the presidency. RAHMON opted to run in the presidential election in October 2020 and received 91% of the vote.
The country remains the poorest in the former Soviet sphere. Tajikistan became a member of the WTO in March 2013. However, its economy continues to face major challenges, including dependence on remittances from Tajikistani migrant laborers working in Russia and Kazakhstan, pervasive corruption, and the opiate trade and other destabilizing violence emanating from neighboring Afghanistan. Tajikistan has endured several domestic security incidents since 2010, including armed conflict between government forces and local strongmen in the Rasht Valley and between government forces and residents and informal leaders in Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast. Tajikistan suffered its first ISIS-claimed attack in 2018, when assailants attacked a group of Western bicyclists with vehicles and knives, killing four.
" + "text": "
The Tajik people came under Russian imperial rule in the 1860s and 1870s, but Russia's hold on Central Asia weakened following the Revolution of 1917. At that time, bands of indigenous guerrillas (known as \"basmachi\") fiercely contested Bolshevik control of the area, which was not fully reestablished until 1925. Tajikistan was first created as an autonomous republic within Uzbekistan in 1924, but in 1929 the USSR designated Tajikistan a separate republic and transferred to it much of present-day Sughd Province. Ethnic Uzbeks form a substantial minority in Tajikistan, and ethnic Tajiks an even larger minority in Uzbekistan. Tajikistan became independent in 1991 following the breakup of the Soviet Union, and experienced a civil war between political, regional, and religious factions from 1992 to 1997.
Though the country holds general elections for both the presidency (once every seven years) and legislature (once every five years), observers note an electoral system rife with irregularities and abuse, with results that are neither free nor fair. President Emomali RAHMON, who came to power in 1992 during the civil war and was first elected president in 1994, used an attack planned by a disaffected deputy defense minister in 2015 to ban the last major opposition political party in Tajikistan. In December 2015, RAHMON further strengthened his position by having himself declared \"Founder of Peace and National Unity, Leader of the Nation,\" with limitless terms and lifelong immunity through constitutional amendments ratified in a referendum. The referendum also lowered the minimum age required to run for president from 35 to 30, which made RAHMON's first-born son Rustam EMOMALI, the mayor of the capital city of Dushanbe, eligible to run for president in 2020. In April 2020, RAHMON orchestrated EMOMALI's selection as chairman of the Majlisi Milli (Tajikistan's senate), positioning EMOMALI as next in line of succession for the presidency. RAHMON opted to run in the presidential election in October 2020 and received 91% of the vote.
The country remains the poorest in the former Soviet sphere. Tajikistan became a member of the WTO in March 2013. However, its economy continues to face major challenges, including dependence on remittances from Tajikistani migrant laborers working in Russia and Kazakhstan, pervasive corruption, and the opiate trade and other destabilizing violence emanating from neighboring Afghanistan. Tajikistan has endured several domestic security incidents since 2010, including armed conflict between government forces and local strongmen in the Rasht Valley and between government forces and residents and informal leaders in Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Oblast. Tajikistan suffered its first ISIS-claimed attack in 2018, when assailants attacked a group of Western bicyclists with vehicles and knives, killing four.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -652,7 +652,7 @@ "text": "2 (1 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Proto-urban Site of Sarazm (c), Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs) (n)" + "text": "Proto-urban Site of Sarazm (c); Tajik National Park (Mountains of the Pamirs) (n)" } } }, @@ -883,7 +883,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Tajikistani somoni (TJS) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-asia/tx.json b/central-asia/tx.json index 1a0cd44c..043d5b32 100644 --- a/central-asia/tx.json +++ b/central-asia/tx.json @@ -651,7 +651,7 @@ "text": "3 (all cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Ancient Merv, Kunya-Urgench, Parthian Fortresses of Nisa" + "text": "Ancient Merv; Kunya-Urgench; Parthian Fortresses of Nisa" } } }, @@ -860,7 +860,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Turkmenistani manat (TMM) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/central-asia/uz.json b/central-asia/uz.json index 1dcaa316..a5764ddc 100644 --- a/central-asia/uz.json +++ b/central-asia/uz.json @@ -642,7 +642,7 @@ "text": "5 (4 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Itchan Kala (c), Historic Bukhara (c), Historic Shakhrisyabz (c), Samarkand - Crossroad of Cultures (c), Western Tien Shan (n)" + "text": "Itchan Kala (c); Historic Bukhara (c); Historic Shakhrisyabz (c); Samarkand - Crossroad of Cultures (c); Western Tien Shan (n)" } } }, @@ -874,7 +874,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Uzbekistani soum (UZS) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1163,7 +1163,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Armed Forces of Uzbekistan: Army, Air and Air Defense Forces; National Guard; Ministry of Interior: Internal Security Troops, Border Guards (2022)", - "note": "note - the National Guard, also under the Ministry of Defense, ensures public order and security of diplomatic missions, radio and television broadcasting, and other state entities" + "note": "note: the National Guard, also under the Ministry of Defense, ensures public order and security of diplomatic missions, radio and television broadcasting, and other state entities" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2019": { diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/bm.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/bm.json index e5b72654..b3321268 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/bm.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/bm.json @@ -711,7 +711,7 @@ "text": "2 (both cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Pyu Ancient Cities, Bagan" + "text": "Pyu Ancient Cities; Bagan" } } }, @@ -937,7 +937,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "kyats (MMK) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1249,7 +1249,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Burmese Defense Service (Tatmadaw): Army (Tatmadaw Kyi), Navy (Tatmadaw Yay), Air Force (Tatmadaw Lay); People’s Militia; Ministry of Home Affairs: People's Police Force; Border Guard Forces/Police (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - under the 2008 constitution, the Tatmadaw controls appointments of senior officials to lead the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Border Affairs, and the Ministry of Home Affairs; in March 2022, a new law gave the commander-in-chief of the Tatmadaw the authority to appoint or remove the head of the police force" + "note": "note: under the 2008 constitution, the Tatmadaw controls appointments of senior officials to lead the Ministry of Defense, the Ministry of Border Affairs, and the Ministry of Home Affairs; in March 2022, a new law gave the commander-in-chief of the Tatmadaw the authority to appoint or remove the head of the police force" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2019": { diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/bx.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/bx.json index 120bdf4d..0dfce5c4 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/bx.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/bx.json @@ -833,7 +833,7 @@ "note": "note: public external debt only; private external debt unavailable" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Bruneian dollars (BND) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/cb.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/cb.json index b0c6ae6a..cf62a562 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/cb.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/cb.json @@ -686,7 +686,7 @@ "text": "3 (all cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Angkor, Temple of Preah Vihear, Sambor Prei Kuk" + "text": "Angkor; Temple of Preah Vihear; Sambor Prei Kuk" } } }, @@ -925,7 +925,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "riels (KHR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1255,7 +1255,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18 is the legal minimum age for compulsory and voluntary military service (conscription only selectively enforced since 1993); women may volunteer (2021)", - "note": "note - in 2018, women made up an estimated 6% of the active duty military" + "note": "note: in 2018, women made up an estimated 6% of the active duty military" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "200 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 180 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 290 Mali (MINUSMA) (Jan 2022)" diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/ch.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/ch.json index cc8fa0f4..7c113a2f 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/ch.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/ch.json @@ -184,7 +184,7 @@ "potential support ratio": { "text": "5.9 (2020 est.)" }, - "note": "data do not include Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan" + "note": "note: data do not include Hong Kong, Macau, and Taiwan" }, "Median age": { "total": { @@ -709,7 +709,7 @@ "text": "56 (14 natural, 38 cultural, 4 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (c); Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (c); The Great Wall (c); Summer Palace (c); Jiuzhaigou Valley (n); Potala Palace (c); Ancient Pingyao (c); Historic Macau (c); Dengfeng (c); Grand Canal (c)" + "text": "Imperial Palaces of the Ming and Qing Dynasties (c); Mausoleum of the First Qin Emperor (c); The Great Wall (c); Summer Palace (c); Jiuzhaigou Valley (n); Potala Palace (c); Ancient Pingyao (c); Historic Macau (c); Dengfeng (c); Grand Canal (c); Mount Huangshan (m)" } }, "Government - note": { @@ -950,7 +950,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Renminbi yuan (RMB) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1267,7 +1267,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "People's Liberation Army (PLA): Ground Forces, Navy (PLAN, includes marines and naval aviation), Air Force (PLAAF, includes airborne forces), Rocket Force (strategic missile force), and Strategic Support Force (information, electronic, and cyber warfare, as well as space forces); People's Armed Police (PAP, includes Coast Guard, Border Defense Force, Internal Security Forces); PLA Reserve Force (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Strategic Support Force includes the Space Systems Department, which is responsible for nearly all PLA space operations, including space launch and support, space surveillance, space information support, space telemetry, tracking, and control, and space warfare
in addition to the invasion of South Korea and the subsequent Korean War (1950-53), North Korea from the 1960s to the 1980s launched a considerable number of limited military and subversive actions against South Korea using special forces and terrorist tactics; including aggressive skirmishes along the DMZ, overt attempts to assassinate South Korean leaders, kidnappings, the bombing of an airliner, and a failed effort in 1968 to foment an insurrection and conduct a guerrilla war in the South with more than 100 seaborne commandos; from the 1990s until 2010, the North lost two submarines and a semi-submersible boat attempting to insert infiltrators into the South (1996, 1998) and provoked several engagements in the Northwest Islands area along the disputed Northern Limit Line (NLL), including naval skirmishes between patrol boats in 1999 and 2002, the torpedoing and sinking of a South Korean corvette, the Cheonan, in 2010, and the bombardment of a South Korean Marine Corps installation on Yeonpyeong Island, also in 2010; since 2010, further minor incidents continue to occur periodically along the DMZ, where both the KPA and the South Korean military maintain large numbers of troops
in 2018, North Korea and South Korea signed a tension reduction agreement known as the Comprehensive Military Agreement (CMA), which established land, sea, and air buffer zones along the DMZ and the NLL; implementation of the CMA required the removal of some land mines and guard posts; the efforts led to a reduction of tension in the DMZ, but as of 2022 North Korea had failed to uphold much of its side of the agreement
the KPA was founded in 1948; Kim Jong Un is the KPA supreme commander, while operational control of the armed forces resides in the General Staff Department (GSD), which reports directly to Kim; the GSD maintains overall control of all military forces and is charged with turning Kim’s directives into operational military orders; the Ministry of National Defense (MND) is responsible for administrative control of the military and external relations with foreign militaries
as of 2022, North Korea’s growing ballistic missile program included close- (CRBM), short- (SRBM), medium- (MRBM), intermediate- (IRBM), and intercontinental- (ICBM) range ballistic missiles; the North received its first ballistic missiles, short-range FROGs (free rocket over ground), from the Soviet Union in the 1960s, but its modern ballistic missile program is generally thought to date back to the mid-1970s when it received a Soviet Scud-class missile, likely from Egypt; the North reverse-engineered the missile and developed an indigenously built version in 1984; it flight-tested its first Scud-based medium-range Nodong missile in 1990, and probably began development of the multi-stage Taepodong missiles around this time as well; the North revealed its first road-mobile ICBM in 2012 and conducted the first test of an ICBM-class system in 2017; it conducted additional ICBM tests in 2022
North Korea in the 2010s and 2020s has increasingly relied on illicit activities — including cybercrime — to generate revenue for its weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs to evade US and UN sanctions
" diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/ks.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/ks.json index db0f8858..a9dcc452 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/ks.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/ks.json @@ -907,7 +907,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "South Korean won (KRW) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1072,7 +1072,7 @@ }, "Telecommunication systems": { "general assessment": { - "text": "excellent domestic and international services featuring rapid incorporation of new technologies; exceedingly high mobile, mobile broadband, and fixed broadband penetration; strong support from government for initiatives; tech-savvy population has catapulted the nation into one of the world's most active telecommunication markets; all mobile operators offer 5G networks; Chinese telecom Huawei partnered with operators including launch of Seoul TechCity; import of integrated circuits, broadcasting equipment, and phones from China; government and private partnership on national e-commerce and smart city development (2020)" + "text": "South Korea is second only to Hong Kong in the world rankings of telecom market maturity; it is also on the leading edge of the latest telecom technology developments, including around 6G; and it is host to two of the world’s top equipment manufacturers in the form of Samsung and LG; with its highly urbanized, tech-savvy population, South Korea also enjoys very high communication levels across all segments – fixed-line telephony (44% at the start of 2022), fixed broadband (46%), mobile voice and data (144%), and mobile broadband (120%); the performance of the mobile sector is on a par with other developed markets around the region, but it’s the wire line segment that allows South Korea to stand out from the crowd; this is partly a reflection of the large proportion of its population who live in apartment buildings (around 60%), making fiber and apartment LAN connections relatively easy and cost-effective to deploy; the government’s Ultra Broadband convergence Network (UBcN) had aimed to reach 50% adoption by the end of 2022, but that target may be a few more years away;
Other:
Fighters of the Nation Party (Parti Pejuang Tanah Air) or Pejuang
Malaysian United Democratic Alliance or Muda
Progressive Democratic Party or PDP [TIONG King Sing]
Sabah Heritage Party (Parti Warisan Sabah) or WARISAN [SHAFIE Apdal]
Sarawak Parties Alliance (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) or GPS [ABANG JOHARI Openg] (includes PBB, SUPP, PRS, PDP)
Sarawak People's Party (Parti Rakyat Sarawak) or PRS [James MASING]
Sarawak United People's Party (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sarawak) or SUPP [Dr. SIM Kui Hian]
United Pasokmomogun Kadazandusun Murut Organization (Pertubuhan Pasko Momogun Kadazan Dusun Bersatu) or UPKO [Wilfred Madius TANGAU]
United Sabah Alliance or USA (Gabungan Sabah)
United Sabah Party (Parti Bersatu Sabah) or PBS [Maximus ONGKILI]
United Traditional Bumiputera Party (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersata) or PBB
Sarawak Parties Alliance (Gabungan Parti Sarawak) or GPS [ABANG JOHARI Openg]
United Traditional Bumiputera Party (Parti Pesaka Bumiputera Bersata) or PBB
Sarawak People's Party (Parti Rakyat Sarawak) or PRS [James MASING]
Progressive Democratic Party or PDP [TIONG King Sing]
Sarawak United People's Party (Parti Bersatu Rakyat Sarawak) or SUPP [Dr. SIM Kui Hian]
Other:
Sabah Heritage Party (Parti Warisan Sabah) or WARISAN [SHAFIE Apdal]
Fighters of the Nation Party (Parti Pejuang Tanah Air) or PEJUANG [Mukhris MAHATIR]
Sarawak Workers Party or PBM [Larry Sng Wei SHIEN]
Malaysian United Democratic Alliance or MUDA [Syed SADDIQ bin Syed Abdul Rahman]
United Sarawak Party (Parti Sarawak Bersatu) or PSB [WONG Soon Koh]
United Sabah Alliance or USA (Gabungan Sabah)
Malaysian United Indigenous Party (Parti Pribumi Bersatu Malaysia) or PPBM [Tan Sri MUHYIDDIN Yassin]
Papua New Guinea (PNG) was first settled between 50,000 and 60,000 years ago. PNG’s harsh geography consisting of mountains, jungles, and numerous river valleys, kept many of the arriving groups isolated, giving rise to PNG’s incredible ethnic and linguistic diversity. Agriculture was independently developed by some of these groups. Around 500 B.C., Austronesian voyagers settled along the coast. Spanish and Portuguese explorers periodically visited the island starting in the 1500s but none made it into the country’s interior. American and British whaling ships frequented the islands off the coast of New Guinea in the mid-1800s. In 1884, Germany declared a protectorate - and eventually a colony - over the northern part of what would become PNG and named it German New Guinea; days later the UK followed suit on the southern part and nearby islands and called it Papua. Most of their focus was on the coastal regions, leaving the highlands largely unexplored.
The UK put its colony under Australian administration in 1902 and formalized the act in 1906. At the outbreak of World War I, Australia occupied German New Guinea and continued to rule it after the war as a League of Nations Mandate. The discovery of gold along the Bulolo River in the 1920s, led prospectors to venture into the highlands, where they found about 1 million people living in isolated communities. Japan invaded New Guinea in 1941 and reached Papua the following year. Allied victories during the New Guinea campaign pushed out the Japanese, and after the end of the war, Australia combined the two territories into one administration. Sir Michael SOMARE won elections in 1972 on the promise of achieving independence, which was realized in 1975.
A secessionist movement in Bougainville, an island well endowed in copper and gold resources, reignited in 1988 with debates about land use, profits, and an influx of outsiders at the Panguna Copper Mine. Following elections in 1992, the PNG government took a hardline stance against Bougainville rebels and the resulting civil war led to about 20,000 deaths. In 1997, the PNG government hired mercenaries to support its troops in Bougainville, sparking an army mutiny and forcing the prime minister to resign. PNG and Bougainville signed a truce in 1997 and a peace agreement in 2001, which granted Bougainville autonomy. An internationally-monitored nonbinding referendum asking Bougainvilleans to chose independence or greater self rule occurred in November 2019, with 98% of voters opting for independence.
Papua New Guinea (PNG) was first settled between 50,000 and 60,000 years ago. PNG’s harsh geography consisting of mountains, jungles, and numerous river valleys, kept many of the arriving groups isolated, giving rise to PNG’s incredible ethnic and linguistic diversity. Agriculture was independently developed by some of these groups. Around 500 B.C., Austronesian voyagers settled along the coast. Spanish and Portuguese explorers periodically visited the island starting in the 1500s, but none made it into the country’s interior. American and British whaling ships frequented the islands off the coast of New Guinea in the mid-1800s. In 1884, Germany declared a protectorate - and eventually a colony - over the northern part of what would become PNG and named it German New Guinea; days later the UK followed suit on the southern part and nearby islands and called it Papua. Most of their focus was on the coastal regions, leaving the highlands largely unexplored.
The UK put its colony under Australian administration in 1902 and formalized the act in 1906. At the outbreak of World War I, Australia occupied German New Guinea and continued to rule it after the war as a League of Nations Mandate. The discovery of gold along the Bulolo River in the 1920s, led prospectors to venture into the highlands, where they found about 1 million people living in isolated communities. Japan invaded New Guinea in 1941 and reached Papua the following year. Allied victories during the New Guinea campaign pushed out the Japanese, and after the end of the war, Australia combined the two territories into one administration. Sir Michael SOMARE won elections in 1972 on the promise of achieving independence, which was realized in 1975.
A secessionist movement in Bougainville, an island well endowed in copper and gold resources, reignited in 1988 with debates about land use, profits, and an influx of outsiders at the Panguna Copper Mine. Following elections in 1992, the PNG Government took a hardline stance against Bougainville rebels and the resulting civil war led to about 20,000 deaths. In 1997, the PNG Government hired mercenaries to support its troops in Bougainville, sparking an army mutiny and forcing the prime minister to resign. PNG and Bougainville signed a truce in 1997 and a peace agreement in 2001, which granted Bougainville autonomy. An internationally-monitored nonbinding referendum asking Bougainvilleans to chose independence or greater self-rule occurred in November 2019, with 98% of voters opting for independence.
The Philippine Islands became a Spanish colony during the 16th century; they were ceded to the US in 1898 following the Spanish-American War. In 1935 the Philippines became a self-governing commonwealth. Manuel QUEZON was elected president and was tasked with preparing the country for independence after a 10-year transition. In 1942 the islands fell under Japanese occupation during World War II, and US forces and Filipinos fought together during 1944-45 to regain control. On 4 July 1946 the Republic of the Philippines attained its independence. A 21-year rule by Ferdinand MARCOS ended in 1986, when a \"people power\" movement in Manila (\"EDSA 1\") forced him into exile and installed Corazon AQUINO as president. Her presidency was hampered by several coup attempts that prevented a return to full political stability and economic development. Fidel RAMOS was elected president in 1992. His administration was marked by increased stability and by progress on economic reforms. In 1992, the US closed its last military bases on the islands. Joseph ESTRADA was elected president in 1998. He was succeeded by his vice-president, Gloria MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, in January 2001 after ESTRADA's stormy impeachment trial on corruption charges broke down and another \"people power\" movement (\"EDSA 2\") demanded his resignation. MACAPAGAL-ARROYO was elected to a six-year term as president in May 2004. Her presidency was marred by several corruption allegations but the Philippine economy was one of the few to avoid contraction following the 2008 global financial crisis, expanding each year of her administration. Benigno AQUINO III was elected to a six-year term as president in May 2010 and was succeeded by Rodrigo DUTERTE in May 2016.
The Philippine Government faces threats from several groups, some of which are on the US Government's Foreign Terrorist Organization list. Manila has waged a decades-long struggle against ethnic Moro insurgencies in the southern Philippines, which led to a peace accord with the Moro National Liberation Front and a separate agreement with a break away faction, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The decades-long Maoist-inspired New People's Army insurgency also operates through much of the country. In 2017, Philippine armed forces battled an ISIS-East Asia siege in Marawi City, driving DUTERTE to declare martial law in the region. The Philippines faces increased tension with China over disputed territorial and maritime claims in the South China Sea.
" + "text": "The Philippine Islands became a Spanish colony during the 16th century; they were ceded to the US in 1898 following the Spanish-American War. In 1935 the Philippines became a self-governing commonwealth. Manuel QUEZON was elected president and was tasked with preparing the country for independence after a 10-year transition. In 1942 the islands fell under Japanese occupation during World War II, and US forces and Filipinos fought together during 1944-45 to regain control. On 4 July 1946 the Republic of the Philippines attained its independence. A 21-year rule by Ferdinand MARCOS ended in 1986, when a \"people power\" movement in Manila (\"EDSA 1\") forced him into exile and installed Corazon AQUINO as president. Her presidency was hampered by several coup attempts that prevented a return to full political stability and economic development. Fidel RAMOS was elected president in 1992. His administration was marked by increased stability and by progress on economic reforms. In 1992, the US closed its last military bases on the islands. Joseph ESTRADA was elected president in 1998. He was succeeded by his vice-president, Gloria MACAPAGAL-ARROYO, in January 2001 after ESTRADA's stormy impeachment trial on corruption charges broke down and another \"people power\" movement (\"EDSA 2\") demanded his resignation. MACAPAGAL-ARROYO was elected to a six-year term as president in May 2004. Her presidency was marred by several corruption allegations, but the Philippine economy was one of the few to avoid contraction following the 2008 global financial crisis, expanding each year of her administration. Benigno AQUINO III was elected to a six-year term as president in May 2010 and was succeeded by Rodrigo DUTERTE in May 2016.
The Philippine Government faces threats from several groups, some of which are on the US Government's Foreign Terrorist Organization list. Manila has waged a decades-long struggle against ethnic Moro insurgencies in the southern Philippines, which led to a peace accord with the Moro National Liberation Front and a separate agreement with a break away faction, the Moro Islamic Liberation Front. The decades-long Maoist-inspired New People's Army insurgency also operates through much of the country. In 2017, Philippine armed forces battled an ISIS-East Asia siege in Marawi City, driving DUTERTE to declare martial law in the region. The Philippines faces increased tension with China over disputed territorial and maritime claims in the South China Sea.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -693,7 +693,7 @@ "text": "6 (3 cultural, 3 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Baroque Churches of the Philippines (c), Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park (n), Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras (c), Historic Vigan (c), Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park (n), Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary (n)" + "text": "Baroque Churches of the Philippines (c); Tubbataha Reefs Natural Park (n); Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras (c); Historic Vigan (c); Puerto-Princesa Subterranean River National Park (n); Mount Hamiguitan Range Wildlife Sanctuary (n)" } } }, @@ -937,7 +937,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Philippine pesos (PHP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1252,7 +1252,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP): Army, Navy (includes Marine Corps), Air Force (2021)", - "note": "note(s) - the Philippine Coast Guard is an armed and uniformed service under the Department of Transportation; it would be attached to the AFP in wartime; the Philippine National Police Force (PNP) falls under the Department of the Interiorthe US and Philippines agreed to a mutual defense treaty in 1951; the Philippines has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US; MNNA is a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation; while MNNA status provides military and economic privileges, it does not entail any security commitments
as of 2022, the AFP's primary air and ground operational focus was on internal security duties, particularly in the south, where several separatist insurgent and terrorist groups operated and up to 60% of the armed forces were deployed; additional combat operations were being conducted against the Communist Peoples Party/New People’s Army, which was active mostly on Luzon, the Visayas, and areas of MindanaoTwo unified Thai kingdoms emerged in the mid-13th century. The Sukhothai, located in the south-central plains, gained its independence from the Khmer empire to the east. By the late 13th century, Sukhothai’s territory extended into present-day Burma and Laos. Sukhotai lasted until the mid-15th century. The Thai Lan Na kingdom was established in the north with its capital at Chang Mai. Lan Na was conquered by the Burmese in the 16th century. The Ayutthaya kingdom (14th-18th centuries) succeeded the Sukhothai and would become known as the Siamese Kingdom. During the Ayutthaya period, the Thai/Siamese peoples consolidated their hold on what is present-day central and north-central Thailand. Following a military defeat at the hands of the Burmese in 1767, the Siamese Kingdom rose to new heights under the military ruler TAKSIN, who defeated the Burmese occupiers and expanded the kingdom’s territory into modern-day northern Thailand (formerly the Lan Na kingdom), Cambodia, Laos, and the Malay Peninsula. The kingdom fought off additional Burmese invasions and raids in the late 1700s and early 1800s. In the mid-1800s, Western pressure led to Siam signing trade treaties that reduced the country’s sovereignty and independence. In the 1890s and 1900s, the British and French forced the kingdom to cede Cambodian, Laotian, and Malay territories that had been under Siamese control.
A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy. After the Japanese invaded Thailand in 1941, the government split into a pro-Japan faction and a pro-Ally faction backed by the king. Following the war, Thailand became a US treaty ally in 1954 after sending troops to Korea and later fighting alongside the US in Vietnam. Thailand since 2005 has experienced several rounds of political turmoil including a military coup in 2006 that ousted then Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat, followed by large-scale street protests by competing political factions in 2008, 2009, and 2010. THAKSIN's youngest sister, YINGLAK Chinnawat, in 2011 led the Puea Thai Party to an electoral win and assumed control of the government.
In early May 2014, after months of large-scale anti-government protests in Bangkok beginning in November 2013, YINGLAK was removed from office by the Constitutional Court and in late May 2014 the Royal Thai Army, led by Royal Thai Army Gen. PRAYUT Chan-ocha, staged a coup against the caretaker government. The military-affiliated National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), led by PRAYUT as the appointed minister, ruled the country for more than four years, during which time the NCPO drafted a new constitution guaranteeing military sway over Thai politics in future elections by allowing the military to appoint the entire 250 member Senate and requiring a joint meeting of the House and Senate to select the prime minister, effectively giving the military a veto over the top executive. King PHUMIPHON Adunyadet passed away in October 2016 after 70 years on the throne; his only son, WACHIRALONGKON Bodinthrathepphayawarangkun (aka King Rama X), ascended the throne in December 2016. He signed the new constitution in April 2017. A long-delayed election in March 2019, disputed and widely viewed as skewed in favor of the party aligned with the military, allowed PRAYUT to continue his premiership. The country experienced large-scale pro-democracy protests in 2020.
" + "text": "Two unified Thai kingdoms emerged in the mid-13th century. The Sukhothai, located in the south-central plains, gained its independence from the Khmer Empire to the east. By the late 13th century, Sukhothai’s territory extended into present-day Burma and Laos. Sukhotai lasted until the mid-15th century. The Thai Lan Na Kingdom was established in the north with its capital at Chang Mai. Lan Na was conquered by the Burmese in the 16th century. The Ayutthaya Kingdom (14th-18th centuries) succeeded the Sukhothai and would become known as the Siamese Kingdom. During the Ayutthaya period, the Thai/Siamese peoples consolidated their hold on what is present-day central and north-central Thailand. Following a military defeat at the hands of the Burmese in 1767, the Siamese Kingdom rose to new heights under the military ruler TAKSIN, who defeated the Burmese occupiers and expanded the kingdom’s territory into modern-day northern Thailand (formerly the Lan Na Kingdom), Cambodia, Laos, and the Malay Peninsula. The kingdom fought off additional Burmese invasions and raids in the late 1700s and early 1800s. In the mid-1800s, Western pressure led to Siam signing trade treaties that reduced the country’s sovereignty and independence. In the 1890s and 1900s, the British and French forced the kingdom to cede Cambodian, Laotian, and Malay territories that had been under Siamese control.
