]! ^! Founded in 963, Luxembourg became a grand duchy in 1815 and an independent state under the Netherlands. It lost more than half of its territory to Belgium in 1839, but gained a larger measure of autonomy. Full independence was attained in 1867. Overrun by Germany in both World Wars, it ended its neutrality in 1948 when it entered into the Benelux Customs Union and when it joined NATO the following year. In 1957, Luxembourg became one of the six founding countries of the European Economic Community (later the European Union), and in 1999 it joined the euro currency area. 
]" ^" Western Europe, between France and Germany ^# 49 45 N, 6 10 E ^$ Europe ^% `! 2,586 sq km `" 2,586 sq km `# 0 sq km ^& slightly smaller than Rhode Island ^' `! 359 km `U Belgium 148 km, France 73 km, Germany 138 km ^( 0 km (landlocked) ^) none (landlocked) ^* modified continental with mild winters, cool summers ^+ mostly gently rolling uplands with broad, shallow valleys; uplands to slightly mountainous in the north; steep slope down to Moselle flood plain in the southeast ^, `% Moselle River 133 m `& Buurgplaatz 559 m ^- iron ore (no longer exploited), arable land ^. `' 23.28% `( 0.4% `) 76.32% (includes Belgium) (2001) ^/ 40 sq km (includes Belgium) (1998 est.) ^0 NA ^1 air and water pollution in urban areas, soil pollution of farmland _J `K Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands `L Environmental Modification ^2 landlocked; the only Grand Duchy in the world 
]# ^3 468,571 (July 2005 est.) ^4 `* 18.9% (male 45,768/female 42,980) `+ 66.5% (male 157,453/female 153,927) `, 14.6% (male 27,573/female 40,870) (2005 est.) ^5 `! 38.51 years `- 37.56 years `. 39.48 years (2005 est.) ^6 1.25% (2005 est.) ^7 12.06 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^8 8.41 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^9 8.86 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^: `/ 1.07 male(s)/female `0 1.06 male(s)/female `+ 1.02 male(s)/female `, 0.68 male(s)/female `1 0.97 male(s)/female (2005 est.) ^; `! 4.81 deaths/1,000 live births `- 4.79 deaths/1,000 live births `. 4.83 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) ^< `1 78.74 years `- 75.45 years `. 82.24 years (2005 est.) ^= 1.79 children born/woman (2005 est.) ^> 0.2% (2001 est.) ^? less than 500 (2003 est.) ^@ less than 100 (2003 est.) ^A `2 Luxembourger(s) `3 Luxembourg ^B Celtic base (with French and German blend), Portuguese, Italian, Slavs (from Montenegro, Albania, and Kosovo) and European (guest and resident workers) ^C 87% Roman Catholic, 13% Protestants, Jews, and Muslims (2000) ^D Luxembourgish (national language), German (administrative language), French (administrative language) ^E `M age 15 and over can read and write `1 100% `- 100% `. 100% (2000 est.) 
]$ ^F `4 Grand Duchy of Luxembourg `5 Luxembourg `V Grand Duche de Luxembourg `W Luxembourg ^H constitutional monarchy ^I Luxembourg ^J 3 districts; Diekirch, Grevenmacher, Luxembourg ^K 1839 (from the Netherlands) ^L National Day (Birthday of Grand Duchess Charlotte) 23 June ^M 17 October 1868; occasional revisions ^N based on civil law system; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction ^O 18 years of age; universal and compulsory ^P `6 Grand Duke HENRI (since 7 October 2000); Heir Apparent Prince GUILLAUME (son of the monarch, born 11 November 1981) `7 Prime Minister Jean-Claude JUNCKER (since 1 January 1995) and Vice Prime Minister Jean ASSELBORN (since 31 July 2004) `8 Council of Ministers recommended by the prime minister and appointed by the monarch `9 none; the monarch is hereditary; following popular elections to the Chamber of Deputies, the leader of the majority party or the leader of the majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the monarch; the deputy prime minister is appointed by the monarch; they are responsible to the Chamber of Deputies note: government coalition - CSV and LSAP ^Q unicameral Chamber of Deputies or Chambre des Deputes (60 seats; members are elected by direct popular vote to serve five-year terms) `9 last held 13 June 2004 (next to be held by June 2009) `: percent of vote by party - CSV 36.1%, LSAP 23.4%, DP 16.1%, Green Party 11.6%, ADR 10%; seats by party - CSV 24, LSAP 14, DP 10, Green Party 7, ADR 5 note: there is also a Council of State that serves as an advisory body to the Chamber of Deputies; the Council of State has 21 members appointed by the Grand Duke on the advice of the prime minister ^R judicial courts and tribunals (3 Justices of the Peace, 2 district courts, and 1 Supreme Court of Appeals); administrative courts and tribunals (State Prosecutor's Office, administrative courts and tribunals, and the Constitutional Court); judges for all courts are appointed for life by the monarch ^S Action Committee for Democracy and Justice or ADR [Gast GIBERYEN]; Christian Social People's Party or CSV (known also as Christian Social Party or PCS) [Francois BILTGEN]; Democratic Party or DP [Claude MEISCH]; Green Party [Francois BAUSCH]; Luxembourg Socialist Workers' Party or LSAP [Alex BODRY]; Marxist and Reformed Communist Party dei Lenk/la Gauche (the Left) [no formal leadership]; other minor parties ^T ABBL (bankers' association); ALEBA (financial sector trade union); Centrale