The 2008 CIA World Factbook, United States. Central Intelligence Agency [primary phonics books .TXT] 📗

Curacao, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, El Salvador, Eritrea,
Estonia, Ethiopia, Fiji, Finland, France, French Polynesia, Gabon, The
Gambia, Georgia, Germany, Ghana, Greece, Grenada, Guatemala, Guinea,
Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Holy See, Honduras, Hong Kong, Hungary,
Iceland, India, Indonesia, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Jordan,
Kenya, Kiribati, South Korea, Kosovo, Kuwait, Latvia, Liberia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Mali,
Malta, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mexico, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco,
Mozambique, Nepal, Netherlands, New Caledonia, NZ, Nicaragua, Niger,
Nigeria, Norway, Pakistan, Panama, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Poland,
Portugal, Puerto Rico, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saint Lucia, Saint
Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, San Marino, Sao Tome and Principe,
Senegal, Serbia, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Slovakia, South
Africa, Spain, Sri Lanka, Suriname, Swaziland, Sweden, Switzerland,
Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia,
Turkey, Uganda, Ukraine, UK, US, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Yemen, Zambia,
Zimbabwe, and the Palestine Liberation Organization

Islamic Development Bank (IDB): established - 15 December 1973 by declaration of intent; effective - 12 August 1974

aim - to promote Islamic economic aid and social development

members - (55 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Afghanistan,
Albania, Algeria, Azerbaijan, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Benin, Brunei,
Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Chad, Comoros, Cote d'Ivoire, Djibouti, Egypt,
Gabon, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq,
Jordan, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Lebanon, Libya, Malaysia,
Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, Niger, Nigeria, Oman,
Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan,
Suriname, Syria, Tajikistan, Togo, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan,
Uganda, UAE, Uzbekistan, Yemen, Palestine Liberation Organization

Latin American Economic System (LAES): note - also known as Sistema
Economico Latinoamericana (SELA)

established - 17 October 1975

aim - to promote economic and social development through regional cooperation

members - (27) Argentina, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Bolivia,
Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Cuba, Dominican Republic, Ecuador,
Guatemala, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Jamaica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama,
Paraguay, Peru, Secretaria General Iberoamericana (SEGIB), Suriname,
Trinidad and Tobago, Uruguay, Venezuela

Latin American Integration Association (LAIA): note - also known as
Asociacion Latinoamericana de Integracion (ALADI)

established - 12 August 1980; effective - 18 March 1981

aim - to promote freer regional trade

members - (12) Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Cuba, Ecuador, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay, Venezuela

observers - (26) China, Corporacion Andina de Fomento, Costa Rica,
Dominican Republic, EC, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Inter-
American Development Bank, Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on
Agriculture, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Latin America Economic System,
Nicaragua, Organization of American States, Panama, Pan-American Health
Organization, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Spain, Switzerland, Ukraine,
United Nations Development Program, United Nations Economic Commission
for Latin America and the Caribbean

League of Arab States (LAS): note - also known as Arab League (AL)

established - 22 March 1945

aim - aim - to promote economic, social, political, and military cooperation

members - (21 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Algeria,
Bahrain, Comoros, Djibouti, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon,
Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Somalia, Sudan,
Syria, Tunisia, UAE, Yemen, Palestine Liberation Organization

observers - (3) Eritrea, India, Venezuela

least developed countries (LLDCs): that subgroup of the less developed countries (LDCs) initially identified by the UN General Assembly in 1971 as having no significant economic growth, per capita GDPs normally less than $1,000, and low literacy rates; also known as the undeveloped countries; the 42 LLDCs are: Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Benin, Bhutan, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Comoros, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, The Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Kiribati, Laos, Lesotho, Malawi, Maldives, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Nepal, Niger, Rwanda, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Tuvalu, Uganda, Vanuatu, Yemen