A bloodless revolution in 1932 led to the establishment of a constitutional monarchy. After the Japanese invaded Thailand in 1941, the government split into a pro-Japan faction and a pro-Ally faction backed by the king. Following the war, Thailand became a US treaty ally in 1954 after sending troops to Korea and later fighting alongside the US in Vietnam. Thailand since 2005 has experienced several rounds of political turmoil including a military coup in 2006 that ousted then Prime Minister THAKSIN Chinnawat, followed by large-scale street protests by competing political factions in 2008, 2009, and 2010. THAKSIN's youngest sister, YINGLAK Chinnawat, in 2011 led the Puea Thai Party to an electoral win and assumed control of the government.
In early May 2014, after months of large-scale anti-government protests in Bangkok beginning in November 2013, YINGLAK was removed from office by the Constitutional Court and in late May 2014 the Royal Thai Army, led by Royal Thai Army Gen. PRAYUT Chan-ocha, staged a coup against the caretaker government. The military-affiliated National Council for Peace and Order (NCPO), led by PRAYUT as the appointed minister, ruled the country for more than four years, during which time the NCPO drafted a new constitution guaranteeing military sway over Thai politics in future elections by allowing the military to appoint the entire 250-member Senate and requiring a joint meeting of the House and Senate to select the prime minister, effectively giving the military a veto over the top executive. King PHUMIPHON Adunyadet passed away in October 2016 after 70 years on the throne; his only son, WACHIRALONGKON Bodinthrathepphayawarangkun (aka King RAMA X), ascended the throne in December 2016. He signed the new constitution in April 2017. A long-delayed election in March 2019, disputed and widely viewed as skewed in favor of the party aligned with the military, allowed PRAYUT to continue his premiership. The country experienced large-scale pro-democracy protests in 2020.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -704,7 +704,7 @@ "text": "6 (3 cultural, 3 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Historic City of Ayutthaya (c), Historic Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns (c), Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuaries (n), Ban Chiang Archaeological Site (c), Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex (n), Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex (n)" + "text": "Historic City of Ayutthaya (c); Historic Sukhothai and Associated Historic Towns (c); Thungyai-Huai Kha Khaeng Wildlife Sanctuaries (n); Ban Chiang Archaeological Site (c); Dong Phayayen-Khao Yai Forest Complex (n); Kaeng Krachan Forest Complex (n)" } } }, @@ -949,7 +949,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "baht per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1257,8 +1257,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "Royal Thai Armed Forces (Kongthap Thai, RTARF): Royal Thai Army (Kongthap Bok Thai, RTA), Royal Thai Navy (Kongthap Ruea Thai, RTN; includes Royal Thai Marine Corps), Royal Thai Air Force (Kongthap Akaat Thai, RTAF); Office of the Prime Minister: Royal Thai Police; Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC; oversees counter-insurgency operations, as well as countering terrorism, narcotics and weapons trafficking, and other internal security duties; primarily run by the Army) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - official paramilitary forces in Thailand include the Thai Rangers (Thahan Phran or \"Hunter Soldiers\") under the Army; the Paramilitary Marines under the Navy; the Border Patrol Police (BPP) under the Royal Thai Police; the Volunteer Defense Corps (VDC or O So) and National Defense Volunteers (NDV), both under the Ministry of Interior; there are also several government-backed volunteer militias created to provide village security against insurgents in the deep south or to assist the ISOC" + "text": "Royal Thai Armed Forces (Kongthap Thai, RTARF): Royal Thai Army (Kongthap Bok Thai, RTA), Royal Thai Navy (Kongthap Ruea Thai, RTN; includes Royal Thai Marine Corps), Royal Thai Air Force (Kongthap Akaat Thai, RTAF); Office of the Prime Minister: Royal Thai Police; Internal Security Operations Command (ISOC) (2022)", + "note": "note 1: the ISOC oversees counter-insurgency operations, as well as countering terrorism, narcotics and weapons trafficking, and other internal security duties; it is primarily run by the ArmyTimor was actively involved in Southeast Asian trading networks for centuries and by the 14th century exported aromatic sandalwood, slaves, honey, and wax. A number of local chiefdoms ruled the island in the early 16th century when Portuguese traders arrived, chiefly attracted by the relative abundance of sandalwood on Timor; by mid century, the Portuguese had colonized the island. Skirmishing with the Dutch in the region eventually resulted in an 1859 treaty in which Portugal ceded the western portion of the island. Imperial Japan occupied Portuguese Timor from 1942 to 1945, but Portugal resumed colonial authority after the Japanese defeat in World War II. East Timor declared itself independent from Portugal on 28 November 1975 and was invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces nine days later. It was incorporated into Indonesia in July 1976 as the province of Timor Timur (East Timor). An unsuccessful campaign of pacification followed over the next two decades, during which an estimated 100,000 to 250,000 people died. In an August 1999 UN-supervised popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of Timor-Leste voted for independence from Indonesia. However, in the next three weeks, anti-independence Timorese militias - organized and supported by the Indonesian military - commenced a large-scale, scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed approximately 1,400 Timorese and displaced nearly 500,000. Most of the country's infrastructure, including homes, irrigation systems, water supply systems, and schools, and nearly all of the country's electrical grid were destroyed. On 20 September 1999, Australian-led peacekeeping troops deployed to the country and brought the violence to an end. On 20 May 2002, Timor-Leste was internationally recognized as an independent state.
In 2006, internal tensions threatened the new nation's security when a military strike led to violence and a breakdown of law and order. At Dili's request, an Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) deployed to Timor-Leste, and the UN Security Council established the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT), which included an authorized police presence of over 1,600 personnel. The ISF and UNMIT restored stability, allowing for presidential and parliamentary elections in 2007 in a largely peaceful atmosphere. In February 2008, a rebel group staged an unsuccessful attack against the president and prime minister. The ringleader was killed in the attack, and most of the rebels surrendered in April 2008. Since the attack, the government has enjoyed one of its longest periods of post-independence stability, including successful 2012 elections for both the parliament and president and a successful transition of power in February 2015. In late 2012, the UN Security Council ended its peacekeeping mission in Timor-Leste and both the ISF and UNMIT departed the country.
" + "text": "Timor was actively involved in Southeast Asian trading networks for centuries, and by the 14th century exported aromatic sandalwood, slaves, honey, and wax. A number of local chiefdoms ruled the island in the early 16th century when Portuguese traders arrived, chiefly attracted by the relative abundance of sandalwood on Timor; by mid-century, the Portuguese had colonized the island. Skirmishing with the Dutch in the region eventually resulted in an 1859 treaty in which Portugal ceded the western portion of the island. Imperial Japan occupied Portuguese Timor from 1942 to 1945, but Portugal resumed colonial authority after the Japanese defeat in World War II. East Timor declared itself independent from Portugal on 28 November 1975 and was invaded and occupied by Indonesian forces nine days later. It was incorporated into Indonesia in July 1976 as the province of Timor Timur (East Timor). An unsuccessful campaign of pacification followed over the next two decades, during which an estimated 100,000 to 250,000 people died. In an August 1999 UN-supervised popular referendum, an overwhelming majority of the people of Timor-Leste voted for independence from Indonesia. However, in the next three weeks, anti-independence Timorese militias - organized and supported by the Indonesian military - commenced a large-scale, scorched-earth campaign of retribution. The militias killed approximately 1,400 Timorese and displaced nearly 500,000. Most of the country's infrastructure, including homes, irrigation systems, water supply systems, and schools, and nearly all of the country's electrical grid were destroyed. On 20 September 1999, Australian-led peacekeeping troops deployed to the country and brought the violence to an end. On 20 May 2002, Timor-Leste was internationally recognized as an independent state.
In 2006, internal tensions threatened the new nation's security when a military strike led to violence and a breakdown of law and order. At Dili's request, an Australian-led International Stabilization Force (ISF) deployed to Timor-Leste, and the UN Security Council established the UN Integrated Mission in Timor-Leste (UNMIT), which included an authorized police presence of over 1,600 personnel. The ISF and UNMIT restored stability, allowing for presidential and parliamentary elections in 2007 in a largely peaceful atmosphere. In February 2008, a rebel group staged an unsuccessful attack against the president and prime minister. The ringleader was killed in the attack, and most of the rebels surrendered in April 2008. Since the attack, the government has enjoyed one of its longest periods of post-independence stability, including successful 2012 elections for both the National Parliament and president and a successful transition of power in February 2015. In late 2012, the UN Security Council ended its peacekeeping mission in Timor-Leste and both the ISF and UNMIT departed the country.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -484,10 +484,10 @@ "text": "Timor-Leste" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Republika Demokratika Timor Lorosa'e [Tetum]; Republica Democratica de Timor-Leste [Portuguese]" + "text": "Republika Demokratika Timor Lorosa'e (Tetum)/ Republica Democratica de Timor-Leste (Portuguese)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Timor Lorosa'e [Tetum]; Timor-Leste [Portuguese]" + "text": "Timor Lorosa'e (Tetum)/ Timor-Leste (Portuguese)" }, "former": { "text": "East Timor, Portuguese Timor" diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/tw.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/tw.json index 1f1c9ec7..9737e734 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/tw.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/tw.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "First inhabited by Austronesian people, Taiwan became home to Han immigrants beginning in the late Ming Dynasty (17th century). In 1895, military defeat forced China's Qing Dynasty to cede Taiwan to Japan, which then governed Taiwan for 50 years. Taiwan came under Chinese Nationalist (Kuomintang, KMT) control after World War II. With the communist victory in the Chinese civil war in 1949, the Nationalist-controlled Republic of China government and 2 million Nationalists fled to Taiwan and continued to claim to be the legitimate government for mainland China and Taiwan based on a 1947 Constitution drawn up for all of China. Until 1987, however, the Nationalist government ruled Taiwan under a civil war martial law declaration dating to 1948. Beginning in the 1970s, Nationalist authorities gradually began to incorporate the native population into the governing structure beyond the local level. The democratization process expanded rapidly in the 1980s, leading to the then illegal founding of Taiwan’s first opposition party (the Democratic Progressive Party or DPP) in 1986 and the lifting of martial law the following year. Taiwan held legislative elections in 1992, the first in over forty years, and its first direct presidential election in 1996. In the 2000 presidential elections, Taiwan underwent its first peaceful transfer of power with the KMT loss to the DPP and afterwards experienced two additional democratic transfers of power in 2008 and 2016. Throughout this period, the island prospered, became one of East Asia's economic \"Tigers,\" and after 2000 became a major investor in mainland China as cross-Strait ties matured. The dominant political issues continue to be economic reform and growth as well as management of sensitive relations between Taiwan and China." + "text": "First inhabited by Austronesian people, Taiwan became home to Han immigrants beginning in the late Ming Dynasty (17th century). In 1895, military defeat forced China's Qing Dynasty to cede Taiwan to Japan, which then governed Taiwan for 50 years. Taiwan came under Chinese Nationalist (Kuomintang, KMT) control after World War II. With the communist victory in the Chinese civil war in 1949, the Nationalist-controlled Republic of China government and 2 million Nationalists fled to Taiwan and continued to claim to be the legitimate government for mainland China and Taiwan based on a 1947 constitution drawn up for all of China. Until 1987, however, the Nationalist Government ruled Taiwan under a civil war martial law declaration dating to 1948. Beginning in the 1970s, Nationalist authorities gradually began to incorporate the native population into the governing structure beyond the local level. The democratization process expanded rapidly in the 1980s, leading to the then illegal founding of the Democratic Progressive Party (DPP), Taiwan’s first opposition party, in 1986 and the lifting of martial law the following year. Taiwan held legislative elections in 1992, the first in over forty years, and its first direct presidential election in 1996. In the 2000 presidential elections, Taiwan underwent its first peaceful transfer of power with the KMT loss to the DPP and afterwards experienced two additional democratic transfers of power in 2008 and 2016. Throughout this period, the island prospered, became one of East Asia's economic \"Tigers,\" and after 2000 became a major investor in mainland China as cross-Strait ties matured. The dominant political issues continue to be economic reform and growth as well as management of sensitive relations between Taiwan and China." } }, "Geography": { @@ -24,7 +24,7 @@ "water": { "text": "3,720 sq km" }, - "note": "note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Quemoy islands" + "note": "note: includes the Pescadores, Matsu, and Kinmen islands" }, "Area - comparative": { "text": "slightly smaller than Maryland and Delaware combined" @@ -437,7 +437,7 @@ "text": "President TSAI Ing-wen (since 20 May 2016; re-elected on 11 Jan 2020); Vice President LAI Ching-te (since 20 May 2020)" }, "head of government": { - "text": "Premier SU Tseng-chang (President of the Executive Yuan) (since 11 January 2019); Vice Premier SHEN Jong-chin, Vice President of the Executive Yuan (since 19 June 2020)" + "text": "Premier SU Tseng-chang (President of the Executive Yuan) (since 11 January 2019); Vice Premier SHEN Jong-chin (Vice President of the Executive Yuan) (since 19 June 2020)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Executive Yuan - ministers appointed by president on recommendation of premier" @@ -754,7 +754,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "New Taiwan dollars (TWD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1070,14 +1070,14 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "the Taiwan military has approximately 170,000 active duty troops (90,000 Army; 40,000 Navy, including approximately 10,000 marines; 40,000 Air Force) (2021)", - "note": "note - Taiwan trains about 120,000 reservists annually, but in 2022 announced intentions to increase that figure to 260,000" + "note": "note: Taiwan trains about 120,000 reservists annually, but in 2022 announced intentions to increase that figure to 260,000" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the Taiwan military is armed mostly with second-hand weapons and equipment provided by the US; since 2010, the US continued to be the largest provider of arms; Taiwan also has a domestic defense industry capable of building and upgrading a range of weapons systems, including surface naval craft and submarines (2021)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "starting with those born in 1994, males 18-36 years of age may volunteer for military service or must complete 4 months of compulsory military training (5 weeks of basic training followed by 11 weeks of specialized training with field units); civil service can be substituted for military service in some cases; men born before December 1993 are required to complete compulsory service for 1 year (military or civil); men are subject to training recalls up to four times for periods not to exceed 20 days for 8 years after discharge; women may enlist, but are restricted to noncombat roles in most cases; as part of its transition to an all-volunteer military in December 2018, the last cohort of one-year military conscripts completed their service obligations (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2021, women made up about 15% of the active duty military" + "note": "note: as of 2021, women made up about 15% of the active duty military" }, "Military - note": { "text": "the US Taiwan Relations Act of April 1979 states that the US shall provide Taiwan with arms of a defensive character and shall maintain the capacity of the US to resist any resort to force or other forms of coercion that would jeopardize the security, or social or economic system, of the people of Taiwan (2022)" diff --git a/east-n-southeast-asia/vm.json b/east-n-southeast-asia/vm.json index 033871e8..4c7d75b2 100644 --- a/east-n-southeast-asia/vm.json +++ b/east-n-southeast-asia/vm.json @@ -683,7 +683,7 @@ "text": "8 (5 cultural, 2 natural, 1 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Complex of Hué Monuments (c), Ha Long Bay (n), Hoi An Ancient Town (c), My Son Sanctuary (c), Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park (n), Imperial Citadel of Thang Long - Hanoi (c), Citadel of the Ho Dynasty (c), Trang An Landscape Complex (m)" + "text": "Complex of Hué Monuments (c); Ha Long Bay (n); Hoi An Ancient Town (c); My Son Sanctuary (c); Phong Nha-Ke Bang National Park (n); Imperial Citadel of Thang Long - Hanoi (c); Citadel of the Ho Dynasty (c); Trang An Landscape Complex (m)" } } }, @@ -925,7 +925,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "dong (VND) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1234,7 +1234,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "People's Army of Vietnam (PAVN; aka Vietnam People's Army, VPA): Ground Forces, Navy (includes naval infantry), Air Force and Air Defense, Border Defense Force, and Vietnam Coast Guard; Vietnam People's Public Security Ministry; Vietnam Civil Defense Force (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Public Security Ministry is responsible for internal security and controls the national police, a special national security investigative agency, and other internal security units; the Vietnam Coast Guard was established in 1998 as the Vietnam Marine Police and renamed in 2013; Vietnam officially established a maritime self-defense force (civilian militia) in 2010 after the National Assembly passed the Law on Militia and Self-Defense Forces in 2009; the Vietnam Fisheries Resources Surveillance (VFRS), established in 2013, is responsible for patrolling, monitoring for fishing violations, and carrying out fishery inspections; it is armed, allowed to use force if necessary, and works in tandem with the Vietnam Coast Guard" + "note": "note 1: the Public Security Ministry is responsible for internal security and controls the national police, a special national security investigative agency, and other internal security unitsSenate - last held 26 May 2019 (next to be held in 2024)
Chamber of Representatives - last held on 26 May 2019 (next to be held in 2024); note - elections coincided with the EU elections" }, "election results": { - "text": "in 2018, the Defense Ministers of Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the creation of a Composite Special Operations Component Command (C-SOCC); the C-SOCC was declared operational in December 2020
" @@ -1247,7 +1247,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "18,493 (Syria), 5,094 (Iraq) (2020); 50,789 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "18,493 (Syria), 5,094 (Iraq) (2020); 52,038 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "1,159 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/bk.json b/europe/bk.json index 9c3766cf..f729d71c 100644 --- a/europe/bk.json +++ b/europe/bk.json @@ -584,7 +584,7 @@ } }, "Political parties and leaders": { - "text": "Alliance for a Better Future of BiH or SBB BiH [Fahrudin RADONCIC]the Armed Forces of Bosnia and Herzegovina (AFBiH) are comprised of the former Bosnian-Croat Army of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (Vojska Federacije Bosne i Hercegovin, VF) and the Bosnian-Serb Republic of Serbia Army (Vojska Republike Srpske, VRS); the two forces were unified under the 2003 Law on Defense, which also established the country’s Ministry of Defense
the European Union Force Bosnia and Herzegovina (EUFOR) has operated in the country to oversee implementation of the Dayton/Paris Agreement since taking over from NATO's Stabilization Force (SFOR) in 2004; in addition to its security mission, EUFOR supports the overall EU comprehensive strategy for Bosnia and Herzegovina and the efforts of the AFBiH to attain NATO standards; as of 2022, it had about 600 troops from 19 countries
Bosnia and Herzegovina joined NATO’s Partnership for Peace (PfP) program in 2007 and was invited to join NATO’s Membership Action Plan in 2010; as of 2022, NATO maintained a military headquarters in Sarajevo with the mission of assisting Bosnia and Herzegovina with the PfP program and promoting closer integration with NATO, as well as providing logistics and other support to EUFOR
" diff --git a/europe/bo.json b/europe/bo.json index 034e60df..633bc1b4 100644 --- a/europe/bo.json +++ b/europe/bo.json @@ -489,10 +489,10 @@ "text": "Belarus" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Respublika Byelarus'/Respublika Belarus'" + "text": "Respublika Byelarus' (Belarusian)/ Respublika Belarus' (Russian)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Byelarus'/Belarus'" + "text": "Byelarus' (Belarusian)/ Belarus' (Russian)" }, "former": { "text": "Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic" @@ -907,7 +907,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Belarusian rubles (BYB/BYR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1209,7 +1209,7 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "Belarus Armed Forces: Army, Air and Air Defense Force, Special Operations Force, Special Troops (electronic warfare, signals, engineers, biological/chemical/nuclear protection troops, etc); Ministry of Interior: State Border Troops, Militia, Internal Troops (2021)" + "text": "Belarus Armed Forces: Army, Air and Air Defense Force, Special Operations Force, Special Troops (electronic warfare, signals, engineers, biological/chemical/nuclear protection troops, etc); Ministry of Interior: State Border Troops, Militia, Internal Troops (2022)" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1236,7 +1236,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-27 years of age for compulsory military or alternative service; conscript service obligation is 12-18 months, depending on academic qualifications, and 24-36 months for alternative service, depending on academic qualifications; 17-year-olds are eligible to become cadets at military higher education institutes, where they are classified as military personnel (2021)", - "note": "note - conscripts can be assigned to the military, as well as the Ministry of Interior as internal or border troops; as of 2020, conscripts comprised an estimated 40% of the military" + "note": "note: conscripts can be assigned to the military, as well as the Ministry of Interior as internal or border troops; as of 2020, conscripts comprised an estimated 40% of the military" }, "Military - note": { "text": "
Belarus has close security ties with Russia, including an integrated air and missile defense system, joint training exercises, and the establishment of three joint training centers since 2020 (1 in Belarus, 2 in Russia); Russia is the principal supplier of arms to Belarus, and Belarusian troops reportedly train on Russian equipment; Russia leases from Belarus a strategic ballistic missile defense site operated by Russian Aerospace Forces and a global communications facility for the Russian Navy; in 2020, the countries signed an agreement allowing for close security cooperation between the Belarusian Ministry of Interior and the Russian National Guard, including protecting public order and key government facilities, and combating extremism and terrorism; in 2022, Belarus allowed Russian military forces to stage on its territory during its invasion of Ukraine
Belarus has been a member of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) since 1994 and contributes an airborne brigade to CSTO's rapid reaction force (KSOR)
the EU's Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP) provides the civilian, military, and political structures for EU crisis management and security issues; the highest bodies are:
the Political and Security Committee (PSC), which meets at the ambassadorial level as a preparatory body for the Council of the EU; it assists with defining policies and preparing a crisis response
the European Union Military Committee (EUMC) is the EU's highest military body; it is composed of the chiefs of defense (CHODs) of the Member States, who are regularly represented by their permanent Military Representatives; the EUMC provides the PSC with advice and recommendations on all military matters within the EU
the Committee for Civilian Aspects of Crisis Management (CIVCOM) provides advice and recommendations to the PSC in parallel with the EUMC on civilian aspects of crisis management
the Politico-Military Group (PMG) provides advice and recommendations to the PSC on political aspects of EU military and civil-military issues, including concepts, capabilities and operations and missions, and monitors implementation
other bodies set up under the CSDP include; the Security and Defense Policy Directorate (SECDEFPOL), the Integrated approach for Security and Peace Directorate (ISP), the EU Military Staff (EUMS), the Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability (CPCC), the Military Planning and Conduct Capability (MPCC), the European Defense Agency, the European Security and Defense College (ESDC), the EU Institute for Security Studies, and the EU Satellite Center (2021)
" + "text": "the EU's Common Security and Defense Policy (CSDP) provides the civilian, military, and political structures for EU crisis management and security issues; the highest bodies are:
the Political and Security Committee (PSC), which meets at the ambassadorial level as a preparatory body for the Council of the EU; it assists with defining policies and preparing a crisis response
the European Union Military Committee (EUMC) is the EU's highest military body; it is composed of the chiefs of defense (CHODs) of the Member States, who are regularly represented by their permanent Military Representatives; the EUMC provides the PSC with advice and recommendations on all military matters within the EU
the Committee for Civilian Aspects of Crisis Management (CIVCOM) provides advice and recommendations to the PSC in parallel with the EUMC on civilian aspects of crisis management
the Politico-Military Group (PMG) provides advice and recommendations to the PSC on political aspects of EU military and civil-military issues, including concepts, capabilities and operations and missions, and monitors implementation
other bodies set up under the CSDP include; the Security and Defense Policy Directorate (SECDEFPOL), the Integrated approach for Security and Peace Directorate (ISP), the EU Military Staff (EUMS), the Civilian Planning and Conduct Capability (CPCC), the Military Planning and Conduct Capability (MPCC), the European Defense Agency, the European Security and Defense College (ESDC), the EU Institute for Security Studies, and the EU Satellite Center (2022)
" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2020": { @@ -843,7 +843,7 @@ "text": "since 2003, the EU has launched more than 30 civilian and military crisis-management, advisory, and training missions in Africa, Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, as well as counter-piracy operations off the coast of Somalia and a naval operation in the Mediterranean to disrupt human smuggling and trafficking networks and prevent the loss of life at sea (2022)" }, "Military - note": { - "text": "EU Battlegroups are rapid reaction multinational military units that form a key part of the EU's capacity to respond to emerging crises and conflicts; their deployment is subject to a unanimous decision by the EU Council; the core of a battlegroup typically consists of one infantry battalion (about 1,500 troops) reinforced with combat and combat service support units; the composition of the supporting units may differ depending on the mission; the troops and equipment are drawn from EU member states and under the direction of a lead nation; 2 battlegroups are always on standby for a period of 6 months; the battlegroups were declared operational in 2007, but have never been used operationally due to political and financial obstacles
the EU partners with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO); NATO is an alliance of 30 countries from North America and Europe; its role is to safeguard the security of its member countries by political and military means; NATO conducts crisis management and peacekeeping missions; member countries that participate in the military aspect of the Alliance contribute forces and equipment, which remain under national command and control until a time when they are required by NATO for a specific purpose (i.e. conflict or crisis, peacekeeping); NATO, however, does possess some common capabilities owned and operated by the Alliance, such as some early warning radar aircraft; relations between NATO and the EU were institutionalized in the early 2000s, building on steps taken during the 1990s to promote greater European responsibility in defense matters; cooperation and coordination covers a broad array of issues, including crisis management, defense and political consultations, civil preparedness, capacity building, military capabilities, maritime security, planning, cyber defense, countering hybrid threats, information sharing, logistics, defense industry, counterterrorism, etc.; NATO and the EU have 21 member countries in common
Eurocorps, which supports both the EU and NATO, was formally established in 1992 and activated the following year; it originated in 1987 with the French-German Brigade; Belgium (1993), Spain (1994), and Luxembourg (1996) joined over the next few years; five additional countries participate in Eurocorps as associated nations: Greece, Poland, and Turkey (since 2002), Italy and Romania (since 2009 and 2016 respectively); Eurocorps is headquartered in Strasbourg, France
since 2017, Estonia has hosted a UK-led multi-national NATO ground force battlegroup as part of the Alliance’s Enhanced Forward Presence initiative
NATO also has provided air protection for Estonia since 2004 through its Air Policing mission; NATO member countries that possess air combat capabilities voluntarily contribute to the mission on 4-month rotations; NATO fighter aircraft have been hosted at Estonia’s Ämari Air Base since 2014