Paysanne (federation of agricultural producers); CEP (professional sector chamber); CGFP (trade union representing civil service); Chambre de Commerce (Chamber of Commerce); Chambre des Metiers (Chamber of Artisans); FEDIL (federation of industrialists); LCGP (center-right trade union); OGBL (center-left trade union) ^U ACCT, AsDB, Australia Group, Benelux, CE, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EMU, EU, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCL, WCO, WEU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC ^V `N Ambassador Arlette CONZEMIUS-PACCOURD `O 2200 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 `P [1] (202) 265-4171 `Q [1] (202) 328-8270 `R New York and San Francisco ^W `N Ambassador Peter TERPELUK, Jr. `Z 22 Boulevard Emmanuel Servais, L-2535 Luxembourg City `[ American Embassy Luxembourg, Unit 1410, APO AE 09126-1410 (official mail); American Embassy Luxembourg, PSC 9, Box 9500, APO AE 09123 (personal mail) `P [352] 46 01 23 `Q [352] 46 14 01 ^X three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and light blue; similar to the flag of the Netherlands, which uses a darker blue and is shorter; design was based on the flag of France 
]% ^Y This stable, high-income economy - in between France, Belgium, and Germany - features solid growth, low inflation, and low unemployment. The industrial sector, initially dominated by steel, has become increasingly diversified to include chemicals, rubber, and other products. Growth in the financial sector, which now accounts for about 22% of GDP, has more than compensated for the decline in steel. Most banks are foreign-owned and have extensive foreign dealings. Agriculture is based on small family-owned farms. The economy depends on foreign and cross-border workers for more than 30% of its labor force. Although Luxembourg, like all EU members, has suffered from the global economic slump, the country enjoys an extraordinarily high standard of living. ^Z $27.27 billion (2004 est.) ^[ 2.3% (2004 est.) ^\ purchasing power parity - $58,900 (2004 est.) ^] `; 0.5% `< 16.3% `= 83.1% (2004 est.) ^^ 293,700 (of whom 105,000 are foreign cross-border workers commuting primarily from France, Belgium, and Germany) (2004 est.) ^_ agriculture 1%, industry 13%, services 86% (2004 est.) ^` 4.5% (December, 2004 est.) ^a NA% _! `> NA% `? NA% _" 2.4% (2004 est.) _P 19.8% of GDP (2004 est.) _# `@ $13.74 billion `A $14.49 billion, including capital expenditures of $760 million (2004 est.) _$ barley, oats, potatoes, wheat, fruits, wine grapes; livestock products _% banking, iron and steel, food processing, chemicals, metal products, engineering, tires, glass, aluminum, information technology, tourism and banking _& 2.9% (2004 est.) _' 2.511 billion kWh (2002) _( 5.735 billion kWh (2002) _) 2.9 billion kWh (2002) _* 6.3 billion kWh (2002) _+ 0 bbl/day (2001 est.) _, 50,650 bbl/day (2001 est.) _- 634 bbl/day (2001) _. 50,700 bbl/day (2001) _S 0 cu m (2001 est.) _T 865 million cu m (2001 est.) _U 0 cu m (2001 est.) _V 867 million cu m (2001 est.) _/ $13.4 billion f.o.b. (2003) _0 machinery and equipment, steel products, chemicals, rubber products, glass _1 Germany 22.1%, France 20.1%, Belgium 10.2%, UK 8.4%, Italy 7.3%, Spain 5.9%, Netherlands 4.3% (2004) _2 $16.3 billion c.i.f. (2003) _3 minerals, metals, foodstuffs, quality consumer goods _4 Belgium 29.8%, Germany 22.6%, China 12.6%, France 12%, Netherlands 4.2% (2004) _5 $NA _Z ODA, $147 million (2002) _7 euro (EUR) note: on 1 January 1999, the European Monetary Union introduced the euro as a common currency to be used by financial institutions of member countries; on 1 January 2002, the euro became the sole currency for everyday transactions within the member countries _8 euros per US dollar - 0.8054 (2004), 0.886 (2003), 1.0626 (2002), 1.1175 (2001), 1.0854 (2000) _9 calendar year 
]& _: 355,400 (2002) _; 473,000 (2002) _< `B highly developed, completely automated and efficient system, mainly buried cables `C nationwide cellular telephone system; buried cable `D country code - 352; 3 channels leased on TAT-6 coaxial submarine cable (Europe to North America) _= AM 2, FM 9, shortwave 2 (1999) _> 5 (1999) _? .lu _@ 28,214 (2003) _A 165,000 (2002) 
]' _e `! 274 km `b 274 km 1.435-m gauge (242 km electrified) (2004) _B `! 5,210 km `E 5,210 km (including 126 km of expressways) `F 0 km (2002) _b 37 km (on Moselle River) (2003) _[ gas 155 km (2004) _C Mertert _K `! 40 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 652,454 GRT/805,101 DWT by type: chemical tanker 16, container 6, liquefied gas 2, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 6, roll on/roll off 6, vehicle carrier 1 `S 40 (Belgium 12, Finland 3, France 8, Germany 10, Netherlands 4, United States 3) (2005) _D 2 (2004 est.) _E `! 1 `] 1 (2004 est.) _L `! 1 `T 1 (2004 est.) _\ 1 (2004 est.) 
]( _F Army _M a 1967 law made the Army an all-volunteer force; 17 years of age for voluntary military service; soldiers under 18 are not deployed into combat or with peacekeeping missions (2004) _] males age 17-49: 110,867 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: males age 17-49: 90,279 (2005 est.) _^ `` 2,775 (2005 est.) _N $231.6 million (2003) _O 0.9% (2003) 
]) _H none 