Germany

Germany

The state of Germany is located in Central Europe and has a maximum extension of 876 km from north to south (from the North German lowlands via the low mountain range and the foothills of the Alps to the Alps) and 640 km from east to west.

As a federal state, the FRG (Federal Republic of Germany) is formed from the 16 German federal states and represents the most recent form of the German nation state. According to the constitutional principle of local self-government, the states are divided into local authorities.

Capital of Germany is Berlin. According to its constitution, the Federal Republic of Germany sees itself as a social, constitutional and federal democracy. The Federal Republic of Germany is a founding member of the European Union and, with over 82 million inhabitants, its most populous country. Germany is also u. a. Member of the United Nations, the OECD, NATO, the OSCE and the Group of Eight (G8).

In terms of gross domestic product, Germany is the third largest economy in the world (after the USA and Japan). Germany borders in the north on the North Sea, Denmark and the Baltic Sea, in the east on Poland and the Czech Republic. In the south on Austria and Switzerland, in the west on France and in the north-west on Luxembourg, Belgium and the Netherlands. Germany includes the East Frisian Islands, Heligoland and most of the North Frisian Islands in the North Sea, Fehmarn, Poel, Rügen, most of Usedom and other smaller islands in the Baltic Sea.

The state order of the Federal Republic of Germany is determined by the Basic Law, the head of state is the Federal President.