(2022)" @@ -1240,7 +1240,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "45,935 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "47,310 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "71,873 (mid-year 2021); note - following independence in 1991, automatic citizenship was restricted to those who were Estonian citizens prior to the 1940 Soviet occupation and their descendants; thousands of ethnic Russians remained stateless when forced to choose between passing Estonian language and citizenship tests or applying for Russian citizenship; one reason for demurring on Estonian citizenship was to retain the right of visa-free travel to Russia; stateless residents can vote in local elections but not general elections; stateless parents who have been lawful residents of Estonia for at least five years can apply for citizenship for their children before they turn 15 years old" diff --git a/europe/ez.json b/europe/ez.json index 3763a30a..c75a388d 100644 --- a/europe/ez.json +++ b/europe/ez.json @@ -896,7 +896,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "koruny (CZK) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1218,7 +1218,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-28 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; conscription abolished 2004 (2021)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women comprised about 13% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note: as of 2019, women comprised about 13% of the military's full-time personnel" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "up to 130 Lithuania (NATO) (2022)", @@ -1234,7 +1234,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "391,856 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "400,559 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "1,498 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/fi.json b/europe/fi.json index 86b75c19..f9240502 100644 --- a/europe/fi.json +++ b/europe/fi.json @@ -488,10 +488,10 @@ "text": "Finland" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Suomen tasavalta/Republiken Finland" + "text": "Suomen tasavalta (Finnish)/ Republiken Finland (Swedish)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Suomi/Finland" + "text": "Suomi (Finnish)/ Finland (Swedish)" }, "etymology": { "text": "name may derive from the ancient Fenni peoples who are first described as living in northeastern Europe in the first centuries A.D." @@ -582,7 +582,7 @@ "text": "last held on 14 April 2019 (next to be held in April 2023)" }, "election results": { - "text": "percent of vote by party/coalition - SDP 17.7%, PS 17.5%, Kok 17.0%. Center Party 13.8%, Vihr 11.5%, Vas 8.2%, SFP 4.5%, KD 3.9%, other 5.9%; seats by party/coalition - SDP 40, PS 39, Kok 38, Centre Party 31, Vihr 20, Vas 16, SFP 9, KD 5; composition men 109, women 91, percent of women 45.5%" + "text": "percent of vote by party/coalition - SDP 20%, PS 19.5%, Kok 19.0%. Center Party 15.5%, Vihr 10%, Vas 8%, SFP 4.5%, KD 2.5%, Aland .5%; other .5%; seats by party/coalition - SDP 40, PS 39, Kok 38, Centre Party 31, Vihr 20, Vas 16, SFP 9, KD 5; Aland 1; other 1; composition men 109, women 91, percent of women 45.5%" } }, "Judicial branch": { @@ -662,7 +662,7 @@ "text": "7 (6 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Fortress of Suomenlinna (c), Old Rauma (c), Petäjävesi Old Church (c), Verla Groundwood and Board Mill (c), Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki (c), High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago (n), Struve Geodetic Arc (c)" + "text": "Fortress of Suomenlinna (c); Old Rauma (c); Petäjävesi Old Church (c); Verla Groundwood and Board Mill (c); Bronze Age Burial Site of Sammallahdenmäki (c); High Coast / Kvarken Archipelago (n); Struve Geodetic Arc (c)" } } }, @@ -908,7 +908,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1212,7 +1212,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Finnish Defense Forces (FDF): Army (Maavoimat), Navy (Merivoimat), Air Force (Ilmavoimat); Ministry of the Interior: Border Guard (Rajavartiolaitos) (2022)", - "note": "note - the Border Guard becomes part of the FDF in wartime" + "note": "note: the Border Guard becomes part of the FDF in wartime" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1239,7 +1239,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "at age 18, all Finnish men are obligated to serve 5.5-12 months of service within a branch of the military or the Border Guard (length of service depends on the type of duty), and women 18-29 may volunteer for service; there is also an option to perform non-military service which lasts for 8.5 or 11.5 months; after completing their initial conscript obligation, individuals enter the reserves and remain eligible for mobilization until the age of 50 for rank-and-file and 60 for non-commissioned and commissioned officers (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the military trains approximately 21,000 (20,000 Army) conscripts each year; as of 2019, women made up about 4% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note: the military trains approximately 21,000 (20,000 Army) conscripts each year; as of 2019, women made up about 4% of the military's full-time personnel" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "160 Lebanon (UNIFIL) (Jan 2022)" @@ -1254,7 +1254,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "9,053 (Iraq) (mid-year 2021); 30,372 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "9,053 (Iraq) (mid-year 2021); 30,372 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "3,416 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/fo.json b/europe/fo.json index d96cbdfe..f0f13232 100644 --- a/europe/fo.json +++ b/europe/fo.json @@ -683,7 +683,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Danish kroner (DKK) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/fr.json b/europe/fr.json index 3d268f4a..cce39108 100644 --- a/europe/fr.json +++ b/europe/fr.json @@ -617,7 +617,7 @@ "text": "NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Gibraltar pounds (GIP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/gk.json b/europe/gk.json index affb73c1..72de8445 100644 --- a/europe/gk.json +++ b/europe/gk.json @@ -550,7 +550,7 @@ "text": "NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Guernsey pound per US dollar" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/gm.json b/europe/gm.json index eb5fa8af..fe4175d5 100644 --- a/europe/gm.json +++ b/europe/gm.json @@ -597,7 +597,7 @@ "text": "drug trafficking groups are major players in the procurement and transportation of of large quantities of cocaine destined for European markets
" diff --git a/europe/hu.json b/europe/hu.json index 253047b2..04bacb9b 100644 --- a/europe/hu.json +++ b/europe/hu.json @@ -922,7 +922,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "forints (HUF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1248,14 +1248,14 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "the Hungarian Defense Forces have approximately 20,000 active duty troops (15,000 Army; 5,000 Air Force) (2021)", - "note": "note - in 2017, Hungary announced plans to increase the number of active soldiers to around 37,000, but did not give a timeline" + "note": "note: in 2017, Hungary announced plans to increase the number of active soldiers to around 37,000, but did not give a timeline" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the inventory of the Hungarian Defense Forces consists largely of Soviet-era weapons, with a smaller mix of more modern European and US equipment; since 2010, Hungary has received limited quantities of equipment from several European countries and the US (2021)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-25 years of age for voluntary military service; no conscription (abolished 2005); 6-month service obligation (2021)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women comprised approximately 20% of Hungary's full-time military personnel" + "note": "note: as of 2019, women comprised approximately 20% of Hungary's full-time military personnel" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "160 Bosnia-Herzegovina (EUFOR stabilization force); 150 Iraq (NATO); 470 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR) (2022)" @@ -1264,13 +1264,19 @@ "text": "Hungary joined NATO in 1999; Czechia, Hungary, and Poland were invited to begin accession talks at NATO's Madrid Summit in 1997 and in March 1999 they became the first former members of the Warsaw Pact to join the Alliance (2022)" } }, + "Terrorism": { + "Terrorist group(s)": { + "text": "Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS)", + "note": "note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T" + } + }, "Transnational Issues": { "Disputes - international": { "text": "
bilateral government, legal, technical and economic working group negotiations continue in 2006 with Slovakia over Hungary's failure to complete its portion of the Gabcikovo-Nagymaros hydroelectric dam project along the Danube; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Hungary has implemented the strict Schengen border rules
" }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "26,563 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "27,316 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "130 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/ic.json b/europe/ic.json index d924eb64..acc425fc 100644 --- a/europe/ic.json +++ b/europe/ic.json @@ -469,7 +469,7 @@ "text": "Island" }, "etymology": { - "text": "Floki VILGERDARSON, an early explorer of the island (9th century), applied the name \"Land of Ice\" after spotting a fjord full of drift ice to the north and spending a bitter winter on the island; he eventually settled on the island, however, after he saw how it greened up in the summer and that it was, in fact, habitable" + "text": "Floki VILGERDARSON, an early Norse explorer of the island (9th century), applied the name \"Land of Ice\" after spotting a fjord full of drift ice to the north and spending a bitter winter on the island; he eventually settled on the island, however, after he saw how it greened up in the summer and that it was, in fact, habitable" } }, "Government type": { @@ -554,7 +554,7 @@ "text": "last held on 25 September 2021 (next to be held in 2025)" }, "election results": { - "text": "percent of vote by party - IP 24.4%, PP 17.3%, LGM 12.6%, SDA 9.9%, People's Party 8.8%, Pirate Party 8.6%, Reform Party 8.3%. CP 5.4%, other 4.7%; seats by party - IP 16, PP 13, LGM 8, SDA 6, People's Party 6, Pirate Party 6, Reform Party 5, CP 3; composition - men 33, women 30; percent of women 47.6%
" + "text": "percent of vote by party - IP 25.4%, PP 20.6%, LGM 12.7%, SDA 9.5%, People's Party 9.5%, Pirate Party 9.5%, Reform Party 7.9%. CP 4.8%; seats by party - IP 16, PP 13, LGM 8, SDA 6, People's Party 6, Pirate Party 6, Reform Party 5, CP 3; composition - men 33, women 30; percent of women 47.6%
" } }, "Judicial branch": { @@ -634,7 +634,7 @@ "text": "3 (1 cultural, 2 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Thingvellir National Park (c), Surtsey (n), Vatnajökull National Park - Dynamic Nature of Fire and Ice (n)" + "text": "Thingvellir National Park (c); Surtsey (n); Vatnajökull National Park - Dynamic Nature of Fire and Ice (n)" } } }, @@ -878,7 +878,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Icelandic kronur (ISK) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/europe/im.json b/europe/im.json index cb399631..d80e38a7 100644 --- a/europe/im.json +++ b/europe/im.json @@ -686,7 +686,7 @@ "text": "NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Manx pounds (IMP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/it.json b/europe/it.json index b5561d1f..6c858cbe 100644 --- a/europe/it.json +++ b/europe/it.json @@ -910,7 +910,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1223,7 +1223,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Italian Armed Forces: Army (Esercito Italiano, EI), Navy (Marina Militare Italiana, MMI; includes aviation, marines), Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI); Carabinieri Corps (Arma dei Carabinieri, CC) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Carabinieri is the national gendarmerie; for its civil police functions, the Carabinieri falls under the control of the Ministry of the Interior; the Financial Guard (Guardia di Finanza) under the Ministry of Economy and Finance is a force with military status and nationwide remit for financial crime investigations, including narcotics trafficking, smuggling, and illegal immigration" + "note": "note 1: the Carabinieri is the national gendarmerie; for its civil police functions, the Carabinieri falls under the control of the Ministry of the InteriorNA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Jersey pounds (JEP) per US dollar" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/kv.json b/europe/kv.json index 712ad316..fa013145 100644 --- a/europe/kv.json +++ b/europe/kv.json @@ -373,10 +373,10 @@ "text": "Kosovo" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Republika e Kosoves (Republika Kosovo)" + "text": "Republika e Kosoves (Albanian)/ Republika Kosovo (Serbian)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Kosove (Kosovo)" + "text": "Kosove (Albanian)/ Kosovo (Serbian)" }, "etymology": { "text": "name derives from the Serbian \"kos\" meaning \"blackbird,\" an ellipsis (linguistic omission) for \"kosove polje\" or \"field of the blackbirds\"" @@ -784,7 +784,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -949,7 +949,7 @@ }, "Telecommunication systems": { "general assessment": { - "text": "EU pre-accession process supported progress in the telecom industry with a regulatory framework, European standards, and a market of new players encouraging development; two operators dominate the sector; under-developed telecom infrastructure leads to low fixed-line penetration; little expansion of fiber networks for broadband; expansion of LTE services (2020)" + "text": "Kosovo has benefited from financial and regulatory assistance as part of the EU pre-accession process; the telecom sector has been liberalized, and legislation has aligned the sector with the EU’s revised regulatory framework; poor telecom infrastructure has meant that fixed-line communication remains low by European standards; unlike most markets, the fixed-line broadband sector is dominated by new players, in particular the cable operator IPKO, a subsidiary of Telekom Slovenia; broadband companies in Kosovo are developing slowly; there is effective competition between the main cable and DSL operators, though as yet there is little progress with the expansion of fiber networks: investment by the incumbent PTK, trading as Telecom Kosovo, in building an upgraded fiber-based NGN has been insufficient thus far, exacerbated by the company’s financial difficulties; these difficulties encouraged the government in mid-2019 to prepare the sale of a majority stake in the company; the mobile sector accounts for most telecom lines for voice services, as well as the greater part of telecom revenue; two MNOs dominate the sector; Telenor Serbia and VIP Mobile stopped offering unlicensed mobile voice and data services in mid-2017 across border regions as part of a deal by which Kosovo secured its own dialing code. (2022 )" }, "domestic": { "text": "fixed-line roughly 6 per 100 and mobile-cellular 32 per 100 persons (2019)" @@ -960,8 +960,8 @@ "note": "note: 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" }, "Internet country code": { - "text": ".xk", - "note": "note: assigned as a temporary code under UN Security Council resolution 1244/99" + "text": ".xk; note - assigned as a temporary code under UN Security Council resolution 1244/99since 2017, Latvia has hosted a Canadian-led multi-national NATO ground force battlegroup as part of the Alliance’s Enhanced Forward Presence initiative; in addition, Latvia hosts a NATO-led divisional headquarters (Multinational Division North; activated 2020), which coordinates training and preparation activities of its respective subordinate NATO battlegroups in Estonia and Latvia
NATO also has provided air protection for Latvia since 2004 through its Air Policing mission; NATO member countries that possess air combat capabilities voluntarily contribute to the mission on 4-month rotations
in 2015, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg signed an agreement to conduct joint air policing of their territories; under the agreement, which went into effect in January of 2017, the Belgian and Dutch Air Forces trade responsibility for patrolling the skies over the three countries
" @@ -1196,7 +1196,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "5,775 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "5,984 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "194 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/md.json b/europe/md.json index d8985a80..96da7c3d 100644 --- a/europe/md.json +++ b/europe/md.json @@ -573,7 +573,7 @@ "text": "last held on 11 July 2021 (next scheduled in July 2025)
" }, "election results": { - "text": "percent of vote by party - PAS 52.8%, BECS (PSRM+PCRM) 27.1%, SHOR 5.7%; seats by party - PAS 63, BECS 32, SHOR 6; composition (as of October 2021) - men 61, women 40, percent of women 39.6%
" + "text": "percent of vote by party - PAS 52.8%, BECS (PSRM+PCRM) 27.1%, SHOR 5.7%; seats by party - PAS 63, BECS 32, SHOR 6; composition as of July 2022 - men 60, women 41, percent of women 40.6%
" } }, "Judicial branch": { @@ -890,7 +890,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Moldovan lei (MDL) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1178,8 +1178,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "National Army: Land Forces (Fortele Terestre ale Republicii Moldova, FTRM); Air Forces (Forţele Aeriene ale Republicii Moldova, FARM); Ministry of Internal Affairs: Carabinieri Troops (2021)", - "note": "note - the Carabinieri is a quasi-militarized gendarmerie responsible for protecting public buildings, maintaining public order, and other national security functions" + "text": "National Army: Land Forces (Fortele Terestre ale Republicii Moldova, FTRM); Air Forces (Forţele Aeriene ale Republicii Moldova, FARM); Ministry of Internal Affairs: Carabinieri Troops (2022)", + "note": "note: the Carabinieri is a quasi-militarized gendarmerie responsible for protecting public buildings, maintaining public order, and other national security functions" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1206,10 +1206,10 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-27 years of age for compulsory or voluntary military service; male registration required at age 16; 1-year service obligation (2021)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women made up about 20% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note: as of 2019, women made up about 20% of the military's full-time personnel" }, "Military - note": { - "text": "Moldova is constitutionally neutral, but has maintained a relationship with NATO since 1992; bilateral cooperation started when Moldova joined NATO’s Partnership for Peace program in 1994; Moldova has contributed small numbers of troops to NATO’s Kosovo Force (KFOR) since 2014, and a civilian NATO liaison office was established in Moldova in 2017 at the request of the Moldovan Government to promote practical cooperation and facilitate supportdrug trafficking groups are major players in the procurement and transportation of large quantities of cocaine destined for European markets
" diff --git a/europe/mk.json b/europe/mk.json index 1d94b8f3..e9851041 100644 --- a/europe/mk.json +++ b/europe/mk.json @@ -550,7 +550,7 @@ "text": "Council of Ministers elected by the Assembly by simple majority vote" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "president directly elected using a modified 2-round system; a candidate can only be elected in the first round with an absolute majority from all registered voters; in the second round, voter turnout must be at least 40% for the result to be deemed valid; president elected for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 21 April and 5 May 2019 (next to be held in 2024); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the Assembly; Zoran ZAEV reelected prime minister by the Assembly on 31 August 2020; Assembly vote - 62 for, 51 against" + "text": "president directly elected using a modified 2-round system; a candidate can only be elected in the first round with an absolute majority from all registered voters; in the second round, voter turnout must be at least 40% for the result to be deemed valid; president elected for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 21 April and 5 May 2019 (next to be held in 2024); following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition is usually elected prime minister by the Assembly; Dimitar KOVACEVSKI elected prime minister by the Assembly on 16 January 2022; Assembly vote - NA" }, "election results": { "text": "Stevo PENDAROVSKI elected president in second round; percent of vote in first round - Stevo PENDAROVSKI (SDSM) 44.8%, Gordana SILJANOVSKA-DAVKOVA (VMRO-DPMNE) 44.2%, Blenim REKA (independent) 11.1%; percent of vote in second round - Stevo PENDAROVSKI 53.6%, Gordana SILJANOVSKA-DAVKOVA 46.4%" @@ -579,7 +579,7 @@ } }, "Political parties and leaders": { - "text": "Alliance for Albanians or AfA [Ziadin SELA]NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -828,7 +831,7 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "no regular military forces; Ministry of Interior: Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince (Prince’s Company of Carabiniers (Palace Guard)), Corps des Sapeurs-pompiers de Monaco (Fire and Emergency), Police Department" + "text": "no regular military forces; Ministry of Interior: Compagnie des Carabiniers du Prince (Prince’s Company of Carabiniers (Palace Guard)), Corps des Sapeurs-pompiers de Monaco (Fire and Emergency), Police Department (2022)" }, "Military - note": { "text": "defense is the responsibility of France" diff --git a/europe/mt.json b/europe/mt.json index 520dc697..10695774 100644 --- a/europe/mt.json +++ b/europe/mt.json @@ -552,13 +552,13 @@ }, "Legislative branch": { "description": { - "text": "unicameral House of Representatives or Il-Kamra Tad-Deputati, a component of the Parliament of Malta (normally 65 seats but can include at-large members; members directly elected in 5 multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms); note - an additional two seats were added in 2016 by the Constitutional Court to correct for mistakes made in the 2013 vote-counting process" + "text": "unicameral House of Representatives or Il-Kamra Tad-Deputati, a component of the Parliament of Malta (65 seats statutory, 79 for 2022-2027 term; members directly elected in 5 multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote; members serve 5-year terms)" }, "elections": { "text": "last held on 26 March 2022 (next to be held in 2027)" }, "election results": { - "text": "percent of vote by party - PL 55.1%, PN 41.7%, other 3.2%; seats by party - PL 38 PN 29; composition - men NA, women NA, percent of women NA%" + "text": "percent of vote by party - PL 55.1%, PN 41.7%, other 3.2%; seats by party - PL 38, PN 29; composition - men 57, women 22, percent of women 27.8%; note - due to underrepresentation by women in the combined general on 26 March and two casual elections on 7 and 12 April (10 seats or 14.9%), an additional 12 seats were awarded because their percentage did not meet the 40% threshold required by the Malta Constitution or the General Elections Amendment Act 2021" } }, "Judicial branch": { @@ -632,7 +632,7 @@ "text": "3 (all cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "City of Valletta, Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum, Megalithic Temples of Malta" + "text": "City of Valletta; Ħal Saflieni Hypogeum; Megalithic Temples of Malta" } } }, @@ -877,7 +877,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/europe/nl.json b/europe/nl.json index 043bdbcd..00eca736 100644 --- a/europe/nl.json +++ b/europe/nl.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579; during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world. After a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830, Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered German invasion and occupation in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU) and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999. In October 2010, the former Netherlands Antilles was dissolved and the three smallest islands - Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba - became special municipalities in the Netherlands administrative structure. The larger islands of Sint Maarten and Curacao joined the Netherlands and Aruba as constituent countries forming the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
In February 2018, the Sint Eustatius island council (governing body) was dissolved and replaced by a government commissioner to restore the integrity of public administration. According to the Dutch Government, the intervention will be as \"short as possible and as long as needed.\"
" + "text": "The Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1579; during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world. After a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830, Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I but suffered German invasion and occupation in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU) and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999. In October 2010, the former Netherlands Antilles was dissolved and the three smallest islands - Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba - became special municipalities in the Netherlands administrative structure. The larger islands of Sint Maarten and Curacao joined the Netherlands and Aruba as constituent countries forming the Kingdom of the Netherlands.
In February 2018, the Sint Eustatius island council (governing body) was dissolved and replaced by a government commissioner to restore the integrity of public administration. According to the Dutch Government, the intervention will be as \"short as possible and as long as needed.\"
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -910,7 +910,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1213,7 +1213,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Royal Netherlands Army, Royal Netherlands Navy (includes Naval Air Service and Marine Corps), Royal Netherlands Air Force, Royal Netherlands Marechaussee (Military Constabulary) (2022)", - "note": "note - the Netherlands Coast Guard and the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard are civilian in nature, but managed by the Royal Netherlands Navy" + "note": "note: the Netherlands Coast Guard and the Dutch Caribbean Coast Guard are civilian in nature, but managed by the Royal Netherlands Navy" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1234,21 +1234,21 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "the Royal Netherlands Armed Forces have approximately 40,000 active duty personnel (20,000 Army; 7,500 Navy; 6,500 Air Force; 6,000 Constabulary) (2021)", - "note": "note - the Navy includes about 2,300 marines" + "note": "note: the Navy includes about 2,300 marines" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the inventory of the Netherlands Armed Forces consists of a mix of domestically-produced and modern European- and US-sourced equipment; since 2010, the US is the leading supplier of weapons systems to the Netherlands; the Netherlands has an advanced domestic defense industry that focuses on armored vehicles, naval ships, and air defense systems; it also participates with the US and other European countries on joint development and production of advanced weapons systems (2021)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "17 years of age for an all-volunteer force; conscription remains in place, but the requirement to show up for compulsory military service was suspended in 1997 (2021)", - "note": "note - in 2019, women made up about 11% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note: in 2019, women made up about 11% of the military's full-time personnel" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "270 Lithuania (NATO) (2022)", "note": "note: NATO troop deployment numbers in eastern Europe are as of February 2022; in response to Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, some NATO countries have sent additional troops and equipment to the battlegroups deployed in NATO territory in eastern Europe" }, "Military - note": { - "text": "the Netherlands is a member of NATO and was one of the original 12 countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty (also known as the Washington Treaty) in 1949since 1973, the Dutch Marine Corps has worked closely with the British Royal Marines, including jointly in the UK-Netherlands amphibious landing force
a Dutch Army airmobile infantry brigade and a mechanized infantry brigade have been integrated into the German Army since 2014 and 2016 respectively
in 2018, the Defense Ministers of Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the creation of a Composite Special Operations Component Command (C-SOCC); the C-SOCC was declared operational in December 2020in 2015, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Luxembourg signed an agreement to conduct joint air policing of their territories; under the agreement, which went into effect in January of 2017, the Belgian and Dutch Air Forces trade responsibility for patrolling the skies over the three countries
" + "text": "the Netherlands is a member of NATO and was one of the original 12 countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty (also known as the Washington Treaty) in 1949since 1973, the Dutch Marine Corps has worked closely with the British Royal Marines, including jointly in the UK-Netherlands amphibious landing force; a Dutch Army airmobile infantry brigade and a mechanized infantry brigade have been integrated into the German Army since 2014 and 2016 respectively
in 2018, the Defense Ministers of Belgium, Denmark and the Netherlands signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) for the creation of a Composite Special Operations Component Command (C-SOCC); the C-SOCC was declared operational in December 2020the Norwegian Armed Forces cooperate closely with the militaries of other Nordic countries through the Nordic Defense Cooperation (NORDEFCO), which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden; areas of cooperation include armaments, education, human resources, training and exercises, and operations; NORDEFCO was established in 2009
(2022)" + "text": "Norway is a member of NATO and was one of the original 12 countries to sign the North Atlantic Treaty (also known as the Washington Treaty) in 1949drug trafficking groups are major players in the procurement and transportation of of large quantities of cocaine destined for European markets
" diff --git a/europe/ro.json b/europe/ro.json index 5b814686..7f0172a4 100644 --- a/europe/ro.json +++ b/europe/ro.json @@ -667,7 +667,7 @@ "text": "9 (7 cultural, 2 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Danube Delta (n), Churches of Moldavia (c), Monastery of Horezu (c), Villages with Fortified Churches in Transylvania (c), Dacian Fortresses of the Orastie Mountains (c), Historic Center of Sighişoara (c), Wooden Churches of Maramureş (c), Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians (n), Roșia Montană Mining Landscape (c)" + "text": "Danube Delta (n); Churches of Moldavia (c); Monastery of Horezu (c); Villages with Fortified Churches in Transylvania (c); Dacian Fortresses of the Orastie Mountains (c); Historic Center of Sighişoara (c); Wooden Churches of Maramureş (c); Ancient and Primeval Beech Forests of the Carpathians (n); Roșia Montană Mining Landscape (c)" } } }, @@ -912,7 +912,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "lei (RON) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1264,7 +1264,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "84,393 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "84,384 (Ukraine) (as of 24 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "314 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/si.json b/europe/si.json index ec7802ae..29b3fcc8 100644 --- a/europe/si.json +++ b/europe/si.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The Slovene lands were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the latter's dissolution at the end of World War I. In 1918, the Slovenes joined the Serbs and Croats in forming a new multinational state, which was named Yugoslavia in 1929. After World War II, Slovenia was one of the republics in the restored Yugoslavia, which, though communist, soon distanced itself from the Soviet Union and spearheaded the Non-Aligned Movement. Dissatisfied with the exercise of power by the majority Serbs, the Slovenes succeeded in establishing their independence in 1991 after a short 10-day war. Historical ties to Western Europe, a growing economy, and a stable democracy have assisted in Slovenia's postcommunist transition. Slovenia acceded to both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004; it joined the euro zone and the Schengen zone in 2007." + "text": "The Slovene lands were part of the Austro-Hungarian Empire until the latter's dissolution at the end of World War I. In 1918, the Slovenes joined the Serbs and Croats in forming a new multinational state, which was named Yugoslavia in 1929. After World War II, Slovenia was one of the republics in the restored Yugoslavia, which, though communist, soon distanced itself from the Soviet Union and spearheaded the Non-Aligned Movement. Dissatisfied with the exercise of power by the majority Serbs, the Slovenes succeeded in establishing their independence in 1991 after a short 10-day war. Historical ties to Western Europe, a growing economy, and a stable democracy have assisted in Slovenia's postcommunist transition. Slovenia acceded to both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004; it joined the euro zone and the Schengen Area in 2007." } }, "Geography": { @@ -552,7 +552,7 @@ "text": "Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister, elected by the National Assembly" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second consecutive term); election last held on 22 October with a runoff on 12 November 2017 (next election to be held by November 2022); following National Assembly elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually nominated prime minister by the president and elected by the National Assembly" + "text": "president directly elected by absolute majority popular vote in 2 rounds if needed for a 5-year term (eligible for a second consecutive term); election last held on 22 October with a runoff on 12 November 2017 (next election to be held on 23 October 2022); following National Assembly elections, the leader of the majority party or majority coalition usually nominated prime minister by the president and elected by the National Assembly" }, "election results": { "text": "San Marino’s principal legislative instruments consist of old customs (antiche consuetudini), the Statutory Laws of San Marino (Leges Statutae Sancti Marini), old statutes (antichi statute) from the1600s, Brief Notes on the Constitutional Order and Institutional Organs of the Republic of San Marino (Brevi Cenni sull’Ordinamento Costituzionale e gli Organi Istituzionali della Repubblica di San Marino) and successive legislation, chief among them is the Declaration of the Rights of Citizens and Fundamental Principles of the San Marino Legal Order (Dichiarazione dei Diritti dei Cittadini e dei Principi Fondamentali dell’Ordinamento Sammarinese), approved 8 July 1974
" + "text": "San Marino’s principal legislative instruments consist of old customs (antiche consuetudini), the Statutory Laws of San Marino (Leges Statutae Sancti Marini), old statutes (antichi statute) from the1600s, Brief Notes on the Constitutional Order and Institutional Organs of the Republic of San Marino (Brevi Cenni sull’Ordinamento Costituzionale e gli Organi Istituzionali della Repubblica di San Marino) and successive legislation, chief among them is the Declaration of the Rights of Citizens and Fundamental Principles of the San Marino Legal Order (Dichiarazione dei Diritti dei Cittadini e dei Principi Fondamentali dell’Ordinamento Sammarinese), approved 8 July 1974
" }, "amendments": { "text": "proposed by the Great and General Council; passage requires two-thirds majority Council vote; Council passage by absolute majority vote also requires passage in a referendum; Declaration of Civil Rights amended several times, last in 2019" @@ -784,7 +784,7 @@ "text": "NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/sp.json b/europe/sp.json index 26233fe0..425ef7c8 100644 --- a/europe/sp.json +++ b/europe/sp.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World War I and II, but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). A peaceful transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization (Spain joined the EU in 1986) gave Spain a dynamic and rapidly growing economy, and made it a global champion of freedom and human rights. More recently, Spain has emerged from a severe economic recession that began in mid-2008, posting four straight years of GDP growth above the EU average. Unemployment has fallen, but remains high, especially among youth. Spain is the Eurozone's fourth largest economy. The country has faced increased domestic turmoil in recent years due to the independence movement in its restive Catalonia region.