less developed countries (LDCs): the bottom group in the hierarchy of developed countries (DCs), former USSR/Eastern Europe (former USSR/EE), and less developed countries (LDCs); mainly countries and dependent areas with low levels of output, living standards, and technology; per capita GDPs are generally below $5,000 and often less than $1,500; however, the group also includes a number of countries with high per capita incomes, areas of advanced technology, and rapid rates of growth; includes the advanced developing countries, developing countries, Four Dragons (Four Tigers), least developed countries (LLDCs), low-income countries, middle-income countries, newly industrializing economies (NIEs), the South, Third World, underdeveloped countries, undeveloped countries; the 172 LDCs are: Afghanistan, Algeria, American Samoa, Angola, Anguilla, Antigua and Barbuda, Argentina, Aruba, The Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh, Barbados, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brazil, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Cayman Islands, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile, China, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cook Islands, Costa Rica, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Cyprus, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Falkland Islands, Fiji, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gabon, The Gambia, Gaza Strip, Ghana, Gibraltar, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guatemala, Guernsey, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Isle of Man, Jamaica, Jersey, Jordan, Kenya, Kiribati, North Korea, South Korea, Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon, Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Macau, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Martinique, Mauritania, Mauritius, Mayotte, Federated States of Micronesia, Mongolia, Montserrat, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Netherlands Antilles, New Caledonia, Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Oman, Palau, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea, Paraguay, Peru, Philippines, Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Reunion, Rwanda, Saint Helena, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Samoa, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia, Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Solomon Islands, Somalia, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Taiwan, Tanzania, Thailand, Togo, Tokelau, Tonga, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, UAE, Uganda, Uruguay, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Virgin Islands, Wallis and Futuna, West Bank, Western Sahara, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe; note - similar to the new International Monetary Fund (IMF) term "developing countries" which adds Malta, Mexico, South Africa, and Turkey but omits in its recently published statistics American Samoa, Anguilla, British Virgin Islands, Brunei, Cayman Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos Islands, Cook Islands, Cuba, Eritrea, Falkland Islands, French Guiana, French Polynesia, Gaza Strip, Gibraltar, Greenland, Grenada, Guadeloupe, Guam, Guernsey, Isle of Man, Jersey, North Korea, Macau, Martinique, Mayotte, Montserrat, Nauru, New Caledonia, Niue, Norfolk Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palau, Pitcairn Islands, Puerto Rico, Reunion, Saint Helena, Saint Pierre and Miquelon, Tokelau, Tonga, Turks and Caicos Islands, Tuvalu, Virgin Islands, Wallis and Futuna, West Bank, Western Sahara

low-income countries: another term for those less developed countries with below-average per capita GDPs; see less developed countries (LDCs)

middle-income countries: another term for those less developed countries with above-average per capita GDPs; see less developed countries (LDCs)

Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA): established - 12
April 1988

aim - encourages flow of foreign direct investment among member countries by offering investment insurance, consultation, and negotiation on conditions for foreign investment and technical assistance; a UN specialized agency

members - (173) includes all UN member countries except Andorra,
Bhutan, Brunei, Burma, Comoros, Cuba, Kiribati, North Korea,
Liechtenstein, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Nauru, NZ, Niger, San Marino,
Sao Tome and Principe, Somalia, Tonga, Tuvalu

Near Abroad: Russian term for the 14 non-Russian successor states of the USSR, in which 25 million ethnic Russians live and in which Moscow has expressed a strong national security interest; the 14 countries are Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

new independent states (NIS): a term referring to all the countries of the FSU except the Baltic countries (Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania)

newly industrializing countries (NICs): former term for the newly industrializing economies; see newly industrializing economies (NIEs)

newly industrializing economies (NIEs): that subgroup of the less developed countries (LDCs) that has experienced particularly rapid industrialization of their economies; formerly known as the newly industrializing countries (NICs); also known as advanced developing countries; usually includes the Four Dragons (Hong Kong, South Korea, Singapore, Taiwan), and Brazil

Nonaligned Movement (NAM): established - 1-6 September 1961

aim - to establish political and military cooperation apart from the traditional East or West blocs

members - (117 plus the Palestine Liberation Organization) Afghanistan,
Algeria, Angola, Antigua and Barbuda,The Bahamas, Bahrain, Bangladesh,
Barbados, Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Brunei,
Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi, Cambodia, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central
African Republic, Chad, Chile, Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic
of the Congo, Republic of the Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Cuba, Djibouti,
Dominica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea,
Eritrea, Ethiopia, Gabon, The Gambia, Ghana, Grenada, Guatemala,
Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras, India, Indonesia, Iran,
Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kenya, North Korea, Kuwait, Laos, Lebanon,
Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Madagascar, Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali,
Mauritania, Mauritius, Mongolia, Morocco, Mozambique, Namibia, Nepal,
Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Panama, Papua New Guinea,
Peru, Philippines, Qatar, Rwanda, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia,
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Sao Tome and Principe, Saudi Arabia,
Senegal, Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Singapore, Somalia, South Africa,
Sri Lanka, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Tanzania, Thailand,
Timor-Leste, Togo, Trinidad and Tobago, Tunisia, Turkmenistan, Uganda,
UAE, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen, Zambia, Zimbabwe,
Palestine Liberation Organization