" + "text": "Spain's powerful world empire of the 16th and 17th centuries ultimately yielded command of the seas to England. Subsequent failure to embrace the mercantile and industrial revolutions caused the country to fall behind Britain, France, and Germany in economic and political power. Spain remained neutral in World War I and II but suffered through a devastating civil war (1936-39). A peaceful transition to democracy following the death of dictator Francisco FRANCO in 1975, and rapid economic modernization (Spain joined the EU in 1986) gave Spain a dynamic and rapidly growing economy, and made it a global champion of freedom and human rights. More recently, Spain has emerged from a severe economic recession that began in mid-2008, posting solid years of GDP growth above the EU average. Unemployment has fallen but remains high, especially among youth. Spain is the euro-zone's fourth-largest economy. The country has faced increased domestic turmoil in recent years due to the independence movement in its restive Catalonia region.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -680,7 +680,7 @@ "text": "49 (43 cultural, 4 natural, 2 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain (c); Works of Antoni Gaudí (c); Santiago de Compostela (Old Town) (c); Historic City of Toledo (c); Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida (c); Tower of Hercules (c); Doñana National Park (n); Pyrénées - Mont Perdu (m); Alhambra, Generalife, and Albayzín in Granada (c); Old City of Salamanca (c); Teide National Park (n); Historic Walled Town of Cuenca (c); Old Town of Segovia and its Aqueduct (c); Historic Cordoba (c); El Escorial (c)" + "text": "Cave of Altamira and Paleolithic Cave Art of Northern Spain (c); Works of Antoni Gaudí (c); Santiago de Compostela (Old Town) (c); Historic City of Toledo (c); Archaeological Ensemble of Mérida (c); Tower of Hercules (c); Doñana National Park (n); Pyrénées - Mont Perdu (m); Alhambra, Generalife, and Albayzín in Granada (c); Old City of Salamanca (c); Teide National Park (n); Historic Walled Town of Cuenca (c); Old Town of Segovia and its Aqueduct (c); Historic Cordoba (c); El Escorial (c)" } } }, @@ -924,7 +924,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1237,7 +1237,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Spanish Armed Forces: Army (Ejercito de Tierra), Spanish Navy (Armada Espanola, AE, includes Marine Corps), Spanish Air Force (Ejercito del Aire Espanola, EdA); Civil Guard (Guardia Civil) (2022)", - "note": "note - the Civil Guard is a military force with police duties (including coast guard) under both the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior; it also responds to the needs of the Ministry of Finance" + "note": "note: the Civil Guard is a military force with police duties (including coast guard) under both the Ministry of Defense and the Ministry of the Interior; it also responds to the needs of the Ministry of Finance" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1264,7 +1264,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-26 years of age for voluntary military service by a Spanish citizen or legal immigrant, 2-3 year obligation; women allowed to serve in all SAF branches, including combat units; no conscription (abolished 2001), but Spanish Government retains right to mobilize citizens 19-25 years of age in a national emergency (2021)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women comprised about 13% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note: as of 2019, women comprised about 13% of the military's full-time personnel" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "approximately 200 Iraq (NATO/EU training assistance); 600 Latvia (NATO); 650 Lebanon (UNIFIL); approximately 500 Mali (EUTM); 150 Turkey (NATO) (2022)", @@ -1286,12 +1286,12 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "14,823 (Syria) (mid-year 2021); 418,200 (Venezuela) (economic and political crisis; includes Venezuelans who have claimed asylum, are recognized as refugees, or have received alternative legal stay) (2021); 127,750 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "14,823 (Syria) (mid-year 2021); 418,200 (Venezuela) (economic and political crisis; includes Venezuelans who have claimed asylum, are recognized as refugees, or have received alternative legal stay) (2021); 130,160 (Ukraine) (as of 19 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "692 (mid-year 2021)" }, - "note": "note: 262,811 estimated refugee and migrant arrivals, including Canary Islands (January 2015-July 2022)" + "note": "note: 263,385 estimated refugee and migrant arrivals, including Canary Islands (January 2015-July 2022)" }, "Illicit drugs": { "text": "primary transit point in Europe for cocaine from South America and for hashish from Morocco; cocaine is shipped in raw or liquid form with mixed cargo to avoid detection; traffickers ship methamphetamine via express mail; increasing number of indoor cannabis grow operations; illegal labs cutting, mixing, and reconstituting cocaine, and heroin and methamphetamine labs; synthetic drugs, including ketamine and MDMA (ecstasy) transit from Spain to the United States" diff --git a/europe/sv.json b/europe/sv.json index 4064580d..636a903f 100644 --- a/europe/sv.json +++ b/europe/sv.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The archipelago may have been first discovered by Norse explorers in the 12th century; the islands served as an international whaling base during the 17th and 18th centuries. Norway's sovereignty was internationally recognized by treaty in 1920, and five years later it officially took over the territory. In the 20th century coal mining started and today a Norwegian and a Russian company are still functioning. Travel between the settlements is accomplished with snowmobiles, aircraft, and boats." + "text": "The archipelago may have been first discovered by Norse explorers in the 12th century; the islands served as an international whaling base during the 17th and 18th centuries. Norway's sovereignty was internationally recognized by treaty in 1920, and five years later it officially took over the territory. In the 20th century, coal mining started and today a Norwegian and a Russian company are still functioning. Travel between the settlements is accomplished with snowmobiles, aircraft, and boats." } }, "Geography": { @@ -143,7 +143,7 @@ "text": "NA" }, "Death rate": { - "text": "(2021 est.) NA" + "text": "NA" }, "Net migration rate": { "text": "-5.57 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)" @@ -386,7 +386,7 @@ "text": "$NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Norwegian kroner (NOK) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/europe/sw.json b/europe/sw.json index bbf254c0..e1ec4095 100644 --- a/europe/sw.json +++ b/europe/sw.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both World Wars. Since then, Sweden has pursued a successful economic formula consisting of a capitalist system intermixed with substantial welfare elements. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum. The share of Sweden’s population born abroad increased from 11.3% in 2000 to 19.1% in 2018.
" + "text": "
A military power during the 17th century, Sweden has not participated in any war for two centuries. An armed neutrality was preserved in both World Wars. Since then, Sweden has pursued a successful economic formula consisting of a capitalist system intermixed with substantial welfare elements. Sweden joined the EU in 1995, but the public rejected the introduction of the euro in a 2003 referendum. The share of Sweden’s population born abroad increased from 11.3% in 2000 to 20% in 2021.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -653,7 +653,7 @@ "text": "15 (13 cultural, 1 natural, 1 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Royal Domain of Drottningholm (c), Laponian Area (m), High Coast/Kvarken Archipelago (n), Birka and Hovgården (c), Hanseatic Town of Visby (c), Church Town of Gammelstad, Luleå (c), Naval Port of Karlskrona (c), Rock Carvings in Tanum (c), Engelsberg Ironworks (c), Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun (c)" + "text": "Royal Domain of Drottningholm (c); Laponian Area (m); High Coast/Kvarken Archipelago (n); Birka and Hovgården (c); Hanseatic Town of Visby (c); Church Town of Gammelstad, Luleå (c); Naval Port of Karlskrona (c); Rock Carvings in Tanum (c); Engelsberg Ironworks (c); Mining Area of the Great Copper Mountain in Falun (c)" } } }, @@ -898,7 +898,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Swedish kronor (SEK) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1219,17 +1219,17 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "approximately 15,000 continuous service/full-time troops (7,000 Army; 3,000 Navy; 3,000 Air Force; 2,000 other, including staff, logistics, support, medical, cyber, intelligence, etc); approximately 21,000 Home Guard; approximately 12,000 temporary service personnel (2022)", - "note": "note - Swedish Armed Forces' (SAF) personnel are divided into continuously serving (full-time) and temporary service troops (part-timers who serve periodically and have another main employer or attend school); additional personnel have signed service agreements with the SAF and mostly serve in the Home Guard; the SAF also has about 9,000 civilian employees" + "note": "note: Swedish Armed Forces' (SAF) personnel are divided into continuously serving (full-time) and temporary service troops (part-timers who serve periodically and have another main employer or attend school); additional personnel have signed service agreements with the SAF and mostly serve in the Home Guard; the SAF also has about 9,000 civilian employees" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the inventory of the SAF is comprised of domestically-produced and imported Western weapons systems; since 2010, the US is the leading supplier of military hardware to Sweden; Sweden's defense industry produces a range of air, land, and naval systems (2021)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-47 years of age for male and female voluntary military service; service obligation: 7.5 months (Army), 7-15 months (Navy), 8-12 months (Air Force); after completing initial service, soldiers have a reserve commitment until age 47; compulsory military service, abolished in 2010, was reinstated in January 2018; conscription is selective, includes both female and male (age 18), and requires 9-12 months of service (2021)", - "note": "note(s) - Sweden conscripts about 5,500 men and women each year; as of 2021, women made up about 11% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note 1: Sweden conscripts about 5,500 men and women each year
Sweden maintains a policy of military non-alignment, but cooperates with NATO and regional countries; it joined NATO’s Partnership for Peace program in 1994 and has contributed to NATO-led missions, including those in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Kosovo
the Swedish military cooperates closely with the military forces of other Nordic countries through the Nordic Defense Cooperation (NORDEFCO), which consists of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway, and Sweden; areas of cooperation include armaments, education, human resources, training and exercises, and operations; NORDEFCO was established in 2009
Sweden is a signatory of the EU’s Common Security and Defense Policy and contributes to CSDP missions and operations
" @@ -1247,7 +1247,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "114,995 (Syria), 28,744 (Afghanistan), 26,911 (Eritrea), 11,574 (Somalia), 11,153 (Iraq), 7,516 (Iran) (2020); 41,776 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "114,995 (Syria), 28,744 (Afghanistan), 26,911 (Eritrea), 11,574 (Somalia), 11,153 (Iraq), 7,516 (Iran) (2020); 42,788 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "50,098 (mid-year 2021); note - the majority of stateless people are from the Middle East and Somalia" diff --git a/europe/sz.json b/europe/sz.json index cf58dac8..22d30f08 100644 --- a/europe/sz.json +++ b/europe/sz.json @@ -485,18 +485,17 @@ "text": "Switzerland" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft (German); Confederation Suisse (French); Confederazione Svizzera (Italian); Confederaziun Svizra (Romansh)" + "text": "Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft (German)/ Confederation Suisse (French)/ Confederazione Svizzera (Italian)/ Confederaziun Svizra (Romansh)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Schweiz (German); Suisse (French); Svizzera (Italian); Svizra (Romansh)" + "text": "Schweiz (German)/ Suisse (French)/ Svizzera (Italian)/ Svizra (Romansh)" }, "abbreviation": { "text": "CH" }, "etymology": { "text": "name derives from the canton of Schwyz, one of the founding cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy that formed in the 14th century" - }, - "note": " " + } }, "Government type": { "text": "federal republic (formally a confederation)" @@ -564,7 +563,7 @@ "text": "President of the Swiss Confederation Ignazio CASSIS (since 1 January 2022); Vice President Alain BERSET (since 1 January 2022); note - the Federal Council, comprised of 7 federal councillors, constitutes the federal government of Switzerland; council members rotate the 1-year term of federal president" }, "head of government": { - "text": "President of the Swiss Confederation Ignazio CASSIS (since1 January 2022); Vice President Alain BERSET (since 1 January 2022)" + "text": "President of the Swiss Confederation Ignazio CASSIS (since 1 January 2022); Vice President Alain BERSET (since 1 January 2022)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Federal Council or Bundesrat (in German), Conseil Federal (in French), Consiglio Federale (in Italian) indirectly elected by the Federal Assembly for a 4-year term" @@ -573,7 +572,7 @@ "text": "president and vice president elected by the Federal Assembly from among members of the Federal Council for a 1-year, non-consecutive term; election last held on 8 December 2021 (next to be held in December 2022)" }, "election results": { - "text": "Ignazio CASSIS elected president (FDP.The Liberals); Federal Assembly vote - 156 of 197 votes; Alain BERSET (SP) elected vice president; Federal Assembly vote - 158 of 204" + "text": "Ignazio CASSIS elected president; Federal Assembly vote - Ignazio CASSIS (FDP.The Liberals) 156 of 197 votes; Alain BERSET (SP) elected vice president; Federal Assembly vote - 158 of 204" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -668,7 +667,7 @@ "text": "13 (9 cultural, 4 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Old City of Berne (c), Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch (n), Monte San Giorgio (n), Abbey of St Gall (c), Three Castles, Defensive Wall, and Ramparts of the Market-Town of Bellinzona (c), Rhaetian Railway in the Albula/Bernina Landscapes (c), La Chaux-de-Fonds/Le Locle, Watchmaking Town Planning (c), Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps (c), Benedictine Convent of St John at Müstair (c), Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces (c)" + "text": "Old City of Berne (c); Swiss Alps Jungfrau-Aletsch (n); Monte San Giorgio (n); Abbey of St Gall (c); Three Castles, Defensive Wall, and Ramparts of the Market-Town of Bellinzona (c); Rhaetian Railway in the Albula/Bernina Landscapes (c); La Chaux-de-Fonds/Le Locle, Watchmaking Town Planning (c); Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps (c); Benedictine Convent of St John at Müstair (c); Lavaux, Vineyard Terraces (c)" } } }, @@ -915,7 +914,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Swiss francs (CHF) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1239,7 +1238,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-30 years of age generally for male compulsory military service; 18 years of age for voluntary male and female military service; every Swiss male has to serve at least 245 days in the armed forces; conscripts receive 18 weeks of mandatory training, followed by six 19-day intermittent recalls for training during the next 10 years (2021)", - "note": "note - conscientious objectors can choose 390 days of community service instead of military service" + "note": "note: conscientious objectors can choose 390 days of community service instead of military service" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "up to 165 Kosovo (NATO/KFOR) (2022)" @@ -1260,7 +1259,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "38,219 (Eritrea), 20,043 (Syria), 14,649 (Afghanistan), 6,069 (Sri Lanka), 6,197 (Turkey) (mid-year 2021); 57,380 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "38,219 (Eritrea), 20,043 (Syria), 14,649 (Afghanistan), 6,069 (Sri Lanka), 6,197 (Turkey) (mid-year 2021); 58,643 (Ukraine) (as of 26 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "684 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/uk.json b/europe/uk.json index 464a7f3e..066359f1 100644 --- a/europe/uk.json +++ b/europe/uk.json @@ -666,7 +666,7 @@ "text": "33 (28 cultural, 4 natural, 1 mixed); note - includes one site in Bermuda" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast (n), Ironbridge Gorge (c), Stonehenge, Avebury, and Associated Sites (c), Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd (c), Blenheim Palace (c), City of Bath (c), Tower of London (c), St Kilda (m), Maritime Greenwich (c), Old and New Towns of Edinburgh (c), Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (c), The English Lake District (c)" + "text": "Giant's Causeway and Causeway Coast (n); Ironbridge Gorge (c); Stonehenge, Avebury, and Associated Sites (c); Castles and Town Walls of King Edward in Gwynedd (c); Blenheim Palace (c); City of Bath (c); Tower of London (c); St Kilda (m); Maritime Greenwich (c); Old and New Towns of Edinburgh (c); Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (c); The English Lake District (c)" } } }, @@ -911,7 +911,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "British pounds (GBP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1229,7 +1229,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "United Kingdom Armed Forces (aka British Armed Forces, aka Her Majesty's Armed Forces): British Army, Royal Navy (includes Royal Marines), Royal Air Force (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - in 2021 the UK formed a joint service Space Command staffed by Army, Navy, and Air Force personnel, as well as civilians and key members of the commercial sector to manage space operations, training, and capabilities; it established a National Cyber Force comprised of military and intelligence personnel in 2020; in 2019, the UK formed the Strategic Command (formerly Joint Forces Command) to develop and manage the British military's medical services, training and education, defense intelligence, and information systems across the land, sea, air, space, and cyber domains; national-level special forces (UK Special Forces, UKSF) also fall under Strategic Command; in addition, the command manages joint overseas operations" + "note": "note: in 2021 the UK formed a joint service Space Command staffed by Army, Navy, and Air Force personnel, as well as civilians and key members of the commercial sector to manage space operations, training, and capabilities; it established a National Cyber Force comprised of military and intelligence personnel in 2020; in 2019, the UK formed the Strategic Command (formerly Joint Forces Command) to develop and manage the British military's medical services, training and education, defense intelligence, and information systems across the land, sea, air, space, and cyber domains; national-level special forces (UK Special Forces, UKSF) also fall under Strategic Command; in addition, the command manages joint overseas operations" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1250,14 +1250,14 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "approximately 153,000 regular forces (81,000 Army; 34,000 Navy, including about 7,000 Royal Marines; 38,000 Air Force) (2022)", - "note": "note - the military also had approximately 40-45,000 reserves and other personnel on active duty" + "note": "note: the military also has approximately 40-45,000 reserves and other personnel on active duty" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the inventory of the British military is comprised of a mix of domestically-produced and imported Western weapons systems; the US is the leading supplier of armaments to the UK since 2010; the UK defense industry is capable of producing a wide variety of air, land, and sea weapons systems and is one of the world's top weapons suppliers (2021)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "slight variations by service, but generally 16-36 years of age for enlisted (with parental consent under 18) and 18-29 for officers; minimum length of service 4 years; women serve in military services including ground combat roles; conscription abolished in 1963 (2021)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women made up about 11% of the military's full-time personnel" + "note": "note: as of 2019, women made up about 11% of the military's full-time personnel" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "approximately 1,000 Brunei; approximately 400 Canada (BATUS); approximately 2,500 Cyprus (250 for UNFICYP); approximately 900 Estonia (NATO); approximately 1,200 Falkland Islands; approximately 200 Germany; 570 Gibraltar; approximately 1,400 Middle East (including Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Oman, Saudi Arabia, UAE; coalition against ISIS; NATO); up to 350 Kenya (BATUK); approximately 350 Mali (EUTM, MINUSMA, and Operation Barkhane); 150 Poland (NATO) (2022)", @@ -1269,7 +1269,7 @@ }, "Terrorism": { "Terrorist group(s)": { - "text": "Continuity Irish Republican Army; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); New Irish Republican Army", + "text": "Continuity Irish Republican Army; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); New Irish Republican Army; al-Qa'ida", "note": "note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T" } }, @@ -1279,7 +1279,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "21,011 (Iran), 14,503 (Eritrea), 11,251 (Sudan), 11,412 (Syria), 9,469 (Afghanistan), 8,357 (Pakistan), 6,933 (Iraq), 5,200 (Sri Lanka) (2020); 95,400 (Ukraine) (as of 12 July 2022)" + "text": "21,011 (Iran), 14,503 (Eritrea), 11,251 (Sudan), 11,412 (Syria), 9,469 (Afghanistan), 8,357 (Pakistan), 6,933 (Iraq), 5,200 (Sri Lanka) (2020); 99,700 (Ukraine) (as of 18 July 2022)" }, "stateless persons": { "text": "3,968 (mid-year 2021)" diff --git a/europe/up.json b/europe/up.json index bc54fffe..faedc995 100644 --- a/europe/up.json +++ b/europe/up.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Ukraine was the center of the first eastern Slavic state, Kyivan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by internecine quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kyivan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The cultural and religious legacy of Kyivan Rus laid the foundation for Ukrainian nationalism through subsequent centuries. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine achieved a short-lived period of independence (1917-20), but was reconquered and endured a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two forced famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although Ukraine achieved independence in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, democracy and prosperity remained elusive as the legacy of state control and endemic corruption stalled efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties.
A peaceful mass protest referred to as the \"Orange Revolution\" in the closing months of 2004 forced the authorities to overturn a rigged presidential election and to allow a new internationally monitored vote that swept into power a reformist slate under Viktor YUSHCHENKO. Subsequent internal squabbles in the YUSHCHENKO camp allowed his rival Viktor YANUKOVYCH to stage a comeback in parliamentary (Rada) elections, become prime minister in August 2006, and be elected president in February 2010. In October 2012, Ukraine held Rada elections, widely criticized by Western observers as flawed due to use of government resources to favor ruling party candidates, interference with media access, and harassment of opposition candidates. President YANUKOVYCH's backtracking on a trade and cooperation agreement with the EU in November 2013 - in favor of closer economic ties with Russia - and subsequent use of force against students, civil society activists, and other civilians in favor of the agreement led to a three-month protest occupation of Kyiv's central square. The government's use of violence to break up the protest camp in February 2014 led to all out pitched battles, scores of deaths, international condemnation, a failed political deal, and the president's abrupt departure for Russia. New elections in the spring allowed pro-West president Petro POROSHENKO to assume office in June 2014; he was succeeded by Volodymyr ZELENSKY in May 2019.
Shortly after YANUKOVYCH's departure in late February 2014, Russian President PUTIN ordered the invasion of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula falsely claiming the action was to protect ethnic Russians living there. Two weeks later, a \"referendum\" was held regarding the integration of Crimea into the Russian Federation. The \"referendum\" was condemned as illegitimate by the Ukrainian Government, the EU, the US, and the UN General Assembly (UNGA). In response to Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, 100 members of the UN passed UNGA resolution 68/262, rejecting the \"referendum\" as baseless and invalid and confirming the sovereignty, political independence, unity, and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In mid-2014, Russia began supplying proxies in two of Ukraine's eastern provinces with manpower, funding, and materiel driving an armed conflict with the Ukrainian Government that continues to this day. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, and the unrecognized Russian proxy republics signed the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum in September 2014 to end the conflict. However, this agreement failed to stop the fighting or find a political solution. In a renewed attempt to alleviate ongoing clashes, leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany negotiated a follow-on Package of Measures in February 2015 to implement the Minsk agreements. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, the unrecognized Russian proxy republics, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe also meet regularly to facilitate implementation of the peace deal. By early 2022, more than 14,000 civilians were killed or wounded as a result of the Russian intervention in eastern Ukraine.
On 24 February 2022, Russia escalated its conflict with Ukraine by invading the country on several fronts in what has become the largest conventional military attack on a sovereign state in Europe since World War II. The invasion has received near universal international condemnation, and many countries have imposed sanctions on Russia and also supplied humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine. The invasion has also created Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. As of 12 July, approximately 9.17 million people had fled Ukraine, and 6.275 million people were internally displaced as of 23 June. Over 11,500 civilian casualties had been reported, as of 11 July.
" + "text": "
Ukraine was the center of the first eastern Slavic state, Kyivan Rus, which during the 10th and 11th centuries was the largest and most powerful state in Europe. Weakened by internecine quarrels and Mongol invasions, Kyivan Rus was incorporated into the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and eventually into the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. The cultural and religious legacy of Kyivan Rus laid the foundation for Ukrainian nationalism through subsequent centuries. A new Ukrainian state, the Cossack Hetmanate, was established during the mid-17th century after an uprising against the Poles. Despite continuous Muscovite pressure, the Hetmanate managed to remain autonomous for well over 100 years. During the latter part of the 18th century, most Ukrainian ethnographic territory was absorbed by the Russian Empire. Following the collapse of czarist Russia in 1917, Ukraine achieved a short-lived period of independence (1917-20), but was reconquered and endured a brutal Soviet rule that engineered two forced famines (1921-22 and 1932-33) in which over 8 million died. In World War II, German and Soviet armies were responsible for 7 to 8 million more deaths. Although Ukraine achieved independence in 1991 with the dissolution of the USSR, democracy and prosperity remained elusive as the legacy of state control and endemic corruption stalled efforts at economic reform, privatization, and civil liberties.
A peaceful mass protest referred to as the \"Orange Revolution\" in the closing months of 2004 forced the authorities to overturn a rigged presidential election and to allow a new internationally monitored vote that swept into power a reformist slate under Viktor YUSHCHENKO. Subsequent internal squabbles in the YUSHCHENKO camp allowed his rival Viktor YANUKOVYCH to stage a comeback in parliamentary (Rada) elections, become prime minister in August 2006, and be elected president in February 2010. In October 2012, Ukraine held Rada elections, widely criticized by Western observers as flawed due to use of government resources to favor ruling party candidates, interference with media access, and harassment of opposition candidates. President YANUKOVYCH's backtracking on a trade and cooperation agreement with the EU in November 2013 - in favor of closer economic ties with Russia - and subsequent use of force against students, civil society activists, and other civilians in favor of the agreement led to a three-month protest occupation of Kyiv's central square. The government's use of violence to break up the protest camp in February 2014 led to all out pitched battles, scores of deaths, international condemnation, a failed political deal, and the president's abrupt departure for Russia. New elections in the spring allowed pro-West president Petro POROSHENKO to assume office in June 2014; he was succeeded by Volodymyr ZELENSKY in May 2019.
Shortly after YANUKOVYCH's departure in late February 2014, Russian President PUTIN ordered the invasion of Ukraine's Crimean Peninsula falsely claiming the action was to protect ethnic Russians living there. Two weeks later, a \"referendum\" was held regarding the integration of Crimea into the Russian Federation. The \"referendum\" was condemned as illegitimate by the Ukrainian Government, the EU, the US, and the UN General Assembly (UNGA). In response to Russia's illegal annexation of Crimea, 100 members of the UN passed UNGA resolution 68/262, rejecting the \"referendum\" as baseless and invalid and confirming the sovereignty, political independence, unity, and territorial integrity of Ukraine. In mid-2014, Russia began supplying proxies in two of Ukraine's eastern provinces with manpower, funding, and materiel driving an armed conflict with the Ukrainian Government that continues to this day. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, and the unrecognized Russian proxy republics signed the Minsk Protocol and Memorandum in September 2014 to end the conflict. However, this agreement failed to stop the fighting or find a political solution. In a renewed attempt to alleviate ongoing clashes, leaders of Ukraine, Russia, France, and Germany negotiated a follow-on Package of Measures in February 2015 to implement the Minsk agreements. Representatives from Ukraine, Russia, the unrecognized Russian proxy republics, and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe also meet regularly to facilitate implementation of the peace deal. By early 2022, more than 14,000 civilians were killed or wounded as a result of the Russian intervention in eastern Ukraine.
On 24 February 2022, Russia escalated its conflict with Ukraine by invading the country on several fronts in what has become the largest conventional military attack on a sovereign state in Europe since World War II. The invasion has received near universal international condemnation, and many countries have imposed sanctions on Russia and also supplied humanitarian and military aid to Ukraine. The invasion has also created Europe's largest refugee crisis since World War II. As of 26 July, approximately 9.93 million people had fled Ukraine, and 6.275 million people were internally displaced as of 23 June. Over 12,200 civilian casualties had been reported, as of 24 July. The invasion of Ukraine remains one of the two largest displacement crises worldwide (the other is the conflict in Syria).
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -926,7 +926,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "hryvnia (UAH) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1238,7 +1238,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Armed Forces of Ukraine (Zbroyni Syly Ukrayiny, ZSU): Ground Forces (Sukhoputni Viys’ka), Naval Forces (Viys’kovo-Mors’ki Syly, VMS), Air Forces (Povitryani Syly, PS), Air Assault Forces (Desantno-shturmovi Viyska, DShV), Ukrainian Special Operations Forces (UASOF), Territorial Defense Forces (Reserves); Ministry of Internal Affairs: National Guard of Ukraine, State Border Guard Service of Ukraine (includes Maritime Border Guard) (2022)", - "note": "note - in the event that martial law is declared, all National Guard units, with certain exceptions such as those tasked with providing for diplomatic security of embassies and consulates, would come under the command of the Ministry of Defense as auxiliary forces to the Armed Forces" + "note": "note: in the event that martial law is declared, all National Guard units, with certain exceptions such as those tasked with providing for diplomatic security of embassies and consulates, would come under the command of the Ministry of Defense as auxiliary forces to the Armed Forces" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2020": { @@ -1258,18 +1258,17 @@ } }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { - "text": "prior to the Russian invasion, approximately 200,000 active troops (125,000 Army; 25,000 Airborne/Air Assault Forces; 2,000 Special Operations Forces; 10,000 Navy; 40,000 Air Force); approximately 50,000 National Guard (Feb 2022)
" diff --git a/europe/vt.json b/europe/vt.json index 32035709..4b990ec2 100644 --- a/europe/vt.json +++ b/europe/vt.json @@ -288,6 +288,9 @@ }, "daylight saving time": { "text": "+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October" + }, + "etymology": { + "text": "the term \"Vatican\" derives from the hill Mons Vaticanus on which the Vatican is located and which comes from the Latin \"vaticinari\" (to prophesy), referring to the fortune tellers and soothsayers who frequented the area in Roman times" } }, "Administrative divisions": { @@ -474,7 +477,7 @@ "text": "calendar year" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/middle-east/ae.json b/middle-east/ae.json index 34fa56a3..124e6530 100644 --- a/middle-east/ae.json +++ b/middle-east/ae.json @@ -886,7 +886,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Emirati dirhams (AED) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1186,8 +1186,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "United Arab Emirates Armed Forces: Land Forces, Navy Forces, Air Force, Presidential Guard (includes special operations forces); Ministry of Interior: Critical Infrastructure and Coastal Patrol Agency (CICPA) (2022)
as of 2022, the IDF also conducted frequent operations against the HAMAS and Palestine Islamic Jihad (PIJ) terrorist groups operating out of the Gaza Strip; since seizing control of the Gaza Strip in 2007, HAMAS has claimed responsibility for numerous rocket attacks into Israel and organized protests at the border between Gaza and Israel, resulting in violent clashes, casualties, and reprisal military actions by the IDF; HAMAS and Israel fought an 11-day conflict in May of 2021, which ended in an informal truce; sporadic clashes continued into 2022, including incendiary balloon attacks from Palestinian territory and retaliatory IDF strikes; PIJ has conducted numerous attacks on Israel since the 1980s, including a barrage of mortar and rocket strikes in February 2020 (see Appendix-T for more details on HAMAS and Palestine Islamic Jihad)
Israel has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US; MNNA is a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation; while MNNA status provides military and economic privileges, it does not entail any security commitments
- as of 2022, Iraqi security forces (ISF) continued to conduct counterinsurgency and counter-terrorism operations against the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS) terrorist group, particularly in northern and western Iraq; Kurdish Security Forces (KSF, aka Peshmerga) also conducted operations against ISIS
- the KSF were formally recognized as a legitimate Iraqi military force under the country’s constitution and have operated jointly with the Iraqi military against ISIS militants, but they also operate outside of Iraqi military command structure; since 2021, the ISF and the KSF have conducted joint counter-ISIS operations in an area known as the Kurdish Coordination Line (KCL), a swath of disputed territory in northern Iraq claimed by both the Kurdistan Regional Government and the central Iraqi Government; the KSF/Peshmerga report to the Kurdistan Regional Government or Kurdistan Democratic Party and Patriotic Union of Kurdistan parties instead of the Iraqi Ministry of Defense
- Popular Mobilization Commission and Affiliated Forces (PMF or PMC), also known as Popular Mobilization Units (PMU, or al-Hashd al-Sha’abi in Arabic), tribal militia units have fought alongside the Iraqi military against ISIS since 2014, but the majority of these forces continue to largely ignore the 2016 Law of the Popular Mobilization Authority, which mandated that armed militias must be regulated in a fashion similar to Iraq’s other security forces and act under the Iraqi Government’s direct control; the Iraqi Government funds the PMF, and the prime minister legally commands it, but many of the militia units take orders from associated political parties and/or other government officials, including some with ties to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and some that have been designated as terrorist organizations by the US; the PMF/PMU is an umbrella organization comprised of many different militias, the majority of which are Shia; there are typically three types of Shia militia:
--militias backed by Iran; they are considered the most active and capable, and include such groups as the Badr Organization (Saraya al-Sala), Asaib Ahl al-Haq, and Kataib Hizballah
--militias affiliated with Shia political parties, but not aligned with Iran, such as Moqtada al-SADR's Saray al-Salam (Peace Brigades)
--militias not connected with political parties, but affiliated with the Najaf-based Grand Ayatollah Ali al-SISTANI (Iraq’s supreme Shia cleric), such as the Hawza militias
other PMF/PMU militias include Tribal Mobilization militias, or Hashd al-Asha’iri, which are composed of fighters from Sunni tribes; some of these militias take orders from the ISF and local authorities while others respond to orders from the larger Shia PMU militias; still other militias include Yazidi and Christian militias and the Turkmen brigades; the links of these forces to the PMU is not always clear-cut and may be loosely based on financial, legal, or political incentives
- at the request of the Iraqi government, NATO agreed to establish an advisory, training and capacity-building mission for the Iraqi military in October 2018; as of 2022, the NATO Mission Iraq (NMI) had about 500 troops; in December 2021, the task force that leads the defeat ISIS mission in Iraq, Combined Joint Task Force – Operation Inherent Resolve (CJTF-OIR), transitioned from a combat role to an advise, assist, and enable role
(2022)" diff --git a/middle-east/jo.json b/middle-east/jo.json index c609485b..25d2fc3a 100644 --- a/middle-east/jo.json +++ b/middle-east/jo.json @@ -560,7 +560,7 @@ "text": "mixed system developed from codes instituted by the Ottoman Empire (based on French law), British common law, and Islamic law" }, "International law organization participation": { - "text": "has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICC jurisdiction" + "text": "has not submitted an ICJ jurisdiction declaration; accepts ICCt jurisdiction" }, "Citizenship": { "citizenship by birth": { @@ -678,7 +678,7 @@ "text": "6 (5 cultural, 1 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Petra (c), Quseir Amra (c), Um er-Rasas (Kastrom Mefa'a) (c), Wadi Rum Protected Area (m), Baptism Site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan” (Al-Maghtas) (c), As-Salt - The Place of Tolerance and Urban Hospitality (c)" + "text": "Petra (c); Quseir Amra (c); Um er-Rasas (Kastrom Mefa'a) (c); Wadi Rum Protected Area (m); Baptism Site “Bethany Beyond the Jordan” (Al-Maghtas) (c); As-Salt - The Place of Tolerance and Urban Hospitality (c)" } } }, @@ -918,7 +918,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Jordanian dinars (JOD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1086,7 +1086,7 @@ }, "Telecommunication systems": { "general assessment": { - "text": "Jordan is host to a growing number of ICT companies and has emerged as a technology start-up hub for the Middle East; recently focused on telecom solutions to pandemic issues such as e-health and education; progress in the digital financial services; economic goals rely on digital economy, developed mobile sector, and extensive LTE infrastructure; preparation for 5G and e-commerce; importer of broadcasting equipment from Vietnam and China (2020)" + "text": "Jordan’s government has focused on the use of ICT in a range of sectors, aimed at transforming the relatively small economy through the use of digital services; this policy has helped the country rise in the league tables for digital connectivity and internet readiness, and it has also attracted investment from foreign companies; during the ongoing global pandemic, the start-up sector has been further encouraged to develop solutions to combat the crisis, while other efforts have facilitated e-government services and encouraged businesses to adapt to new methods of working through their own digital transformation; these developments have been supported by the highly developed mobile sector, led by three major regional players which have near-comprehensive LTE network coverage; Orange Jordan has also focused on building up its FttP infrastructure, with the network covering about 618,000 premises by mid-2021. (2022)" }, "domestic": { "text": "1995 a telecommunications law opened all non-fixed-line services to private competition; in 2005, the monopoly over fixed-line services terminated and the entire telecommunications sector was opened to competition; currently fixed-line stands at nearly 4 per 100 persons and multiple mobile-cellular providers with subscribership over 68 per 100 persons (2020)" @@ -1206,7 +1206,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Jordanian Armed Forces (JAF): Royal Jordanian Army (includes Special Operations Forces, Border Guards, Royal Guard), Royal Jordanian Air Force, Royal Jordanian Coast Guard; Ministry of Interior: Public Security Directorate (includes national police, the Gendarmerie, and the Civil Defense Directorate) (2022)", - "note": "note - the armed forces report administratively to the minister of defense and have a support role for internal security; here is no separate Ministry of Defense; the prime minister also serves as defense minister" + "note": "note: the armed forces report administratively to the minister of defense and have a support role for internal security; there is no separate Ministry of Defense; the prime minister also serves as defense minister" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1233,7 +1233,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "17 years of age for voluntary male military service (women can volunteer to serve in noncombat military positions in the Royal Jordanian Arab Army Women's Corps and RJAF); initial service term 2 years, with option to reenlist for 18 years; conscription abolished in 1991; however, in 2020, Jordan announced the reinstatement of compulsory military service for jobless men aged between 25 and 29 with 12 months of service, made up of 3 months of military training and 9 months of professional and technical training; in 2019, announced a voluntary 4-month National Military Service program for men and women aged between 18-25 years who have been unemployed for at least 6 months; service would include 1 month for military training with the remaining 3 months dedicated to vocational training in the sectors of construction and tourism (2022)", - "note": "note - most women serve in the medical service; outside the medical service, women comprised about 1.5% of the military as of 2019; the Jordanian Government intended to raise this to 3%" + "note": "note: most women serve in the medical service; outside the medical service, women comprised about 1.5% of the military as of 2019" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "330 Mali (MINUSMA) (Feb 2022)" @@ -1244,7 +1244,8 @@ }, "Terrorism": { "Terrorist group(s)": { - "text": "Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS)" + "text": "Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS)", + "note": "note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T" } }, "Transnational Issues": { diff --git a/middle-east/ku.json b/middle-east/ku.json index 498229a8..64b26b04 100644 --- a/middle-east/ku.json +++ b/middle-east/ku.json @@ -541,7 +541,7 @@ "text": "Amir NAWAF al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah (since 30 September 2020); Crown Prince MISHAL Al Ahmad Al Sabah, born in 1940, is the brother of Amir NAWAF al-Ahmad al-Jabir al-Sabah" }, "head of government": { - "text": "Prime Minister SABAH KHALID al-Hamad al-Sabah (since 19 November 2019); First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmed al-Nawaf Al Sabah (since 22 March 2022), Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal al-Khaled Al Sabah (since 9 March 2022), and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Dr. Mohammed al-Faris (since 22 March 2022)" + "text": "Prime Minister Sheikh Muhammad Al Sabah Al Salim Al Sabah (since 19 July 2022); First Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Ahmed al-Nawaf Al Sabah (since 22 March 2022), Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Defense Sheikh Talal al-Khaled Al Sabah (since 9 March 2022), and Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Oil and Minister of State for Cabinet Affairs Dr. Mohammed al-Faris (since 22 March 2022)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister, approved by the amir" @@ -857,7 +857,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Kuwaiti dinars (KD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1025,7 +1025,7 @@ }, "Telecommunication systems": { "general assessment": { - "text": "the quality of service is excellent; new telephone exchanges provide a large capacity for new subscribers; trunk traffic is carried by microwave radio relay, coaxial cable, open-wire, and fiber-optic cable; a 4G LTE mobile-cellular telephone system operates throughout Kuwait; Internet access is available via 4G LTE connections for fixed and mobile users; high ownership levels of smart phones in Kuwait; one of the highest mobile penetration rates in the world; exploring 5G opportunities; improvements to fiber-broadband underway (2020)" + "text": "Kuwait’s telecom infrastructure is well developed, with a focus on mobile infrastructure and services; the telecom sector is important to the country’s economy, and this will become more pronounced in coming years as the economy is purposefully transitioned away from a dependence on oil and gas to one which is increasingly knowledge-based and focused on ICT and related services; the MNOs have focused investment on 5G networks, which support and promote the growth of data traffic; this in turn has been a catalyst for revenue growth in recent quarters; while Kuwait’s mobile sector shows considerable progress; the country’s fixed broadband system is the lowest in the region; the government has stepped up efforts to build up fixed broadband networks, and ultimately this sector offers a potential future growth opportunity; improvements to the fixed broadband infrastructure will help develop sectors such as e-commerce, along with smart infrastructure developments, and tech start-ups. (2022)" }, "domestic": { "text": "fixed-line subscriptions are nearly 14 per 100 and mobile-cellular stands at nearly 159 per 100 subscriptions (2020)" @@ -1140,7 +1140,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Kuwaiti Armed Forces: Kuwaiti Land Forces (KLF), Kuwaiti Navy, Kuwaiti Air Force (Al-Quwwat al-Jawwiya al-Kuwaitiya; includes Kuwaiti Air Defense Force, KADF), 25th Commando Brigade, and the Kuwait Emiri Guard Brigade; Kuwaiti National Guard (KNG); Coast Guard (Ministry of Interior) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Kuwait Amiri Guard Authority and the 25th Commando Brigade exercise independent command authority within the Kuwaiti Armed Forces, although activities such as training and equipment procurement are often coordinated with the other services; the Kuwaiti National Guard reports directly to the prime minister and the amir and possesses an independent command structure, equipment inventory, and logistics corps separate from the Ministry of Defense, the regular armed services, and the Ministry of Interior; it is responsible for protecting critical infrastructure and providing support for the Ministries of Interior and Defense as required" + "note": "note 1: the Kuwait Amiri Guard Authority and the 25th Commando Brigade exercise independent command authority within the Kuwaiti Armed Forces, although activities such as training and equipment procurement are often coordinated with the other servicesThe inhabitants of the area of Oman have long prospered from Indian Ocean trade. In the late 18th century, the nascent sultanate in Muscat signed the first in a series of friendship treaties with Britain. Over time, Oman's dependence on British political and military advisors increased, although the sultanate never became a British colony. In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al-Said overthrew his father, and has since ruled as sultan. Sultan QABOOS has no children and has not designated a successor publicly; the Basic Law of 1996 outlines Oman’s succession procedure. Sultan QABOOS’ extensive modernization program opened the country to the outside world, and the sultan has prioritized strategic ties with the UK and US. Oman's moderate, independent foreign policy has sought to maintain good relations with its neighbors and to avoid external entanglements.
Inspired by the popular uprisings that swept the Middle East and North Africa beginning in January 2011, some Omanis staged demonstrations, calling for more jobs and economic benefits and an end to corruption. In response to those protester demands, QABOOS in 2011 pledged to implement economic and political reforms, such as granting Oman’s bicameral legislative body more power and authorizing direct elections for its lower house, which took place in November 2011. Additionally, the Sultan increased unemployment benefits, and, in August 2012, issued a royal directive mandating the speedy implementation of a national job creation plan for thousands of public and private sector Omani jobs. As part of the government's efforts to decentralize authority and allow greater citizen participation in local governance, Oman successfully conducted its first municipal council elections in December 2012. Announced by the sultan in 2011, the municipal councils have the power to advise the Royal Court on the needs of local districts across Oman's 11 governorates. Sultan QABOOS, Oman's longest reigning monarch, died on 11 January 2020. His cousin, HAYTHAM bin Tariq bin Taimur Al-Said, former Minister of Heritage and Culture, was sworn in as Oman's new sultan the same day.
The inhabitants of the area of Oman have long prospered from Indian Ocean trade. In the late 18th century, the nascent sultanate in Muscat signed the first in a series of friendship treaties with Britain. Over time, Oman's dependence on British political and military advisors increased, although the sultanate never became a British colony. In 1970, QABOOS bin Said Al-Said overthrew his father, and ruled as sultan for the next five decades. His extensive modernization program opened the country to the outside world. He prioritized strategic ties with the UK and US, and his moderate, independent foreign policy allowed Oman to maintain good relations with its neighbors and to avoid external entanglements.
Inspired by the popular uprisings that swept the Middle East and North Africa beginning in January 2011, some Omanis staged demonstrations, calling for more jobs and economic benefits and an end to corruption. In response to those protester demands, QABOOS in 2011 pledged to implement economic and political reforms, such as granting Oman’s bicameral legislative body more power and authorizing direct elections for its lower house, which took place in November 2011. Additionally, the sultan increased unemployment benefits, and, in August 2012, issued a royal directive mandating the speedy implementation of a national job creation plan for thousands of public and private sector Omani jobs. As part of the government's efforts to decentralize authority and allow greater citizen participation in local governance, Oman successfully conducted its first municipal council elections in December 2012. Announced by the sultan in 2011, the municipal councils have the power to advise the Royal Court on the needs of local districts across Oman's 11 governorates. Sultan QABOOS, Oman's longest reigning monarch, died on 11 January 2020. His cousin, HAYTHAM bin Tariq bin Taimur Al-Said, former Minister of Heritage and Culture, was sworn in as Oman's new sultan the same day.
Ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar within the last 60 years transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. Former Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, who overthrew his father in a bloodless coup in 1995, ushered in wide-sweeping political and media reforms, unprecedented economic investment, and a growing Qatari regional leadership role, in part through the creation of the pan-Arab satellite news network Al-Jazeera and Qatar's mediation of some regional conflicts. In the 2000s, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and by 2007 had attained the highest per capita income in the world. Qatar did not experience domestic unrest or violence like that seen in other Near Eastern and North African countries in 2011, due in part to its immense wealth and patronage network. In mid-2013, HAMAD peacefully abdicated, transferring power to his son, the current Amir TAMIM bin Hamad. TAMIM is popular with the Qatari public, for his role in shepherding the country through an economic embargo by some other regional countries, for his efforts to improve the country's healthcare and education systems, and for his expansion of the country's infrastructure in anticipation of Doha's hosting of the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
Following the outbreak of regional unrest in 2011, Doha prided itself on its support for many popular revolutions, particularly in Libya and Syria. This stance was to the detriment of Qatar’s relations with Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which temporarily recalled their respective ambassadors from Doha in March 2014. TAMIM later oversaw a warming of Qatar’s relations with Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE in November 2014 following Kuwaiti mediation and signing of the Riyadh Agreement. This reconciliation, however, was short-lived. In June 2017, Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE (the \"Quartet\") cut diplomatic and economic ties with Qatar in response to alleged violations of the agreement, among other complaints. They restored ties in January 2021 after signing a declaration at the GCC Summit in Al Ula, Saudi Arabia." + "text": "
Ruled by the Al Thani family since the mid-1800s, Qatar within the last 60 years transformed itself from a poor British protectorate noted mainly for pearling into an independent state with significant oil and natural gas revenues. Former Amir HAMAD bin Khalifa Al Thani, who overthrew his father in a bloodless coup in 1995, ushered in wide-sweeping political and media reforms, unprecedented economic investment, and a growing Qatari regional leadership role, in part through the creation of the pan-Arab satellite news network Al-Jazeera and Qatar's mediation of some regional conflicts. In the 2000s, Qatar resolved its longstanding border disputes with both Bahrain and Saudi Arabia and by 2007 had attained the highest per capita income in the world. Qatar did not experience domestic unrest or violence like that seen in other Near Eastern and North African countries in 2011, due in part to its immense wealth and patronage network. In mid-2013, HAMAD peacefully abdicated, transferring power to his son, the current Amir TAMIM bin Hamad. TAMIM is popular with the Qatari public, for his role in shepherding the country through an economic embargo by some other regional countries, for his efforts to improve the country's healthcare and education systems, and for his expansion of the country's infrastructure in anticipation of Doha's hosting of the 2022 FIFA Men’s World Cup.
Following the outbreak of regional unrest in 2011, Doha prided itself on its support for many popular revolutions, particularly in Libya and Syria. This stance was to the detriment of Qatar’s relations with Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the United Arab Emirates (UAE), which temporarily recalled their respective ambassadors from Doha in March 2014. TAMIM later oversaw a warming of Qatar’s relations with Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE in November 2014 following Kuwaiti mediation and signing of the Riyadh Agreement. This reconciliation, however, was short-lived. In June 2017, Bahrain, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and the UAE (the \"Quartet\") cut diplomatic and economic ties with Qatar in response to alleged violations of the agreement, among other complaints. They restored ties in January 2021 after signing a declaration at the Gulf Cooperation Council Summit in Al Ula, Saudi Arabia." } }, "Geography": { @@ -874,7 +874,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Qatari rials (QAR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1177,7 +1177,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "conscription for males aged 18-35 introduced in 2013; compulsory service times range from 4-12 months, depending on the cadets educational and professional circumstances; since 2018, women have been permitted to serve in the armed forces, including as uniformed officers and pilots (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2020, the military incorporated about 2,000 conscripts annually" + "note": "note: as of 2020, the military incorporated about 2,000 conscripts annually" }, "Military - note": { "text": "Qatar hosts more than 8,000 US military forces and the regional headquarters for the US Central Command (CENTCOM; established 1983) at various military facilities, including the large Al Udeid Air Base; Qatar also hosts as many as 5,000 Turkish military forces at two bases established in 2014 and 2019
Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and home to Islam's two holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina. The king's official title is the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The modern Saudi state was founded in 1932 by ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman Al SAUD (Ibn Saud) after a 30-year campaign to unify most of the Arabian Peninsula. One of his male descendants rules the country today, as required by the country's 1992 Basic Law. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Saudi Arabia accepted the Kuwaiti royal family and 400,000 refugees while allowing Western and Arab troops to deploy on its soil for the liberation of Kuwait the following year. The continuing presence of foreign troops on Saudi soil after the liberation of Kuwait became a source of tension between the royal family and the public until all operational US troops left the country in 2003. Major terrorist attacks in May and November 2003 spurred a strong ongoing campaign against domestic terrorism and extremism. US troops returned to the Kingdom in October 2019 after attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure.
From 2005 to 2015, King ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud incrementally modernized the Kingdom. Driven by personal ideology and political pragmatism, he introduced a series of social and economic initiatives, including expanding employment and social opportunities for women, attracting foreign investment, increasing the role of the private sector in the economy, and discouraging businesses from hiring foreign workers. These reforms have accelerated under King SALMAN bin Abd al-Aziz, who ascended to the throne in 2015, and has since lifted the Kingdom's ban on women driving, implemented education reforms, funded green initiatives, and allowed cinemas to operate for the first time in decades. Saudi Arabia saw some protests during the 2011 Arab Spring but not the level of bloodshed seen in protests elsewhere in the region. Shia Muslims in the Eastern Province protested primarily against the detention of political prisoners, endemic discrimination, and Bahraini and Saudi Government actions in Bahrain. Riyadh took a cautious but firm approach by arresting some protesters but releasing most of them quickly and by using its state-sponsored clerics to counter political and Islamist activism.
The government held its first-ever elections in 2005 and 2011, when Saudis went to the polls to elect municipal councilors. In December 2015, women were allowed to vote and stand as candidates for the first time in municipal council elections, with 19 women winning seats. After King SALMAN ascended to the throne in 2015, he placed the first next-generation prince, MUHAMMAD BIN NAYIF bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, in the line of succession as Crown Prince. He designated his son, MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, as the Deputy Crown Prince. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia led a coalition of 10 countries in a military campaign to restore the legitimate government of Yemen, which had been ousted by Huthi forces allied with former president ALI ABDULLAH al-Salih. The war in Yemen has drawn international criticism for civilian casualties and its effect on the country’s dire humanitarian situation. In December 2015, then Deputy Crown Prince MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN announced Saudi Arabia would lead a 34-nation Islamic Coalition to fight terrorism (it has since grown to 41 nations). In May 2017, Saudi Arabia inaugurated the Global Center for Combatting Extremist Ideology (also known as \"Etidal\") as part of its ongoing efforts to counter violent extremism. In June 2017, King SALMAN elevated MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN to Crown Prince. Since then, he has jockeyed for influence with neighboring countries in a bid to be the region’s main power broker.
The country remains a leading producer of oil and natural gas and holds about 17% of the world's proven oil reserves as of 2020. The government continues to pursue economic reform and diversification, particularly since Saudi Arabia's accession to the WTO in 2005, and promotes foreign investment in the Kingdom. In April 2016, the Saudi Government announced a broad set of socio-economic reforms, known as Vision 2030. Low global oil prices throughout 2015 and 2016 significantly lowered Saudi Arabia’s governmental revenue. In response, the government cut subsidies on water, electricity, and gasoline; reduced government employee compensation packages; and announced limited new land taxes. In coordination with OPEC and some key non-OPEC countries, Saudi Arabia agreed cut oil output in early 2017 to regulate supply and help elevate global prices. In early 2020, this agreement by the so-called OPEC+ coalition collapsed. Saudi Arabia launched a price war by flooding the market with low-priced oil before returning to the negotiating table to agree to OPEC+’s largest and longest-lasting output cut. This cut helped to buoy prices that had collapsed as a result of the price war and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
" + "text": "Saudi Arabia is the birthplace of Islam and home to Islam's two holiest shrines in Mecca and Medina. The king's official title is the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques. The modern Saudi state was founded in 1932 by ABD AL-AZIZ bin Abd al-Rahman AL SAUD (Ibn Saud) after a 30-year campaign to unify most of the Arabian Peninsula. One of his male descendants rules the country today, as required by the country's 1992 Basic Law. Following Iraq's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, Saudi Arabia accepted the Kuwaiti royal family and 400,000 refugees while allowing Western and Arab troops to deploy on its soil for the liberation of Kuwait the following year. The continuing presence of foreign troops on Saudi soil after the liberation of Kuwait became a source of tension between the royal family and the public until all operational US troops left the country in 2003. Major terrorist attacks in May and November 2003 spurred a strong ongoing campaign against domestic terrorism and extremism. US troops returned to the Kingdom in October 2019 after attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure.
From 2005 to 2015, King ABDALLAH bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud incrementally modernized the Kingdom. Driven by personal ideology and political pragmatism, he introduced a series of social and economic initiatives, including expanding employment and social opportunities for women, attracting foreign investment, increasing the role of the private sector in the economy, and discouraging businesses from hiring foreign workers. These reforms have accelerated under King SALMAN bin Abd al-Aziz, who ascended to the throne in 2015, and has since lifted the Kingdom's ban on women driving, implemented education reforms, funded green initiatives, and allowed cinemas to operate for the first time in decades. Saudi Arabia saw some protests during the 2011 Arab Spring but not the level of bloodshed seen in protests elsewhere in the region. Shia Muslims in the Eastern Province protested primarily against the detention of political prisoners, endemic discrimination, and Bahraini and Saudi Government actions in Bahrain. Riyadh took a cautious but firm approach by arresting some protesters but releasing most of them quickly and by using its state-sponsored clerics to counter political and Islamist activism.
The government held its first-ever elections in 2005 and 2011, when Saudis went to the polls to elect municipal councilors. In December 2015, women were allowed to vote and stand as candidates for the first time in municipal council elections, with 19 women winning seats. After King SALMAN ascended to the throne in 2015, he placed the first next-generation prince, MUHAMMAD BIN NAYIF bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, in the line of succession as Crown Prince. He designated his son, MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN bin Abd al-Aziz Al Saud, as the Deputy Crown Prince. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia led a coalition of 10 countries in a military campaign to restore the legitimate government of Yemen, which had been ousted by Huthi forces allied with former president ALI ABDULLAH al-Salih. The war in Yemen has drawn international criticism for civilian casualties and its effect on the country’s dire humanitarian situation. In December 2015, then Deputy Crown Prince MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN announced Saudi Arabia would lead a 34-nation Islamic Coalition to fight terrorism (it has since grown to 41 nations). In May 2017, Saudi Arabia inaugurated the Global Center for Combatting Extremist Ideology (also known as \"Etidal\") as part of its ongoing efforts to counter violent extremism. In June 2017, King SALMAN elevated MUHAMMAD BIN SALMAN to Crown Prince. Since then, he has jockeyed for influence with neighboring countries in a bid to be the region’s main power broker.