observers - (15) Armenia, Azerbaijan, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Brazil, China, Costa Rica, Croatia, El Salvadore, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mexico, Paraguay, Serbia, Ukraine, Uruguay

guests - (24) Australia, Austria, Bulgaria, Canada, Cyprus, Czech
Republic, Finland, Germany, Greece, Holy See, Hungary, Italy,
Netherlands, NZ, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia,
Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland

Nordic Council (NC): established - 16 March 1952; effective - 12
February 1953

aim - to promote regional economic, cultural, and environmental cooperation

members - (5) Denmark (including Faroe Islands and Greenland), Finland (including Aland Islands), Iceland, Norway, Sweden

observers - (3) the Sami (Lapp) local parliaments of Finland, Norway, and Sweden

Nordic Investment Bank (NIB): established - 4 December 1975; effective - 1 June 1976

aim - to promote economic cooperation and development

members - (8) Denmark (including Faroe Islands and Greenland), Estonia, Finland (including Aland Islands), Iceland, Latvia, Lithuania, Norway, Sweden

North: a popular term for the rich industrialized countries generally located in the northern portion of the Northern Hemisphere; the counterpart of the South; see developed countries (DCs)

North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA): established - 17 December 1992

aim - to eliminate trade barriers, promote fair competition, increase investment opportunities, provide protection of intellectual property rights, and create procedures to settle disputes

members - (3) Canada, Mexico, US

North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO): established - 4 April 1949

aim - to promote mutual defense and cooperation

members - (26) Belgium, Bulgaria, Canada, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Estonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Italy, Latvia,
Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania,
Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Turkey, UK, US

Nuclear Energy Agency (NEA): note - also known as OECD Nuclear Energy
Agency

established - 1 February 1958

aim - to promote the peaceful uses of nuclear energy; associated with OECD

members - (28) Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic,
Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland,
Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, Norway,
Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UK, US

Nuclear Suppliers Group (NSG): note - also known as the London
Suppliers Group or the London Group

established - 1974; effective - 1975

aim - to establish guidelines for exports of nuclear materials, processing equipment for uranium enrichment, and technical information to countries of proliferation concern and regions of conflict and instability

members - (45) Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belarus, Belgium, Brazil,
Bulgaria, Canada, China, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy,
Japan, Kazakhstan, South Korea, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta,
Netherlands, NZ, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Russia, Slovakia,
Slovenia, South Africa, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, Ukraine,
UK, US

observer - (1) European Commission (a policy-planning body for the EU)

Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD): established - 14 December 1960; effective - 30 September 1961

aim - to promote economic cooperation and development

members - (30) Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, Czech Republic,
Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland,
Italy, Japan, South Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, Netherlands, NZ, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, UK, US

special member - (1) EC

Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE): note - formerly the Conference on Security and Cooperation in Europe (CSCE) established 3 July 1975

established - 1 January 1995

aim - to foster the implementation of human rights, fundamental freedoms, democracy, and the rule of law; to act as an instrument of early warning, conflict prevention, and crisis management; and to serve as a framework for conventional arms control and confidence building measures

members - (56) Albania, Andorra, Armenia, Austria, Azerbaijan, Belarus,
Belgium, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Canada, Croatia, Cyprus,
Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Georgia, Germany,
Greece, Holy See, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Kazakhstan,
Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Macedonia,
Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Montenegro, Netherlands, Norway, Poland,
Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Tajikistan, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Ukraine,
UK, US, Uzbekistan

partners for cooperation - (11) Afghanistan, Algeria, Egypt, Israel, Japan, Jordan, South Korea, Mongolia, Morocco, Thailand, Tunisia

Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW): established - 29 April 1997

aim - to enforce the Convention on the Prohibition of the Development, Production, Stockpiling, and Use of Chemical Weapons and on