The country remains a leading producer of oil and natural gas and holds about 17% of the world's proven oil reserves as of 2020. The government continues to pursue economic reform and diversification, particularly since Saudi Arabia's accession to the WTO in 2005, and promotes foreign investment in the Kingdom. In April 2016, the Saudi Government announced a broad set of socio-economic reforms, known as Vision 2030. Low global oil prices throughout 2015 and 2016 significantly lowered Saudi Arabia’s governmental revenue. In response, the government cut subsidies on water, electricity, and gasoline; reduced government employee compensation packages; and announced limited new land taxes. In coordination with OPEC and some key non-OPEC countries, Saudi Arabia agreed to cut oil output in early 2017 to regulate supply and help elevate global prices. In early 2020, this agreement by the so-called OPEC+ coalition collapsed. Saudi Arabia launched a price war by flooding the market with low-priced oil before returning to the negotiating table to agree to OPEC+’s largest and longest-lasting output cut. This cut helped to buoy prices that had collapsed as a result of the price war and the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -892,7 +892,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Saudi riyals (SAR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1201,7 +1201,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Ministry of Defense: Royal Saudi Land Forces, Royal Saudi Naval Forces (includes marines, special forces, naval aviation), Royal Saudi Air Force, Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces, Royal Saudi Strategic Missiles Force; Ministry of the National Guard (SANG); Ministry of Interior: police, Border Guard, Facilities Security Force; State Security Presidency: General Directorate of Investigation (Mabahith), Special Security Forces, Special Emergency Forces (2022)", - "note": "note - SANG (also known as the White Army) is a land force separate from the Ministry of Defense that is responsible for internal security, protecting the royal family, and external defense" + "note": "note: SANG (also known as the White Army) is a land force separate from the Ministry of Defense that is responsible for internal security, protecting the royal family, and external defense" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1222,7 +1222,7 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "the Saudi military forces have about 225,000 active troops; approximately 125,000 under the Ministry of Defense (75,000 Land Forces; 15,000 Naval Forces; 35,000 Air Force/Air Defense/Strategic Missile Forces) and approximately 100,000 in the Saudi Arabia National Guard (SANG) (2021)", - "note": "note - SANG also has an irregular force (Fowj), primarily Bedouin tribal volunteers, with a total strength of approximately 25,000 men" + "note": "note: SANG also has an irregular force (Fowj), primarily Bedouin tribal volunteers, with a total strength of approximately 25,000" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the inventory of the Saudi military forces, including the SANG, includes a mix of mostly modern weapons systems from the US and Europe; since 2010, the US is the leading supplier of armaments; as of 2020-21, Saudi Arabia was the world's largest arms importer (2021)" @@ -1239,7 +1239,7 @@ }, "Terrorism": { "Terrorist group(s)": { - "text": "Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); al-Qa’ida; al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula", + "text": "Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); al-Qa’ida; al-Qa’ida in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)", "note": "note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T" } }, diff --git a/middle-east/sy.json b/middle-east/sy.json index 41a2ce8c..1c3ef587 100644 --- a/middle-east/sy.json +++ b/middle-east/sy.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French administered the area as Syria until granting it independence in 1946. The new country lacked political stability and experienced a series of military coups. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In September 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights region to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional, albeit unsuccessful, peace talks over its return. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the socialist Ba'ath Party and the minority Alawi sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. Following the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in July 2000. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah. In May 2007, Bashar al-ASAD's second term as president was approved by popular referendum.
Influenced by major uprisings that began elsewhere in the region, and compounded by additional social and economic factors, antigovernment protests broke out first in the southern province of Dar'a in March 2011 with protesters calling for the repeal of the restrictive Emergency Law allowing arrests without charge, the legalization of political parties, and the removal of corrupt local officials. Demonstrations and violent unrest spread across Syria with the size and intensity of protests fluctuating. The government responded to unrest with a mix of concessions - including the repeal of the Emergency Law, new laws permitting new political parties, and liberalizing local and national elections - and with military force and detentions. The government's efforts to quell unrest and armed opposition activity led to extended clashes and eventually civil war between government forces, their allies, and oppositionists.
International pressure on the ASAD regime intensified after late 2011, as the Arab League, the EU, Turkey, and the US expanded economic sanctions against the regime and those entities that support it. In December 2012, the Syrian National Coalition, was recognized by more than 130 countries as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people. In September 2015, Russia launched a military intervention on behalf of the ASAD regime, and domestic and foreign government-aligned forces recaptured swaths of territory from opposition forces, and eventually the country’s second largest city, Aleppo, in December 2016, shifting the conflict in the regime’s favor. The regime, with this foreign support, also recaptured opposition strongholds in the Damascus suburbs and the southern province of Dar’a in 2018. The government lacks territorial control over much of the northeastern part of the country, which is dominated by the predominantly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and a smaller area dominated by Turkey. The SDF expanded its territorial hold beyond its traditional homelands, subsuming much of the northeast since 2014 as it battled the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Since 2016, Turkey has been engaged in northern Syria and has conducted three large-scale military operations to capture territory along Syria's northern border in the provinces of Aleppo, Ar Raqqah, and Al Hasakah. Some opposition forces organized under the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army and Turkish forces have maintained control of northwestern Syria along the Turkish border with the Afrin area of Aleppo Province since 2018. In 2019, Turkey and its opposition allies occupied formerly SDF controlled territory between the cities of Tall Abyad to Ra’s Al ‘Ayn along Syria’s northern border. The extremist organization Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (formerly the Nusrah Front) in 2017 emerged as the predominate opposition force in Idlib Province, and still dominates an area also hosting additional Turkish forces. Negotiations between the government and opposition delegations at UN-sponsored Geneva conferences since 2014 and separately held discussions between Iran, Russia, and Turkey since early 2017 have failed to produce a resolution to the conflict. According to a September 2021 UN estimate, the death toll resulting from the past 10 years of civil war is more than 350,000, although the UN acknowledges that this is the minimum number of verifiable deaths and is an undercount. According to a September 2021 UN estimate, the death toll resulting from the past 10 years of civil war is more than 350,000, although the UN acknowledges that this is the minimum number of verifiable deaths and is an undercount. As of early 2022, approximately 6.9 million Syrians were internally displaced and 14.6 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance across the country. An additional 5.6 million Syrians were registered refugees in Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, and North Africa. The conflict in Syria remains the largest displacement crisis worldwide.
" + "text": "Following World War I, France acquired a mandate over the northern portion of the former Ottoman Empire province of Syria. The French administered the area as Syria until granting it independence in 1946. The new country lacked political stability and experienced a series of military coups. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In September 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights region to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional, albeit unsuccessful, peace talks over its return. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the socialist Ba'ath Party and the minority Alawi sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. Following the death of President Hafiz al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in July 2000. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah. In May 2007, Bashar al-ASAD's second term as president was approved by popular referendum.
Influenced by major uprisings that began elsewhere in the region, and compounded by additional social and economic factors, antigovernment protests broke out first in the southern province of Dar'a in March 2011 with protesters calling for the repeal of the restrictive Emergency Law allowing arrests without charge, the legalization of political parties, and the removal of corrupt local officials. Demonstrations and violent unrest spread across Syria with the size and intensity of protests fluctuating. The government responded to unrest with a mix of concessions - including the repeal of the Emergency Law, new laws permitting new political parties, and liberalizing local and national elections - and with military force and detentions. The government's efforts to quell unrest and armed opposition activity led to extended clashes and eventually civil war between government forces, their allies, and oppositionists.
International pressure on the ASAD regime intensified after late 2011, as the Arab League, the EU, Turkey, and the US expanded economic sanctions against the regime and those entities that support it. In December 2012, the Syrian National Coalition, was recognized by more than 130 countries as the sole legitimate representative of the Syrian people. In September 2015, Russia launched a military intervention on behalf of the ASAD regime, and domestic and foreign government-aligned forces recaptured swaths of territory from opposition forces, and eventually the country’s second largest city, Aleppo, in December 2016, shifting the conflict in the regime’s favor. The regime, with this foreign support, also recaptured opposition strongholds in the Damascus suburbs and the southern province of Dar’a in 2018. The government lacks territorial control over much of the northeastern part of the country, which is dominated by the predominantly Kurdish Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), and a smaller area dominated by Turkey. The SDF expanded its territorial hold beyond its traditional homelands, subsuming much of the northeast since 2014 as it battled the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria. Since 2016, Turkey has been engaged in northern Syria and has conducted three large-scale military operations to capture territory along Syria's northern border in the provinces of Aleppo, Ar Raqqah, and Al Hasakah. Some opposition forces organized under the Turkish-backed Syrian National Army and Turkish forces have maintained control of northwestern Syria along the Turkish border with the Afrin area of Aleppo Province since 2018. In 2019, Turkey and its opposition allies occupied formerly SDF-controlled territory between the cities of Tall Abyad to Ra’s Al ‘Ayn along Syria’s northern border. The extremist organization Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (formerly the Nusrah Front) in 2017 emerged as the predominate opposition force in Idlib Province, and still dominates an area also hosting additional Turkish forces. Negotiations between the government and opposition delegations at UN-sponsored Geneva conferences since 2014 and separately held discussions between Iran, Russia, and Turkey since early 2017 have failed to produce a resolution to the conflict. According to a September 2021 UN estimate, the death toll resulting from the past 10 years of civil war is more than 350,000, although the UN acknowledges that this is the minimum number of verifiable deaths and is an undercount. According to a June 2022 UN estimate, the death toll resulting from the past 10 plus years of civil war is more than 306,000. As of early 2022, approximately 6.66 million Syrians were internally displaced and 14.6 million people were in need of humanitarian assistance across the country. An additional 5.6 million Syrians were registered refugees in Turkey, Jordan, Iraq, Egypt, and North Africa. The conflict in Syria remains one of the two largest displacement crises worldwide (the other is the invasion of Ukraine).
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -543,16 +543,16 @@ "text": "President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Najah al-ATTAR (since 23 March 2006)" }, "head of government": { - "text": "Prime Minister Hussein ARNOUS (since 30 August 2020); Deputy Prime Minister Ali Abdullah AYOUB (Lt Gen.) (since 30 August 2020)" + "text": "Prime Minister Hussein ARNOUS (since 30 August 2020); Deputy Prime Minister Ali Abdullah AYOUB (Lt. Gen.) (since 30 August 2020)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Council of Ministers appointed by the president" }, "elections/appointments": { - "text": "president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 26 May 2021(next to be held in 2028); the president appoints the vice presidents, prime minister, and deputy prime ministers" + "text": "president directly elected by simple majority popular vote for a 7-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 26 May 2021 (next to be held in 2028); the president appoints the vice presidents, prime minister, and deputy prime ministers" }, "election results": { - "text": "Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD (Ba'th Party)95.2%, Mahmoud Ahmad MAREI (Democratic Arab Socialist Union) 3.3%, Abdullah Sallum ABDULLAH (Socialist Unionist Party) 1.5%" + "text": "Bashar al-ASAD elected president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD (Ba'th Party) 95.2%, Mahmoud Ahmad MAREI (Democratic Arab Socialist Union) 3.3%, Abdullah Sallum ABDULLAH (Socialist Unionist Party) 1.5%" } }, "Legislative branch": { @@ -629,7 +629,7 @@ "text": "6 (all cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Ancient City of Damascus, Ancient City of Bosra, Site of Palmyra, Ancient City of Aleppo, Crac des Chevaliers and Qal’at Salah El-Din, Ancient Villages of Northern Syria" + "text": "Ancient City of Damascus; Ancient City of Bosra; Site of Palmyra; Ancient City of Aleppo; Crac des Chevaliers and Qal’at Salah El-Din; Ancient Villages of Northern Syria" } } }, @@ -844,7 +844,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Syrian pounds (SYP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1152,8 +1152,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "Syrian Armed Forces: Syrian Arab Army (includes Republican Guard), Syrian Naval Forces, Syrian Air Forces, Syrian Air Defense Forces, National Defense Forces (pro-government militia and auxiliary forces) (2022)pro-ASAD elements operating in Syria have included Lebanese Hezbollah, Iranian, Iranian-backed Shia militia, and Russian forces; since early in the civil war, the ASAD government has relied on Lebanese Hezbollah (see Appendix T for further information), as well as Iran and Iranian-backed forces, for combat operations and to hold territory; Iran has provided military advisors and combat troops from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (including the Qods Force; see Appendix T for further information), as well as intelligence, logistical, material, technical, and financial support; it has funded, trained, equipped, and led Shia militia/paramilitary units comprised of both Syrian and non-Syrian personnel, primarily from Afghanistan, Iraq, and Pakistan; Russia intervened at the request of the ASAD government in 2015 and has since provided air support, special operations forces, military advisors, private military contractors, training, arms, and equipment; Iranian and Russian support has also included assisting Syria in combating the Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS; see Appendix T) terrorist group
Turkey intervened militarily in 2016 to combat Kurdish militants and ISIS, support select Syrian opposition forces, and establish a buffer along portions of its border with Syria; as of 2022, Turkey continued to maintain a considerable military presence in northern Syria; it has armed and trained militia/proxy forces, such as the Syrian National Army, which was formed in late 2017 of Syrian Arab and Turkmen rebel factions in the Halab (Aleppo) province and northwestern Syria
the US and some regional and European states have at times backed Syrian opposition forces militarily and/or conducted military operations, primarily against ISIS; the US has operated in Syria since 2015 with ground forces and air strikes; as of 2022, the majority the ground forces were deployed in the Eastern Syria Security Area (ESSA, which includes parts of Hasakah and Dayr az Zawr provinces east of the Euphrates River) in support of operations by the Syrian Democratic Forces against ISIS, while the remainder were in southeast Syria around Tanf supporting counter-ISIS operations by the Jaysh Mughawir al-Thawra (MaT, or Revolutionary Commando Army) Syrian opposition force; the US has also conducted air strikes against Syrian military targets in response to Syrian Government use of chemical weapons against opposition forces and civilians; in addition, France, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and the UK have provided forms of military assistance to opposition forces and/or conducted operations against ISIS, including air strikes
Israel has conducted hundreds of military air strikes in Syria against Syrian military, Hezbollah, Iranian, and/or Iranian-backed militia targets
the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) are an anti-ASAD regime coalition of forces composed primarily of Kurdish, Sunni Arab, and Syriac Christian fighters; it is dominated and led by Kurdish forces, particularly the People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia; the SDF began to receive US support in 2015 and as of 2022 was the main local US partner in its counter-ISIS campaign; the SDF has internal security, anti-terror, and commando units; Turkey views the SDF as an extension of the Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), a US-designated terrorist organization (see Appendix T)
the ISIS terrorist group (see Appendix T) lost its last territorial stronghold to SDF forces in 2019, but continued to maintain a low-level insurgency as of 2022; in addition, the SDF held about 10,000 captured suspected ISIS fighters in detention facilities across northern Syria, including 2,000 from countries other than Iraq and Syria
as of 2022, the Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (HTS; formerly known as al-Nusrah Front) terrorist organization (see Appendix T) was the dominant militant group in northwest Syria and asserted considerable influence and control over the so-called Syrian Salvation Government in the Iblib de-escalation zone
(2022)" @@ -1189,7 +1189,7 @@ }, "Terrorism": { "Terrorist group(s)": { - "text": "Abdallah Azzam Brigades; Ansar al-Islam; Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq; Hizballah; Hurras al-Din; Islamic Jihad Union; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps -- Qods Force; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham; Kata'ib Hizballah; Kurdistan Workers' Party; Mujahidin Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem; al-Nusrah Front (Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham); al-Qa'ida; Palestine Liberation Front; PFLP-General Command; Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine", + "text": "Abdallah Azzam Brigades; Ansar al-Islam; Asa’ib Ahl Al-Haq; Hizballah; Hurras al-Din; Islamic Jihad Union; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)/Qods Force; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham (ISIS); Kata'ib Hizballah; Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK); Mujahidin Shura Council in the Environs of Jerusalem; al-Nusrah Front (Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham); al-Qa'ida; Palestine Liberation Front; Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PFLP); PFLP-General Command", "note": "note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix-T" } }, @@ -1207,7 +1207,7 @@ "stateless persons": { "text": "160,000 (mid-year 2021); note - Syria's stateless population consists of Kurds and Palestinians; stateless persons are prevented from voting, owning land, holding certain jobs, receiving food subsidies or public healthcare, enrolling in public schools, or being legally married to Syrian citizens; in 1962, some 120,000 Syrian Kurds were stripped of their Syrian citizenship, rendering them and their descendants stateless; in 2011, the Syrian Government granted citizenship to thousands of Syrian Kurds as a means of appeasement; however, resolving the question of statelessness is not a priority given Syria's ongoing civil war" }, - "note": "note: the ongoing civil war has resulted in more than 5.6 million registered Syrian refugees - dispersed in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey - as of June 2022" + "note": "note: the ongoing civil war has resulted in more than 5.6 million registered Syrian refugees - dispersed in Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey - as of July 2022" }, "Trafficking in persons": { "current situation": { diff --git a/middle-east/tu.json b/middle-east/tu.json index ae19c7fe..7c1633c2 100644 --- a/middle-east/tu.json +++ b/middle-east/tu.json @@ -684,7 +684,7 @@ "text": "19 (17 cultural, 2 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Archaeological Site of Troy (c), Ephesus (c), Diyarbakır Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape (c), Hierapolis-Pamukkale (m), Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia (m), Göbekli Tepe (c), Historic Areas of Istanbul (c), Selimiye Mosque and its Social Complex (c), Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük (c), Bursa and Cumalıkızık: the Birth of the Ottoman Empire (c)" + "text": "Archaeological Site of Troy (c); Ephesus (c); Diyarbakır Fortress and Hevsel Gardens Cultural Landscape (c); Hierapolis-Pamukkale (m); Göreme National Park and the Rock Sites of Cappadocia (m); Göbekli Tepe (c); Historic Areas of Istanbul (c); Selimiye Mosque and its Social Complex (c); Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük (c); Bursa and Cumalıkızık: the Birth of the Ottoman Empire (c)" } } }, @@ -929,7 +929,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Turkish liras (TRY) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1238,7 +1238,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Turkish Armed Forces (TSK): Turkish Land Forces (Turk Kara Kuvvetleri), Turkish Naval Forces (Turk Deniz Kuvvetleri; includes naval air and naval infantry), Turkish Air Forces (Turk Hava Kuvvetleri); Ministry of Interior: Gendarmerie of the Turkish Republic (aka Gendarmerie General Command), Turkish Coast Guard Command, National Police (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Gendarmerie is responsible for the maintenance of the public order in areas that fall outside the jurisdiction of police forces (generally in rural areas); in wartime, the Gendarmerie and Coast Guard would be placed under the operational control of the Land Forces and Naval Forces, respectively" + "note": "note: the Gendarmerie is responsible for the maintenance of the public order in areas that fall outside the jurisdiction of police forces (generally in rural areas); in wartime, the Gendarmerie and Coast Guard would be placed under the operational control of the Land Forces and Naval Forces, respectively" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1264,8 +1264,8 @@ "text": "the Turkish Armed Forces inventory is mostly comprised of a mix of domestically-produced and Western weapons systems, although in recent years, Turkey has also acquired some Chinese, Russian, and South Korean equipment; since 2010, the US is the leading provider of armaments to Turkey, followed by Italy, South Korea, and Spain; Turkey has a robust defense industry capable of producing a range of weapons systems for both export and internal use, including armored vehicles, naval vessels, and unmanned aerial platforms, although it is heavily dependent on Western technology; Turkey's defense industry also partners with other countries for defense production (2021)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { - "text": "President Erdoğan on 25 June 2019 signed a new law cutting the men’s mandatory military service period in half, as well as making paid military service permanent; with the new system, the period of conscription was reduced from 12 months to six months for privates and non-commissioned soldiers (the service term for reserve officers chosen among university or college graduates will remain 12 months); after completing six months of service, if a conscripted soldier wants to and is suitable for extending his military service, he may do so for an additional six months in return for a monthly salary; under the new law, all male Turkish citizens over the age of 20 will be required to undergo a one month military training period, but they can obtain an exemption from the remaining five months of their mandatory service by paying 31,000 Turkish Liras (2021)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women made up about .3% of the military's full-time personnel" + "text": "mandatory military service for men, age 20-41; service can be delayed if in university or in certain professions (researchers, professionals, and athletic, or those with artistic talents have the right to postpone military service until the age of 35); 6-12 months service; women may volunteer (2021)", + "note": "note 1: in 2019, a new law cut the men’s mandatory military service period in half, as well as making paid military service permanent; with the new system, the period of conscription was reduced from 12 months to six months for privates and non-commissioned soldiers (the service term for reserve officers chosen among university or college graduates remained 12 months); after completing six months of service, if a conscripted soldier wants to and is suitable for extending his military service, he may do so for an additional six months in return for a monthly salary; under the new law, all male Turkish citizens over the age of 20 are required to undergo a one month military training period, but they can obtain an exemption from the remaining five months of their mandatory service by paying 31,000 Turkish LirasThe landlocked West Bank - the larger of the two Palestinian territories - is home to some three million Palestinians. Inhabited since at least the 15th century B.C., the West Bank has been dominated by many different peoples throughout its history; it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century. The West Bank fell to British forces during World War I, becoming part of the British Mandate of Palestine. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the West Bank was captured by Transjordan (later renamed Jordan), which annexed the West Bank in 1950; it was captured by Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967. Under a series of agreements known as the Oslo accords signed between 1993 and 1999, Israel transferred to the newly created Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for many Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank as well as the Gaza Strip.
In addition to establishing the PA as an interim government, the Oslo accords divided the West Bank into three areas with one fully managed by the PA, another fully administered by Israel, and a third with shared control until a permanent agreement could be reached between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel. In 2000, a violent intifada or uprising began across the Palestinian territories, and in 2001 negotiations for a permanent agreement between the PLO and Israel on final status issues stalled. Subsequent attempts to re-start direct negotiations have not resulted in progress toward determining final status of the area.
The PA last held national elections in 2006, when the Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS) won a majority of seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). Fatah, the dominant Palestinian political faction in the West Bank, and HAMAS failed to maintain a unity government, leading to violent clashes between their respective supporters and HAMAS’s violent seizure of all PA military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip in June 2007. In December 2018, the Palestinian Constitutional Court dissolved the PLC. In recent years, Fatah and HAMAS have made several attempts at reconciliation, but the factions have been unable to implement agreements.
Since 1994, the PA has administered parts of the West Bank under its control, mainly the major Palestinian population centers and areas immediately surrounding them. Roughly 60% of the West Bank remains under full Israeli civil and military control, impeding movement of people and goods through the territory." + "text": "
The landlocked West Bank - the larger of the two Palestinian territories - is home to some three million Palestinians. Inhabited since at least the 15th century B.C., the West Bank has been dominated by many different peoples throughout its history; it was incorporated into the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century. The West Bank fell to British forces during World War I, becoming part of the British Mandate of Palestine. Following the 1948 Arab-Israeli War, the West Bank was captured by Transjordan (later renamed Jordan), which annexed the West Bank in 1950; it was captured by Israel in the Six-Day War in 1967. Under a series of agreements known as the Oslo Accords signed between 1993 and 1999, Israel transferred to the newly created Palestinian Authority (PA) security and civilian responsibility for many Palestinian-populated areas of the West Bank as well as the Gaza Strip.
In addition to establishing the PA as an interim government, the Oslo Accords divided the West Bank into three areas with one fully managed by the PA, another fully administered by Israel, and a third with shared control until a permanent agreement could be reached between the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO) and Israel. In 2000, a violent intifada or uprising began across the Palestinian territories, and in 2001 negotiations for a permanent agreement between the PLO and Israel on final status issues stalled. Subsequent attempts to re-start direct negotiations have not resulted in progress toward determining final status of the area.
The PA last held national elections in 2006, when the Islamic Resistance Movement (HAMAS) won a majority of seats in the Palestinian Legislative Council (PLC). Fatah, the dominant Palestinian political faction in the West Bank, and HAMAS failed to maintain a unity government, leading to violent clashes between their respective supporters and HAMAS’s violent seizure of all PA military and governmental institutions in the Gaza Strip in June 2007. In December 2018, the Palestinian Constitutional Court dissolved the PLC. In recent years, Fatah and HAMAS have made several attempts at reconciliation, but the factions have been unable to implement agreements.
Since 1994, the PA has administered parts of the West Bank under its control, mainly the major Palestinian population centers and areas immediately surrounding them. Roughly 60% of the West Bank remains under full Israeli civil and military control, impeding movement of people and goods through the territory." } }, "Geography": { @@ -700,7 +700,7 @@ "note": "note: data include the Gaza Strip" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "new Israeli shekels (ILS) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -868,15 +868,16 @@ "text": "the Palestinian Authority operates 1 TV and 1 radio station; about 20 private TV and 40 radio stations; both Jordanian TV and satellite TV are accessible" }, "Internet country code": { - "text": ".psnote - same as Gaza Strip" + "text": ".ps; note - IANA has designated .ps for the West Bank, same as Gaza Strip" }, "Internet users": { "total": { - "text": "3,602,452 (2020 est.) (includes Gaza Strip)" + "text": "3,602,452 (2020 est.)" }, "percent of population": { - "text": "75% (2020 est.) (includes Gaza Strip)" - } + "text": "75% (2020 est.)" + }, + "note": "note: includes the Gaza Strip" }, "Broadband - fixed subscriptions": { "total": { @@ -921,7 +922,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "per the Oslo Accords, the PA is not permitted a conventional military but maintains security and police forces; PA security personnel have operated almost exclusively in the West Bank since HAMAS seized power in the Gaza Strip in 2007; PA forces include National Security Forces, Presidential Guard, Civil Police, Civil Defense, Preventive Security Organization, the General Intelligence Organization, and the Military Intelligence Organization (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the National Security Forces conduct gendarmerie-style security operations in circumstances that exceed the capabilities of the civil police; it is the largest branch of the Palestinian Authority security service and acts as the Palestinian army; the Presidential Guard protects facilities and provides dignitary protection; the Preventive Security Organization is responsible for internal intelligence gathering and investigations related to internal security cases, including political dissent" + "note": "note: the National Security Forces conduct gendarmerie-style security operations in circumstances that exceed the capabilities of the civil police; it is the largest branch of the Palestinian Authority security service and acts as the Palestinian army; the Presidential Guard protects facilities and provides dignitary protection; the Preventive Security Organization is responsible for internal intelligence gathering and investigations related to internal security cases, including political dissent" }, "Military expenditures": { "text": "not available" diff --git a/middle-east/ym.json b/middle-east/ym.json index 32951b1f..61dbbebc 100644 --- a/middle-east/ym.json +++ b/middle-east/ym.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "
The Kingdom of Yemen (colloquially known as North Yemen) became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1918 and in 1962 became the Yemen Arab Republic. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became the People's Republic of Southern Yemen (colloquially known as South Yemen). Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation and changed the country's name to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement and brief civil war in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to delineate their border.
Fighting in the northwest between the government and the Huthis, a Zaydi Shia Muslim minority, continued intermittently from 2004 to 2010, and then again from 2014-present. The southern secessionist movement was revitalized in 2007.
Public rallies in Sana'a against then President Ali Abdallah SALIH - inspired by similar Arab Spring demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt - slowly built momentum starting in late January 2011 fueled by complaints over high unemployment, poor economic conditions, and corruption. By the following month, some protests had resulted in violence, and the demonstrations had spread to other major cities. By March the opposition had hardened its demands and was unifying behind calls for SALIH's immediate ouster. In April 2011, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), in an attempt to mediate the crisis in Yemen, proposed the GCC Initiative, an agreement in which the president would step down in exchange for immunity from prosecution. SALIH's refusal to sign an agreement led to further violence. The UN Security Council passed Resolution 2014 in October 2011 calling for an end to the violence and completing a power transfer deal. In November 2011, SALIH signed the GCC Initiative to step down and to transfer some of his powers to Vice President Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI. Following HADI's uncontested election victory in February 2012, SALIH formally transferred all presidential powers. In accordance with the GCC Initiative, Yemen launched a National Dialogue Conference (NDC) in March 2013 to discuss key constitutional, political, and social issues. HADI concluded the NDC in January 2014 and planned to begin implementing subsequent steps in the transition process, including constitutional drafting, a constitutional referendum, and national elections.
The Huthis, perceiving their grievances were not addressed in the NDC, joined forces with SALIH and expanded their influence in northwestern Yemen, which culminated in a major offensive against military units and rival tribes and enabled their forces to overrun the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014. In January 2015, the Huthis surrounded the presidential palace, HADI's residence, and key government facilities, prompting HADI and the cabinet to submit their resignations. HADI fled to Aden in February 2015 and rescinded his resignation. He subsequently escaped to Oman and then moved to Saudi Arabia and asked the GCC to intervene militarily in Yemen to protect the legitimate government from the Huthis. In March, Saudi Arabia assembled a coalition of Arab militaries and began airstrikes against the Huthis and Huthi-affiliated forces. Ground fighting between Huthi-aligned forces and anti-Huthi groups backed by the Saudi-led coalition continued through 2016. In 2016, the UN brokered a months-long cessation of hostilities that reduced airstrikes and fighting, and initiated peace talks in Kuwait. However, the talks ended without agreement. The Huthis and SALIH’s political party announced a Supreme Political Council in August 2016 and a National Salvation Government, including a prime minister and several dozen cabinet members, in November 2016, to govern in Sanaa and further challenge the legitimacy of HADI’s government. However, amid rising tensions between the Huthis and SALIH, sporadic clashes erupted in mid-2017, and escalated into open fighting that ended when Huthi forces killed SALIH in early December 2017. In 2018, anti-Huthi forces made the most battlefield progress in Yemen since early 2016, most notably in Al Hudaydah Governorate. In December 2018, the Huthis and Yemeni Government participated in the first UN-brokered peace talks since 2016, agreeing to a limited ceasefire in Al Hudaydah Governorate and the establishment of a UN Mission to monitor the agreement. In April 2019, Yemen’s parliament convened in Say'un for the first time since the conflict broke out in 2014. In August 2019, violence erupted between HADI's government and the pro-secessionist Southern Transition Council (STC) in southern Yemen. In November 2019, HADI's government and the STC signed a power-sharing agreement to end the fighting between them, and in December 2020, the signatories formed a new cabinet. In 2020 and 2021, fighting continued on the ground in Yemen as the Houthis gained territory, and also conducted regular UAV and missile attacks against targets in Saudi Arabia.
" + "text": "The Kingdom of Yemen (colloquially known as North Yemen) became independent from the Ottoman Empire in 1918 and in 1962 became the Yemen Arab Republic. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became the People's Republic of Southern Yemen (colloquially known as South Yemen). Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation and changed the country's name to the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement and brief civil war in 1994 was quickly subdued. In 2000, Saudi Arabia and Yemen agreed to delineate their border.
Fighting in the northwest between the government and the Huthis, a Zaydi Shia Muslim minority, continued intermittently from 2004 to 2010, and then again from 2014-present. The southern secessionist movement was revitalized in 2007.
Public rallies in Sana'a against then President Ali Abdallah SALIH - inspired by similar Arab Spring demonstrations in Tunisia and Egypt - slowly built momentum starting in late January 2011 fueled by complaints over high unemployment, poor economic conditions, and corruption. By the following month, some protests had resulted in violence, and the demonstrations had spread to other major cities. By March the opposition had hardened its demands and was unifying behind calls for SALIH's immediate ouster. In April 2011, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), in an attempt to mediate the crisis in Yemen, proposed the GCC Initiative, an agreement in which the president would step down in exchange for immunity from prosecution. SALIH's refusal to sign an agreement led to further violence. The UN Security Council passed Resolution 2014 in October 2011 calling for an end to the violence and completing a power transfer deal. In November 2011, SALIH signed the GCC Initiative to step down and to transfer some of his powers to Vice President Abd Rabuh Mansur HADI. Following HADI's uncontested election victory in February 2012, SALIH formally transferred all presidential powers. In accordance with the GCC Initiative, Yemen launched a National Dialogue Conference (NDC) in March 2013 to discuss key constitutional, political, and social issues. HADI concluded the NDC in January 2014 and planned to begin implementing subsequent steps in the transition process, including constitutional drafting, a constitutional referendum, and national elections.
The Huthis, perceiving their grievances were not addressed in the NDC, joined forces with SALIH and expanded their influence in northwestern Yemen, which culminated in a major offensive against military units and rival tribes and enabled their forces to overrun the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014. In January 2015, the Huthis surrounded the presidential palace, HADI's residence, and key government facilities, prompting HADI and the cabinet to submit their resignations. HADI fled to Aden in February 2015 and rescinded his resignation. He subsequently escaped to Oman and then moved to Saudi Arabia and asked the GCC to intervene militarily in Yemen to protect the legitimate government from the Huthis. In March 2015, Saudi Arabia assembled a coalition of Arab militaries and began airstrikes against the Huthis and Huthi-affiliated forces. Ground fighting between Huthi-aligned forces and anti-Huthi groups backed by the Saudi-led coalition continued through 2016. In 2016, the UN brokered a months-long cessation of hostilities that reduced airstrikes and fighting, and initiated peace talks in Kuwait. However, the talks ended without agreement. The Huthis and SALIH’s political party announced a Supreme Political Council in August 2016 and a National Salvation Government, including a prime minister and several dozen cabinet members, in November 2016, to govern in Sanaa and further challenge the legitimacy of HADI’s government. However, amid rising tensions between the Huthis and SALIH, sporadic clashes erupted in mid-2017, and escalated into open fighting that ended when Huthi forces killed SALIH in early December 2017. In 2018, anti-Huthi forces made the most battlefield progress in Yemen since early 2016, most notably in Al Hudaydah Governorate. In December 2018, the Huthis and Yemeni Government participated in the first UN-brokered peace talks since 2016, agreeing to a limited cease-fire in Al Hudaydah Governorate and the establishment of a UN Mission to monitor the agreement. In April 2019, Yemen’s parliament convened in Say'un for the first time since the conflict broke out in 2014. In August 2019, violence erupted between HADI's government and the pro-secessionist Southern Transition Council (STC) in southern Yemen. In November 2019, HADI's government and the STC signed a power-sharing agreement to end the fighting between them, and in December 2020, the signatories formed a new cabinet. In 2020 and 2021, fighting continued on the ground in Yemen as the Huthis gained territory, and also conducted regular UAV and missile attacks against targets in Saudi Arabia.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -628,7 +628,7 @@ }, "Diplomatic representation in the US": { "chief of mission": { - "text": "Ambassador (vacant); note - on 18 December 2020, former Ambassador Ahmad Awadh BIN MUBARAK (since 3 August 2015) was appointed Yemen's Minister for Foreign Affairs and Expatriates" + "text": "Ambassador Mohammed Al-HADHRAMI (since 2019)" }, "chancery": { "text": "2319 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008" @@ -684,7 +684,7 @@ "text": "4 (3 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Old Walled City of Shibam (c), Old City of Sana'a (c), Historic Town of Zabid (c), Socotra Archipelago (n)" + "text": "Old Walled City of Shibam (c); Old City of Sana'a (c); Historic Town of Zabid (c); Socotra Archipelago (n)" } } }, @@ -900,7 +900,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Yemeni rials (YER) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1200,8 +1200,8 @@ }, "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { - "text": "as of 2021, military and security forces operating in Yemen consisted of a patchwork of government, non-state, and foreign-backed regular, semi-regular/militia, and paramilitary forces, often with informal command organizations and conflicting, fluid, or overlapping agendas, loyalties, and relationships; in addition, the Huthis maintained opposition military and security forces
Republic of Yemen Government (ROYG) forces; Ministry of Defense: Yemeni National Army, Air Force and Air Defense, Navy and Coastal Defense Forces, Border Guard, Strategic Reserve Forces (includes Special Forces and Presidential Protection Brigades, which are under the Ministry of Defense but responsible to the president), Popular Committee Forces (government-backed tribal militia); Ministry of Interior: Special Security Forces (paramilitary; formerly known as Central Security Forces), Political Security Organization (state security), National Security Bureau (intelligence), Counterterrorism Unit
Saudi-backed forces: paramilitary/militia border security brigades based largely on tribal or regional affiliation (deployed along the Saudi-Yemen border, especially the areas bordering the governorates of Saada and Al-Jawf)
United Arab Emirates-backed forces included tribal and regionally-based militia and paramilitary forces (concentrated in the southern governates): Southern Transitional Council (STC) forces, including the Security Belt Forces, the Shabwani and Hadrami “Elite” Forces, the Support and Backup Forces (aka Logistics and Support Forces), Facilities Protection Forces, and Anti-Terrorism Forces; Republican Forces; Joint Forces; note – under the 2019 Riyadh Agreement, the STC forces were to be incorporated into Yemen’s Ministries of Defense and Interior under the authority of the HADI government
Huthi: ground, air/air defense, coastal defense, presidential protection, special operations, missile, and tribal militia forces
prior to the start of the civil war, annual military expenditures were approximately 4-5% of Yemen's GDP
" @@ -1234,7 +1234,7 @@ }, "Refugees and internally displaced persons": { "refugees (country of origin)": { - "text": "69,097 (Somalia), 18,153 (Ethiopia) (2022)" + "text": "69,230 (Somalia), 18,153 (Ethiopia) (2022)" }, "IDPs": { "text": "4,288,739 (conflict in Sa'ada Governorate; clashes between al-Qa'ida in the Arabian Peninsula and government forces) (2022)" diff --git a/north-america/bd.json b/north-america/bd.json index 9516e851..3122b067 100644 --- a/north-america/bd.json +++ b/north-america/bd.json @@ -768,7 +768,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Bermudian dollars (BMD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1012,7 +1012,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Royal Bermuda Regiment; Bermuda Police Service (2022)", - "note": "note - the Royal Bermuda Regiment is a reserve multi-role battalion that carries out two primary functions – providing military aid to civil authorities and humanitarian and disaster relief" + "note": "note: the Royal Bermuda Regiment is a reserve multi-role battalion that carries out two primary functions – providing military aid to civil authorities and humanitarian and disaster relief" }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "the Royal Bermuda Regiment has about 350 troops (2021)" diff --git a/north-america/ca.json b/north-america/ca.json index 6c3e9366..d7bc39f0 100644 --- a/north-america/ca.json +++ b/north-america/ca.json @@ -680,7 +680,7 @@ "text": "20 (9 cultural, 10 natural, 1 mixed) (2021)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "L'Anse aux Meadows (c), Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks (n), Dinosaur Provincial Park (n), Historic District of Old Quebec (c), Old Town Lunenburg (c), Wood Buffalo National Park (n), Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump (c), Gros Morne National Park (n)" + "text": "L'Anse aux Meadows (c); Canadian Rocky Mountain Parks (n); Dinosaur Provincial Park (n); Historic District of Old Quebec (c); Old Town Lunenburg (c); Wood Buffalo National Park (n); Head-Smashed-In Buffalo Jump (c); Gros Morne National Park (n); Pimachiowin Aki (m)" } } }, @@ -932,7 +932,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Canadian dollars (CAD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1251,7 +1251,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Canadian Forces: Canadian Army, Royal Canadian Navy, Royal Canadian Air Force, Canadian Joint Operations Command, Canadian Special Operations Forces Command; Primary Reserve (army, air, naval reserves); Coast Guard (Department of Fisheries and Oceans) (2022)", - "note": "note - the Army reserves include the Canadian Rangers, which provides a limited presence in Canada's northern, coastal, and isolated areas for sovereignty, public safety, and surveillance roles" + "note": "note: the Army reserves include the Canadian Rangers, which provides a limited presence in Canada's northern, coastal, and isolated areas for sovereignty, public safety, and surveillance roles" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { @@ -1272,14 +1272,14 @@ }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "approximately 70,000 total active personnel (23,000 Army; 12,000 Navy; 12,000 Air Force; 23,000 other) (2022)", - "note": "note - the Army also has 19,000 part-time, volunteer soldiers in the Reserve Force, including about 5,500 Rangers" + "note": "note: the Army also has 19,000 part-time volunteer soldiers in the Reserve Force, including about 5,500 Rangers" }, "Military equipment inventories and acquisitions": { "text": "the CAF's inventory is a mix of domestically-produced equipment and imported weapons systems from Australia, Europe, Israel, and the US; since 2010, the leading supplier is the US; Canada's defense industry develops, maintains, and produces a range of equipment, including aircraft, combat vehicles, naval vessels, and associated components (2022)" }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "17 years of age for voluntary male and female military service (with parental consent); 16 years of age for Reserve and Military College applicants; Canadian citizenship or permanent residence status required; maximum 34 years of age; service obligation 3-9 years (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - Canada opened up all military occupations to women in 2001; in 2020, women comprised about 16% of the CAF" + "note": "note: Canada opened up all military occupations to women in 2001; in 2020, women comprised about 16% of the CAF" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "the CAF has nearly 1,400 military personnel forward deployed for NATO air, land, and sea missions in the European theater, including about 550 troops in Latvia and 140 in Romania (2022)", diff --git a/north-america/gl.json b/north-america/gl.json index ac925779..5530c99a 100644 --- a/north-america/gl.json +++ b/north-america/gl.json @@ -390,7 +390,9 @@ "local short form": { "text": "Kalaallit Nunaat" }, - "note": "note: named by Norwegian adventurer Erik THORVALDSSON (Erik the Red) in A.D. 985 in order to entice settlers to the island" + "etymology": { + "text": "named by Norwegian adventurer Erik THORVALDSSON (Erik the Red) in A.D. 985 in order to entice settlers to the island" + } }, "Government type": { "text": "parliamentary democracy (Parliament of Greenland or Inatsisartut)" @@ -467,7 +469,7 @@ "text": "Greenland Parliament - last held on 6 April 2021 (next to be held in 2025)Citizen's Movement (Movimiento Ciudadano) or MC [Clemente CASTANEDA Hoeflich]
Institutional Revolutionary Party (Partido Revolucionario Institucional) or PRI [Claudia RUIZ Massieu]
Labor Party (Partido del Trabajo) or PT [Alberto ANAYA Gutierrez]
Mexican Green Ecological Party (Partido Verde Ecologista de Mexico) or PVEM [Karen CASTREJON Trujillo]
Movement for National Regeneration (Movimiento Regeneracion Nacional) or MORENA [Mario DELGADO Carillo]
National Action Party (Partido Accion Nacional) or PAN [Antonio CORTES Mendoza]
Party of the Democratic Revolution (Partido de la Revolucion Democratica) or PRD [Jesus ZAMBRANO Grijalva]
This Is For Mexico (Va Por Mexico) – alliance that includes PAN, PRI, and PRD
Together We Make History (Juntos Hacemos Historia) - alliance that includes MORENA, PT, PVEM
NA
" }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "euros (EUR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/north-america/us.json b/north-america/us.json index e67ee531..ed343b10 100644 --- a/north-america/us.json +++ b/north-america/us.json @@ -584,10 +584,10 @@ }, "Executive branch": { "chief of state": { - "text": "President Joseph R. BIDEN Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government" + "text": "President Joseph R. BIDEN, Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government" }, "head of government": { - "text": "President Joseph R. BIDEN Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021)" + "text": "President Joseph R. BIDEN, Jr. (since 20 January 2021); Vice President Kamala D. HARRIS (since 20 January 2021)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Cabinet appointed by the president, approved by the Senate" @@ -596,7 +596,7 @@ "text": "president and vice president indirectly elected on the same ballot by the Electoral College of 'electors' chosen from each state; president and vice president serve a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 3 November 2020 (next to be held on 5 November 2024)" }, "election results": { - "text": "border conflicts with Peru dominated the military’s focus until the late 1990s; as of 2022, border security remained a priority, but in more recent years, security challenges have shifted towards counterinsurgency and counter-narcotics operations, particularly in the northern border area where violence and other criminal activity related to terrorism, insurgency, and narco-trafficking in Colombia, as well as refugees from Venezuela, has spilled over the border; troop deployments along the border with Colombia were scaled back following the 2016 signing of a peace agreement between the Colombian Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) terrorist group (see Appendix T), but recent violence associated with FARC dissidents to the agreement have led Ecuador and Colombia to reinforce their shared border; since 2012, the Ecuadorian Government has also expanded the military’s role in general public security and counter-narcotics operations, in part due to rising violence, police corruption, and police ineffectiveness
the military has had a large role in Ecuador’s political history; it ruled the country from 1963-1966 and 1972-1979, and supported a dictatorship in 1970-1972; during the 1980s, the military remained loyal to the civilian government, but civilian-military relations were at times tenuous, and the military had considerable autonomy from civilian oversight; it was involved in coup attempts in 2000 and 2010
" diff --git a/south-america/fk.json b/south-america/fk.json index 564847ec..394d26bf 100644 --- a/south-america/fk.json +++ b/south-america/fk.json @@ -333,7 +333,7 @@ "text": "Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas)" }, "etymology": { - "text": "the archipelago takes its name from the Falkland Sound, the strait separating the two main islands; the channel itself was named after the Viscount of Falkland, who sponsored an expedition to the islands in 1690; the Spanish name for the archipelago derives from the French \"Iles Malouines,\" the name applied to the islands by French explorer Louis-Antoine de BOUGAINVILLE in 1764" + "text": "the archipelago takes its name from the Falkland Sound, the strait separating the two main islands; the channel itself was named after the Viscount of FALKLAND, who sponsored an expedition to the islands in 1690; the Spanish name for the archipelago derives from the French \"Iles Malouines,\" the name applied to the islands by French explorer Louis-Antoine de BOUGAINVILLE in 1764" } }, "Government type": { @@ -381,7 +381,7 @@ }, "Executive branch": { "chief of state": { - "text": "Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Nigel PHILLIPS (since 12 September 2017)" + "text": "Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952); represented by Governor Alison BLAKE (since 23 July 2022)" }, "head of government": { "text": "Chief Executive Andy KEELING (since April 2021)" @@ -598,7 +598,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Falkland pounds (FKP) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/south-america/gy.json b/south-america/gy.json index 474a383b..a7d90a75 100644 --- a/south-america/gy.json +++ b/south-america/gy.json @@ -883,7 +883,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Guyanese dollars (GYD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/south-america/ns.json b/south-america/ns.json index 64f3d62e..c2930423 100644 --- a/south-america/ns.json +++ b/south-america/ns.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then settled by the English in the mid-17th century, Suriname became a Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of African slavery in 1863, workers were brought in from India and Java. The Netherlands granted the colony independence in 1975. Five years later the civilian government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared Suriname a socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987, when international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In 1990, the military overthrew the civilian leadership, but a democratically elected government - a four-party coalition - returned to power in 1991. The coalition expanded to eight parties in 2005 and ruled until August 2010, when voters returned former military leader Desire BOUTERSE and his opposition coalition to power. President BOUTERSE was reelected unopposed in 2015. Opposition parties campaigned hard against BOUTERSE in the lead up to the May 2020 elections, and in July 2020, a coalition led by Chandrikapersad SANTOKHI’s VHP and Ronnie Brunswijk’s ABOP was installed. The SANTOKHI government promised to tackle COVID-19, the economic crisis it inherited, and corruption." + "text": "First explored by the Spaniards in the 16th century and then settled by the English in the mid-17th century, Suriname became a Dutch colony in 1667. With the abolition of African slavery in 1863, workers were brought in from India and Java. The Netherlands granted the colony independence in 1975. Five years later, the civilian government was replaced by a military regime that soon declared Suriname a socialist republic. It continued to exert control through a succession of nominally civilian administrations until 1987, when international pressure finally forced a democratic election. In 1990, the military overthrew the civilian leadership, but a democratically elected government - a four-party coalition - returned to power in 1991. The coalition expanded to eight parties in 2005 and ruled until August 2010, when voters returned former military leader Desire BOUTERSE and his opposition coalition to power. President BOUTERSE was reelected unopposed in 2015. Opposition parties campaigned hard against BOUTERSE in the lead up to the May 2020 elections and, in July 2020, a coalition led by Chandrikapersad SANTOKHI’s VHP and Ronnie Brunswijk’s ABOP was installed. The SANTOKHI government promised to tackle COVID-19, the economic crisis it inherited, and corruption." } }, "Geography": { @@ -653,7 +653,7 @@ "text": "2 (1 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Central Suriname Nature Reserve (n), Historic Inner City of Paramaribo (c)" + "text": "Central Suriname Nature Reserve (n); Historic Inner City of Paramaribo (c)" } } }, @@ -880,7 +880,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Surinamese dollars (SRD) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { diff --git a/south-america/pa.json b/south-america/pa.json index dd0ea047..d7bd0794 100644 --- a/south-america/pa.json +++ b/south-america/pa.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Several Indigenous groups, principally belonging to the Guarani language family, inhabited the area of modern Paraguay before the arrival of the Spanish in the early 16th century, when the territory was incorporated into the Viceroyalty of Peru. Paraguay achieved its independence from Spain in 1811 with the help of neighboring states. In the aftermath of independence, a series of military dictators ruled the country until 1870. During the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance (1864-70) – fought against Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay - Paraguay lost two-thirds of its adult males and much of its territory. The country stagnated economically for the next half century and experienced a tumultuous series of political regimes. Following the Chaco War of 1932-35 with Bolivia, Paraguay gained a large part of the Chaco lowland region. The 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo STROESSNER ended in 1989, and Paraguay has held relatively free and regular presidential elections since the country's return to democracy." + "text": "Several Indigenous groups, principally belonging to the Guarani language family, inhabited the area of modern Paraguay before the arrival of the Spanish in the early 16th century, when the territory was incorporated into the Viceroyalty of Peru. Paraguay achieved its independence from Spain in 1811 with the help of neighboring states. In the aftermath of independence, a series of military dictators ruled the country until 1870. During the disastrous War of the Triple Alliance (1864-70) - fought against Argentina, Brazil, and Uruguay - Paraguay lost two thirds of its adult males and much of its territory. The country stagnated economically for the next half century and experienced a tumultuous series of political regimes. Following the Chaco War of 1932-35 with Bolivia, Paraguay gained a large part of the Chaco lowland region. The 35-year military dictatorship of Alfredo STROESSNER ended in 1989, and Paraguay has held relatively free and regular presidential elections since the country's return to democracy." } }, "Geography": { @@ -914,7 +914,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "guarani (PYG) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1232,7 +1232,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18 years of age for compulsory (men) and voluntary (men and women) military service; conscript service obligation is 12 months for Army, 24 months for Navy (conscripts also serve in the National Police); volunteers for the Air Force must be younger than 22 years of age with a secondary school diploma (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2021, women made up about 6% of the active military" + "note": "note: as of 2021, women made up about 6% of the active military" }, "Military - note": { "text": "as of 2022, the armed forces were conducting operations against the Paraguayan People's Army (Ejército del Pueblo Paraguayo, EPP), a Marxist-nationalist insurgent group operating in the rural northern part of the country along the border with Brazil; they were also assisting internal security forces in countering narco-trafficking networks" diff --git a/south-america/pe.json b/south-america/pe.json index 8854359c..b15757c3 100644 --- a/south-america/pe.json +++ b/south-america/pe.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Ancient Peru was the seat of several prominent Andean civilizations, most notably that of the Incas whose empire was captured by Spanish conquistadors in 1533. Peru declared its independence in 1821, and remaining Spanish forces were defeated in 1824. After a dozen years of military rule, Peru returned to democratic leadership in 1980, but experienced economic problems and the growth of a violent insurgency. President Alberto FUJIMORI's election in 1990 ushered in a decade that saw a dramatic turnaround in the economy and significant progress in curtailing guerrilla activity. Nevertheless, the president's increasing reliance on authoritarian measures and an economic slump in the late 1990s generated mounting dissatisfaction with his regime, which led to his resignation in 2000. A caretaker government oversaw a new election in the spring of 2001, which installed Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique as the new head of government - Peru's first democratically elected president of indigenous ethnicity. The presidential election of 2006 saw the return of Alan GARCIA Perez who, after a disappointing presidential term from 1985 to 1990, oversaw a robust economic rebound. Former army officer Ollanta HUMALA Tasso was elected president in June 2011, and carried on the sound, market-oriented economic policies of the three preceding administrations. Poverty and unemployment levels have fallen dramatically in the last decade, and today Peru boasts one of the best performing economies in Latin America. Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI Godard won a very narrow presidential runoff election in June 2016. Facing impeachment after evidence surfaced of his involvement in a vote-buying scandal, President KUCZYNSKI offered his resignation on 21 March 2018. Two days later, First Vice President Martin Alberto VIZCARRA Cornejo was sworn in as president. On 30 September 2019, President VIZCARRA invoked his constitutional authority to dissolve Peru's Congress after months of battling with the body over anticorruption reforms. New congressional elections took place on 26 January 2020 resulting in the return of an opposition-led legislature. President VIZCARRA was impeached by Congress on 9 November 2020 for a second time and removed from office after being accused of corruption and mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of vacancies in the vice-presidential positions, constitutional succession led to the President of the Peruvian Congress, Manuel MERINO, becoming the next president of Peru. His ascension to office was not well received by the population, and large protests forced his resignation on 15 November 2020. On 17 November, Francisco SAGASTI assumed the position of President of Peru after being appointed President of the Congress the previous day. Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones won the second round of presidential elections on 6 June 2021 and was inaugurated on 28 July." + "text": "Ancient Peru was the seat of several prominent Andean civilizations, most notably that of the Incas whose empire was captured by Spanish conquistadors in 1533. Peru declared its independence in 1821, and remaining Spanish forces were defeated in 1824. After a dozen years of military rule, Peru returned to democratic leadership in 1980 but experienced economic problems and the growth of a violent insurgency. President Alberto FUJIMORI's election in 1990 ushered in a decade that saw a dramatic turnaround in the economy and significant progress in curtailing guerrilla activity. Nevertheless, the president's increasing reliance on authoritarian measures and an economic slump in the late 1990s generated mounting dissatisfaction with his regime, which led to his resignation in 2000. A caretaker government oversaw a new election in the spring of 2001, which installed Alejandro TOLEDO Manrique as the new head of government - Peru's first democratically elected president of indigenous ethnicity. The presidential election of 2006 saw the return of Alan GARCIA Perez who, after a disappointing presidential term from 1985 to 1990, oversaw a robust economic rebound. Former army officer Ollanta HUMALA Tasso was elected president in June 2011, and carried on the sound, market-oriented economic policies of the three preceding administrations. Poverty and unemployment levels have fallen dramatically in the last decade, and today Peru boasts one of the best performing economies in Latin America. Pedro Pablo KUCZYNSKI Godard won a very narrow presidential runoff election in June 2016. Facing impeachment after evidence surfaced of his involvement in a vote-buying scandal, President KUCZYNSKI offered his resignation on 21 March 2018. Two days later, First Vice President Martin Alberto VIZCARRA Cornejo was sworn in as president. On 30 September 2019, President VIZCARRA invoked his constitutional authority to dissolve Peru's Congress after months of battling with the body over anticorruption reforms. New congressional elections took place on 26 January 2020 resulting in the return of an opposition-led legislature. President VIZCARRA was impeached by Congress on 9 November 2020 for a second time and removed from office after being accused of corruption and mishandling of the COVID-19 pandemic. Because of vacancies in the vice-presidential positions, constitutional succession led to the President of the Peruvian Congress, Manuel MERINO, becoming the next president of Peru. His ascension to office was not well received by the population, and large protests forced his resignation on 15 November 2020. On 17 November, Francisco SAGASTI assumed the position of President of Peru after being appointed President of the Congress the previous day. Jose Pedro CASTILLO Terrones won the second round of presidential elections on 6 June 2021 and was inaugurated on 28 July." } }, "Geography": { @@ -708,7 +708,7 @@ "text": "13 (9 cultural, 2 natural, 2 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Cuzco (c), Machu Picchu (m), Chavin (c), Historic Lima (c), Huascarán National Park (n), Chan Chan (c), Manú National Park (n), Lines and Geoglyphs of Nazca (c), Rio Abiseo National Park (m), Historic Arequipa (c), Sacred City of Caral-Supe (c), Qhapaq Ñan/Andean Road System (c)" + "text": "Cuzco (c); Machu Picchu (m); Chavin (c); Historic Lima (c); Huascarán National Park (n); Chan Chan (c); Manú National Park (n); Lines and Geoglyphs of Nazca (c); Rio Abiseo National Park (m); Historic Arequipa (c); Sacred City of Caral-Supe (c); Qhapaq Ñan/Andean Road System (c)" } } }, @@ -956,7 +956,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "nuevo sol (PEN) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1304,7 +1304,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-50 years of age for male and 18-45 years of age for female voluntary military service (12 months); no conscription (abolished in 1999) (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2019, women made up about 10% of the active duty military" + "note": "note: as of 2019, women made up about 10% of the active duty military" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "210 Central African Republic (MINUSCA) (Feb 2022)" diff --git a/south-america/sx.json b/south-america/sx.json index 48bc2790..3193732c 100644 --- a/south-america/sx.json +++ b/south-america/sx.json @@ -85,6 +85,23 @@ "text": "(July 2021 est.) no indigenous inhabitants", "note": "note: the small military garrison on South Georgia withdrew in March 2001, replaced by a permanent group of scientists of the British Antarctic Survey, which also has a biological station on Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited" }, + "Age structure": { + "0-14 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "15-24 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "25-54 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "55-64 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "65 years and over": { + "text": "NA" + } + }, "Dependency ratios": { "total dependency ratio": { "text": "NA" @@ -99,14 +116,37 @@ "text": "NA" } }, + "Population growth rate": { + "text": "NA" + }, "Birth rate": { "text": "NA" }, "Death rate": { - "text": "(2021 est.) NA" + "text": "NA" }, "Net migration rate": { - "text": "5.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2021 est.)" + "text": "5.9 migrant(s)/1,000 population" + }, + "Sex ratio": { + "at birth": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "0-14 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "15-24 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "25-54 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "55-64 years": { + "text": "NA" + }, + "65 years and over": { + "text": "NA" + } }, "Contraceptive prevalence rate": { "text": "NA" diff --git a/south-america/uy.json b/south-america/uy.json index 7e4d6b68..2cb49186 100644 --- a/south-america/uy.json +++ b/south-america/uy.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Montevideo, founded by the Spanish in 1726 as a military stronghold, soon became an important commercial center due to its natural harbor. Claimed by Argentina but annexed by Brazil in 1821, Uruguay declared its independence in 1825 and secured its freedom in 1828 after a three-year struggle. The administrations of President Jose BATLLE in the early 20th century launched widespread political, social, and economic reforms that established a statist tradition. A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement named the Tupamaros (or Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros (MLN-T)), launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to cede control of the government to the military in 1973. By year-end, the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold over the government. Civilian rule was restored in 1985. In 2004, the left-of-center Frente Amplio Coalition won national elections that effectively ended 170 years of political control previously held by the Colorado and National (Blanco) parties. The left-of-center retained the presidency and control of both chambers of congress until 2019. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent.
" + "text": "Montevideo, founded by the Spanish in 1726 as a military stronghold, soon became an important commercial center due to its natural harbor. Claimed by Argentina but annexed by Brazil in 1821, Uruguay declared its independence in 1825 and secured its freedom in 1828 after a three-year struggle. The administrations of President Jose BATLLE in the early 20th century launched widespread political, social, and economic reforms that established a statist tradition. A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement named the Tupamaros (or Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros (MLN-T)), launched in the late 1960s, led Uruguay's president to cede control of the government to the military in 1973. By yearend, the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold over the government. Civilian rule was restored in 1985. In 2004, the left-of-center Frente Amplio Coalition won national elections that effectively ended 170 years of political control previously held by the Colorado and National (Blanco) parties. The left-of-center retained the presidency and control of both chambers of congress until 2019. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the continent.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -673,7 +673,7 @@ "text": "3 (all cultural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Historic City of Colonia del Sacramento, Fray Bentos Industrial Landscape, The work of engineer Eladio Dieste: Church of Atlántida" + "text": "Historic City of Colonia del Sacramento; Fray Bentos Industrial Landscape; The work of engineer Eladio Dieste: Church of Atlántida" } } }, @@ -918,7 +918,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Uruguayan pesos (UYU) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1235,7 +1235,7 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18-30 years of age (18-22 years of age for Navy) for male or female voluntary military service; up to 40 years of age for specialists; enlistment is voluntary in peacetime, but the government has the authority to conscript in emergencies (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2017, women comprised about 19% of the active military" + "note": "note: as of 2017, women comprised about 19% of the active military" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "830 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 210 Golan Heights (UNDOF) (Feb 2022)" diff --git a/south-america/ve.json b/south-america/ve.json index a9588a3d..e2c903e5 100644 --- a/south-america/ve.json +++ b/south-america/ve.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "Venezuela was one of three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and New Granada, which became Colombia). For most of the first half of the 20th century, Venezuela was ruled by military strongmen who promoted the oil industry and allowed for some social reforms. Although democratically elected governments largely held sway since 1959, the executive branch under Hugo CHAVEZ, president from 1999 to 2013, exercised increasingly authoritarian control over other branches of government. This undemocratic trend continued in 2018 when Nicolas MADURO claimed the presidency for his second term in an election boycotted by most opposition parties and widely viewed as fraudulent.
The last democratically-elected institution is the 2015 National Assembly. The President of the 2015 National Assembly, Juan GUAIDO is currently recognized by several countries - including the United States - as the interim president of Venezuela, while MADURO is recognized by most countries. In 2020, legislative elections were held for a new National Assembly, which the opposition boycotted and which were widely condemned as fraudulent. The resulting assembly is viewed by GUAIDO, most opposition parties, and many international actors as illegitimate. In November 2021, most opposition parties broke a three-year election boycott to participate in mayoral and gubernatorial elections, despite flawed conditions. As a result, the opposition more than doubled its representation at the mayoral level and retained four of 23 governorships. The 2021 regional elections marked the first time since 2006 that the EU was allowed to send an electoral observation mission to Venezuela.
The MADURO regime places strong restrictions on freedoms of expression and the press. Since CHAVEZ, the ruling party's economic policies expanded the state's role in the economy through expropriations of major enterprises, strict currency exchange and price controls that discourage private sector investment and production, and overdependence on the petroleum industry for revenues, among others. Years of economic mismanagement left Venezuela ill-prepared to weather the global drop in oil prices in 2014, sparking an economic decline that has resulted in reduced government social spending, shortages of basic goods, and high inflation. Worsened living conditions have prompted over 6 million Venezuelans to migrate, mainly settling in nearby countries. Since 2017, the US has imposed financial and sectoral sanctions on the MADURO regime. Since mid-2020, and despite MADURO regime mismanagement and faltering infrastructure, oil production has begun to rise primarily due to strengthened MADURO regime trade relations with China, Russia, Iran, and the illicit oil trade. Caracas has more recently relaxed some economic controls to mitigate the impact of its sustained economic crisis, such as allowing increased currency and liberalizing import flexibility for private citizens and companies. Other concerns include human rights abuses, rampant violent crime, political manipulation of the judicial and electoral systems, and corruption.
Venezuela was one of three countries that emerged from the collapse of Gran Colombia in 1830 (the others being Ecuador and New Granada, which became Colombia). For most of the first half of the 20th century, Venezuela was ruled by military strongmen who promoted the oil industry and allowed for some social reforms. Although democratically elected governments largely held sway since 1959, the executive branch under Hugo CHAVEZ, president from 1999 to 2013, exercised increasingly authoritarian control over other branches of government. This undemocratic trend continued in 2018 when Nicolas MADURO claimed the presidency for his second term in an election boycotted by most opposition parties and widely viewed as fraudulent.
The last democratically-elected institution is the 2015 National Assembly. The president of the 2015 National Assembly, Juan GUAIDO is currently recognized by several countries - including the United States - as the interim president of Venezuela, while MADURO is recognized by most countries. In 2020, legislative elections were held for a new National Assembly, which the opposition boycotted and which were widely condemned as fraudulent. The resulting assembly is viewed by GUAIDO, most opposition parties, and many international actors as illegitimate. In November 2021, most opposition parties broke a three-year election boycott to participate in mayoral and gubernatorial elections, despite flawed conditions. As a result, the opposition more than doubled its representation at the mayoral level and retained four of 23 governorships. The 2021 regional elections marked the first time since 2006 that the EU was allowed to send an electoral observation mission to Venezuela.
The MADURO regime places strong restrictions on freedoms of expression and the press. Since CHAVEZ, the ruling party's economic policies expanded the state's role in the economy through expropriations of major enterprises, strict currency exchange and price controls that discourage private sector investment and production, and overdependence on the petroleum industry for revenues, among others. Years of economic mismanagement left Venezuela ill-prepared to weather the global drop in oil prices in 2014, sparking an economic decline that has resulted in reduced government social spending, shortages of basic goods, and high inflation. Worsened living conditions have prompted over 6 million Venezuelans to migrate, mainly settling in nearby countries. Since 2017, the US has imposed financial and sectoral sanctions on the MADURO regime. Since mid-2020, and despite MADURO regime mismanagement and faltering infrastructure, oil production has begun to rise primarily due to strengthened MADURO regime trade relations with China, Russia, Iran, and the illicit oil trade. Caracas has more recently relaxed some economic controls to mitigate the impact of its sustained economic crisis, such as allowing increased currency and liberalizing import flexibility for private citizens and companies. Other concerns include human rights abuses, rampant violent crime, political manipulation of the judicial and electoral systems, and corruption.
as of early 2022, the Taliban’s primary security objective was maintaining public order in urban areas, especially Kabul, fighting ISIS-K, and maintaining border security
" @@ -1237,7 +1238,7 @@ }, "Terrorism": { "Terrorist group(s)": { - "text": "Haqqani Taliban Network; Harakat ul-Mujahidin; Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami; Islamic Jihad Union; Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham-Khorasan Province; Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps/Qods Force; Jaish-e-Mohammed; Jaysh al Adl (Jundallah); Lashkar i Jhangvi; Lashkar-e Tayyiba; al-Qa’ida; al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent; Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan", + "text": "Haqqani Taliban Network; Harakat ul-Mujahidin; Harakat ul-Jihad-i-Islami; Islamic Jihad Union; Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan; Islamic State of Iraq and ash-Sham-Khorasan Province (ISIS-K); Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)/Qods Force; Jaish-e-Mohammed; Jaysh al Adl (Jundallah); Lashkar i Jhangvi; Lashkar-e Tayyiba; al-Qa’ida; al-Qa'ida in the Indian Subcontinent (AQIS); Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP)", "note": "note: details about the history, aims, leadership, organization, areas of operation, tactics, targets, weapons, size, and sources of support of the group(s) appear(s) in Appendix T" } }, diff --git a/south-asia/bg.json b/south-asia/bg.json index bfa712e1..b5143597 100644 --- a/south-asia/bg.json +++ b/south-asia/bg.json @@ -705,7 +705,7 @@ "text": "3 (2 cultural, 1 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Bagerhat Historic Mosque (c), Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur (c), Sundarbans (n)" + "text": "Bagerhat Historic Mosque (c); Ruins of the Buddhist Vihara at Paharpur (c); Sundarbans (n)" } } }, @@ -951,7 +951,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "taka (BDT) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1266,7 +1266,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Bangladesh Defense Force: Bangladesh Army, Bangladesh Navy, Bangladesh Air Force; Ministry of Home Affairs: Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), Bangladesh Coast Guard, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Ansars, Village Defense Party (VDP) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the RAB, Ansars, and VDP are paramilitary organizations for internal security; the RAB is a joint task force founded in 2004 and composed of members of the police, army, navy, air force, and border guards seconded to the RAB from their respective units; its mandate includes internal security, intelligence gathering related to criminal activities, and government-directed investigations" + "note": "note: the RAB, Ansars, and VDP are paramilitary organizations for internal security; the RAB is a joint task force founded in 2004 and composed of members of the police, Army, Navy, Air Force, and Border Guards seconded to the RAB from their respective units; its mandate includes internal security, intelligence gathering related to criminal activities, and government-directed investigations" }, "Military expenditures": { "Military Expenditures 2021": { diff --git a/south-asia/bt.json b/south-asia/bt.json index cc85860f..57ff4972 100644 --- a/south-asia/bt.json +++ b/south-asia/bt.json @@ -816,7 +816,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "ngultrum (BTN) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1071,7 +1071,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Royal Bhutan Army (includes Royal Bodyguard and an air wing); National Militia; Ministry of Home and Cultural Affairs: Royal Bhutan Police (2022)", - "note": "note - the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) agency is responsible for internal security; the Army is responsible for external threats but also has responsibility for some internal security functions, including conducting counterinsurgency operations, guarding forests, and providing security for prominent persons" + "note": "note: the Royal Bhutan Police (RBP) agency is responsible for internal security; the Army is responsible for external threats but also has responsibility for some internal security functions, including conducting counterinsurgency operations, guarding forests, and providing security for prominent persons" }, "Military and security service personnel strengths": { "text": "the Royal Bhutan Army has an estimated 8,000 personnel (2022)" diff --git a/south-asia/ce.json b/south-asia/ce.json index 8bc7c209..4c8a72dd 100644 --- a/south-asia/ce.json +++ b/south-asia/ce.json @@ -1,7 +1,7 @@ { "Introduction": { "Background": { - "text": "The first Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced circa 250 B.C., and the first kingdoms developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (from circa 200 B.C. to circa A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty established a Tamil kingdom in northern Sri Lanka. The Portuguese controlled the coastal areas of the island in the 16th century followed by the Dutch in the 17th century. The island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was formally united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Prevailing tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in July 1983. Fighting between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) continued for over a quarter century. Although Norway brokered peace negotiations that led to a ceasefire in 2002, the fighting slowly resumed and was again in full force by 2006. The government defeated the LTTE in May 2009.
During the post-conflict years under President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA, the government initiated infrastructure development projects, many of which were financed by loans from China. His regime faced significant allegations of human rights violations and a shrinking democratic space for civil society. In 2015, a new coalition government headed by President Maithripala SIRISENA of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMESINGHE of the United National Party came to power with pledges to advance economic, governance, anti-corruption, reconciliation, justice, and accountability reforms. However, implementation of these reforms has been uneven. In October 2018, President SIRISENA attempted to oust Prime Minister WICKREMESINGHE, swearing in former President RAJAPAKSA as the new prime minister and issuing an order to dissolve the parliament and hold elections. This sparked a seven-week constitutional crisis that ended when the Supreme Court ruled SIRISENA’s actions unconstitutional, RAJAPAKSA resigned, and WICKREMESINGHE was reinstated. In November 2019, Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA won the presidential election and appointed his brother, Mahinda, prime minister. Since Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA’s election, there have been concerns about his administration’s commitment to pursuing justice, human rights, and accountability reforms, as well as the risks to foreign creditors that Sri Lanka faces given its ongoing economic crisis. A combination of factors including the impact of the worldwide COVID pandemic; severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel; and power outages have triggered increasingly violent protests in Columbo. Longtime parliamentarian and former five-time prime minister, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE replaced Mahinda RAJAPASKA as prime-minister in mid-May 2022, with a mandate to resolve the country's economic problems.
" + "text": "The first Sinhalese arrived in Sri Lanka late in the 6th century B.C., probably from northern India. Buddhism was introduced circa 250 B.C., and the first kingdoms developed at the cities of Anuradhapura (from circa 200 B.C. to circa A.D. 1000) and Polonnaruwa (from about 1070 to 1200). In the 14th century, a south Indian dynasty established a Tamil kingdom in northern Sri Lanka. The Portuguese controlled the coastal areas of the island in the 16th century followed by the Dutch in the 17th century. The island was ceded to the British in 1796, became a crown colony in 1802, and was formally united under British rule by 1815. As Ceylon, it became independent in 1948; its name was changed to Sri Lanka in 1972. Prevailing tensions between the Sinhalese majority and Tamil separatists erupted into war in July 1983. Fighting between the government and Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) continued for over a quarter century. Although Norway brokered peace negotiations that led to a cease-fire in 2002, the fighting slowly resumed and was again in full force by 2006. The government defeated the LTTE in May 2009.
During the post-conflict years under President Mahinda RAJAPAKSA, the government initiated infrastructure development projects, many of which were financed by loans from China. His regime faced significant allegations of human rights violations and a shrinking democratic space for civil society. In 2015, a new coalition government headed by President Maithripala SIRISENA of the Sri Lanka Freedom Party and Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMESINGHE of the United National Party came to power with pledges to advance economic, governance, anti-corruption, reconciliation, justice, and accountability reforms. However, implementation of these reforms has been uneven. In October 2018, President SIRISENA attempted to oust Prime Minister WICKREMESINGHE, swearing in former President RAJAPAKSA as the new prime minister and issuing an order to dissolve the Parliament and hold elections. This sparked a seven-week constitutional crisis that ended when the Supreme Court ruled SIRISENA’s actions unconstitutional, RAJAPAKSA resigned, and WICKREMESINGHE was reinstated. In November 2019, Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA won the presidential election and appointed his brother, Mahinda, prime minister. Since Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA’s election, there have been concerns about his administration’s commitment to pursuing justice, human rights, and accountability reforms, as well as the risks to foreign creditors that Sri Lanka faces given its ongoing economic crisis. A combination of factors including the impact of the worldwide COVID pandemic; severe shortages of food, medicine, and fuel; and power outages have triggered increasingly violent protests in Columbo. Longtime parliamentarian and former five-time prime minister, Ranil WICKREMESINGHE replaced Mahinda RAJAPASKA as prime-minister in mid-May 2022, with a mandate to resolve the country's economic problems.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -509,10 +509,10 @@ "text": "Sri Lanka" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Shri Lanka Prajatantrika Samajavadi Janarajaya/Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu" + "text": "Shri Lanka Prajatantrika Samajavadi Janarajaya (Sinhala)/ Ilankai Jananayaka Choshalichak Kutiyarachu (Tamil)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "Shri Lanka/Ilankai" + "text": "Shri Lanka (Sinhala)/ Ilankai (Tamil)" }, "former": { "text": "Serendib, Ceylon" @@ -580,10 +580,10 @@ }, "Executive branch": { "chief of state": { - "text": "President Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA (since 18 November 2019); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government; Prime Minister Ranil WICKREMESINGHE (since 12 May 2022)" + "text": "President Ranil WICKREMESINGHE (since 20 July 2022); the president is both chief of state and head of government; prime minister (vacant)" }, "head of government": { - "text": "President Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA (since 18 November 2019)" + "text": "President Ranil WICKREMESINGHE (since 20 July 2022)" }, "cabinet": { "text": "Cabinet appointed by the president in consultation with the prime minister" @@ -592,8 +592,9 @@ "text": "president directly elected by preferential majority popular vote for a 5-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 16 November 2019 (next to be held in 2024); prime minister appointed by the president from among members of Parliament for a 5-year term)" }, "election results": { - "text": "Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA elected president; percent of vote - Gotabaya RAJAPAKSA (SLPP) 52.2%, Sajith PREMADASA (UNP) 42%, other 5.8%" - } + "text": "Ranil WICKREMESINGHE elected president by Parliament on 20 July 2022; WICKREMESINGH 134 votes, Dullas ALAHAPPERUNA 82 votes" + }, + "note": "Note: amid public protests which began in March 2022, President Gotabaya RAJAPAKSE fled the country on 13 July and Ranil WICKREMESINGHE became acting president; RAJAPAKSE announced his resignation on the 14th, which was accepted by the speaker of Parliament the following day; Parliament on 20 July elected WICKREMESINGHE as president; vote - Ranil WICKREMESINGHE - 134, Dullas ALAHAPPERUMA - 82" }, "Legislative branch": { "description": { @@ -683,7 +684,7 @@ "text": "8 (6 cultural, 2 natural)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Ancient City of Polonnaruwa (c), Ancient City of Sigiriya (c), Sacred City of Anuradhapura (c), Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications (c), Sacred City of Kandy (c), Sinharaja Forest Reserve (n), Rangiri Dambulla Cave Temple (c), Central Highlands of Sri Lanka (n)" + "text": "Ancient City of Polonnaruwa (c); Ancient City of Sigiriya (c); Sacred City of Anuradhapura (c); Old Town of Galle and its Fortifications (c); Sacred City of Kandy (c); Sinharaja Forest Reserve (n); Rangiri Dambulla Cave Temple (c); Central Highlands of Sri Lanka (n)" } } }, @@ -928,7 +929,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Sri Lankan rupees (LKR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { diff --git a/south-asia/in.json b/south-asia/in.json index 0a09044f..393571c0 100644 --- a/south-asia/in.json +++ b/south-asia/in.json @@ -550,10 +550,10 @@ "text": "India" }, "local long form": { - "text": "Republic of India/Bharatiya Ganarajya" + "text": "Republic of India (English)/ Bharatiya Ganarajya (Hindi)" }, "local short form": { - "text": "India/Bharat" + "text": "India (English)/ Bharat (Hindi)" }, "etymology": { "text": "the English name derives from the Indus River; the Indian name \"Bharat\" may derive from the \"Bharatas\" tribe mentioned in the Vedas of the second millennium B.C.; the name is also associated with Emperor Bharata, the legendary conqueror of all of India" @@ -728,7 +728,7 @@ "text": "40 (32 cultural, 7 natural, 1 mixed)" }, "selected World Heritage Site locales": { - "text": "Taj Mahal (c), Red Fort Complex (c), Ellora Caves (c), Hill Forts of Rajasthan (c), Sundarbans National Park (n), Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka (c), Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park (c), Dholavira: A Harappan City (c), Jaipur (c), Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya (c), Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (n), Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks (n)" + "text": "Taj Mahal (c); Red Fort Complex (c); Ellora Caves (c); Hill Forts of Rajasthan (c); Sundarbans National Park (n); Rock Shelters of Bhimbetka (c); Champaner-Pavagadh Archaeological Park (c); Dholavira: A Harappan City (c); Jaipur (c); Mahabodhi Temple Complex at Bodh Gaya (c); Manas Wildlife Sanctuary (n); Nanda Devi and Valley of Flowers National Parks (n); Khangchendzonga National Park (m)" } } }, @@ -973,7 +973,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Indian rupees (INR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2020": { @@ -1292,7 +1292,7 @@ "Military and Security": { "Military and security forces": { "text": "Indian Armed Forces: Army, Navy, Air Force, Coast Guard; Frontier Corps; Defense Security Corps; Ministry of Home Affairs: Central Armed Police Forces (includes Assam Rifles, Border Security Force, Central Industrial Security Force, Central Reserve Police Force, Indo-Tibetan Border Police, National Security Guards, Sashastra Seema Bal) (2022)", - "note": "note(s) - the Defense Security Corps provides security for Ministry of Defense sitesDuring the late 18th-early 19th centuries, the principality of Gorkha united many of the other principalities and states of the sub-Himalayan region into a Nepali Kingdom. Nepal retained its independence following the Anglo-Nepalese War of 1814-16 and the subsequent peace treaty laid the foundations for two centuries of amicable relations between Britain and Nepal. (The Brigade of Gurkhas continues to serve in the British Army to the present day.) In 1951, the Nepali monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system that brought political parties into the government. That arrangement lasted until 1960, when political parties were again banned, but was reinstated in 1990 with the establishment of a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy.
An insurgency led by Maoists broke out in 1996. During the ensuing 10-year civil war between Maoist and government forces, the monarchy dissolved the cabinet and parliament and re-assumed absolute power in 2002, after the crown prince massacred the royal family in 2001. A peace accord in 2006 led to the promulgation of an interim constitution in 2007. Following a nationwide Constituent Assembly (CA) election in 2008, the newly formed CA declared Nepal a federal democratic republic, abolished the monarchy, and elected the country's first president. After the CA failed to draft a constitution by a 2012 deadline set by the Supreme Court, then-Prime Minister Baburam BHATTARAI dissolved the CA. Months of negotiations ensued until 2013 when the major political parties agreed to create an interim government headed by then-Chief Justice Khil Raj REGMI with a mandate to hold elections for a new CA. Elections were held in 2013, in which the Nepali Congress (NC) won the largest share of seats in the CA and in 2014 formed a coalition government with the second-place Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist (UML) with NC President Sushil KOIRALA serving as prime minister. Nepal's new constitution came into effect in 2015, at which point the CA became the Parliament. Khagda Prasad Sharma OLI served as the first post-constitution prime minister from 2015 to 2016. OLI resigned ahead of a no-confidence motion against him, and Parliament elected Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-M) leader Pushpa Kamal DAHAL (aka \"Prachanda\") prime minister. The constitution provided for a transitional period during which three sets of elections – local, provincial, and national – needed to take place. The first local elections in 20 years occurred in three phases between May and September 2017, and state and federal elections proceeded in two phases in November and December 2017. The parties headed by OLI and DAHAL ran in coalition and swept the parliamentary elections, and OLI, who led the larger of the two parties, was sworn in as prime minister in February 2018. In May 2018, OLI and DAHAL announced the merger of their parties - the UML and CPN-M - to establish the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), which headed the government for roughly two years before infighting led the party to split. OLI from late 2020 sought to dissolve parliament and hold elections. The supreme court in July 2021 declared OLI's efforts unconstitutional and called for an appointment of the opposition-supported, NC leader Sher Bahadur DEUBA as prime minister.
" + "text": "
During the late 18th-early 19th centuries, the principality of Gorkha united many of the other principalities and states of the sub-Himalayan region into a Nepali Kingdom. Nepal retained its independence following the Anglo-Nepalese War of 1814-16 and the subsequent peace treaty laid the foundations for two centuries of amicable relations between Britain and Nepal. (The Brigade of Gurkhas continues to serve in the British Army to the present day.) In 1951, the Nepali monarch ended the century-old system of rule by hereditary premiers and instituted a cabinet system that brought political parties into the government. That arrangement lasted until 1960, when political parties were again banned, but was reinstated in 1990 with the establishment of a multiparty democracy within the framework of a constitutional monarchy.
An insurgency led by Maoists broke out in 1996. During the ensuing 10-year civil war between Maoist and government forces, the monarchy dissolved the cabinet and parliament and re-assumed absolute power in 2002, after the crown prince massacred the royal family in 2001. A peace accord in 2006 led to the promulgation of an interim constitution in 2007. Following a nationwide Constituent Assembly (CA) election in 2008, the newly formed CA declared Nepal a federal democratic republic, abolished the monarchy, and elected the country's first president. After the CA failed to draft a constitution by a 2012 deadline set by the Supreme Court, then-Prime Minister Baburam BHATTARAI dissolved the CA. Months of negotiations ensued until 2013 when the major political parties agreed to create an interim government headed by then-Chief Justice Khil Raj REGMI with a mandate to hold elections for a new CA. Elections were held in 2013, in which the Nepali Congress (NC) won the largest share of seats in the CA and in 2014 formed a coalition government with the second-place Communist Party of Nepal-Unified Marxist-Leninist (UML) with NC President Sushil KOIRALA serving as prime minister. Nepal's new constitution came into effect in 2015, at which point the CA became the Parliament. Khagda Prasad Sharma OLI served as the first post-constitution prime minister from 2015 to 2016. OLI resigned ahead of a no-confidence motion against him, and Parliament elected Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist (CPN-M) leader Pushpa Kamal DAHAL (aka \"Prachanda\") prime minister. The constitution provided for a transitional period during which three sets of elections – local, provincial, and national – needed to take place. The first local elections in 20 years occurred in three phases between May and September 2017, and state and federal elections proceeded in two phases in November and December 2017. The parties headed by OLI and DAHAL ran in coalition and swept the parliamentary elections, and OLI, who led the larger of the two parties, was sworn in as prime minister in February 2018. In May 2018, OLI and DAHAL announced the merger of their parties - the UML and CPN-M - to establish the Nepal Communist Party (NCP), which headed the government for roughly two years before infighting led the party to split. OLI from late 2020 sought to dissolve parliament and hold elections. The supreme court in July 2021 declared OLI's efforts unconstitutional and called for an appointment of the opposition-supported NC leader Sher Bahadur DEUBA as prime minister.
" } }, "Geography": { @@ -907,7 +907,7 @@ } }, "Exchange rates": { - "currency": { + "Currency": { "text": "Nepalese rupees (NPR) per US dollar -" }, "Exchange rates 2017": { @@ -1217,13 +1217,13 @@ }, "Military service age and obligation": { "text": "18 years of age for voluntary military service (including women); no conscription (2022)", - "note": "note - as of 2020, women comprised about 5% of the active duty military" + "note": "note: as of 2020, women comprised about 5% of the active duty military" }, "Military deployments": { "text": "750 Central African Republic (MINUSCA); 1,140 Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO); 400 Golan Heights (UNDOF); 875 Lebanon (UNIFIL); 230 Liberia (UNSMIL); 175 Mali (MINUSMA); 1,625 South Sudan (UNMISS) (Feb 2022)" }, "Military - note": { - "text": "
Nepal became a member of the UN in 1955 and has been an active participant in UN peacekeeping operations since, sending its first military observers to a UN peacekeeping mission in 1958 and its first peacekeeping military contingent to Egypt in 1974
the British began to recruit Nepalese citizens (Gurkhas) into the East India Company Army during the Anglo-Nepalese War (1814-1816); the Gurkhas subsequently were brought into the British Indian Army and by 1914, there were 10 Gurkha regiments, collectively known as the Gurkha Brigade; following the partition of India in 1947, an agreement between Nepal, India, and Great Britain allowed for the transfer of the 10 regiments from the British Indian Army to the separate British and Indian armies; four regiments were transferred to the British Army, where they have since served continuously as the Brigade of Gurkhas until merged to form the Royal Gurkha Rifles in 1994; six Gurkha (aka Gorkha in India) regiments went to the new Indian Army; a seventh regiment was later added; Gurkhas are also recruited into the Singaporean Police and a special guard in the Sultanate of Brunei known as the Gurkha Reserve Unit (2022)" + "text": "Nepal became a member of the UN in 1955 and has been an active participant in UN peacekeeping operations since, sending its first military observers to a UN peacekeeping mission in 1958 and its first peacekeeping military contingent to Egypt in 1974