]! ^! The Slovene lands were part of the Holy Roman Empire and Austria until 1918 when the Slovenes joined the Serbs and Croats in forming a new multinational state, renamed Yugoslavia in 1929. After World War II, Slovenia became a republic of the renewed Yugoslavia, which though Communist, distanced itself from Moscow's rule. 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 strong economy, and a stable democracy have assisted in Slovenia's transformation to a modern state. Slovenia acceded to both NATO and the EU in the spring of 2004. 
]" ^" Central Europe, eastern Alps bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Austria and Croatia ^# 46 07 N, 14 49 E ^$ Europe ^% `! 20,273 sq km `" 20,151 sq km `# 122 sq km ^& slightly smaller than New Jersey ^' `! 1,334 km `U Austria 330 km, Croatia 670 km, Italy 232 km, Hungary 102 km ^( 46.6 km ^) NA ^* Mediterranean climate on the coast, continental climate with mild to hot summers and cold winters in the plateaus and valleys to the east ^+ a short coastal strip on the Adriatic, an alpine mountain region adjacent to Italy and Austria, mixed mountains and valleys with numerous rivers to the east ^, `% Adriatic Sea 0 m `& Triglav 2,864 m ^- lignite coal, lead, zinc, mercury, uranium, silver, hydropower, forests ^. `' 8.6% `( 1.49% `) 89.91% (2001) ^/ 20 sq km (1998 est.) ^0 flooding and earthquakes ^1 Sava River polluted with domestic and industrial waste; pollution of coastal waters with heavy metals and toxic chemicals; forest damage near Koper from air pollution (originating at metallurgical and chemical plants) and resulting acid rain _J `K Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands `L Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants ^2 despite its small size, this eastern Alpine country controls some of Europe's major transit routes 
]# ^3 2,011,070 (July 2005 est.) ^4 `* 14% (male 145,016/female 137,012) `+ 70.6% (male 715,629/female 704,079) `, 15.4% (male 118,298/female 191,036) (2005 est.) ^5 `! 40.23 years `- 38.65 years `. 41.75 years (2005 est.) ^6 -0.03% (2005 est.) ^7 8.95 births/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^8 10.22 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^9 1 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.) ^: `/ 1.07 male(s)/female `0 1.06 male(s)/female `+ 1.02 male(s)/female `, 0.62 male(s)/female `1 0.95 male(s)/female (2005 est.) ^; `! 4.45 deaths/1,000 live births `- 5.05 deaths/1,000 live births `. 3.8 deaths/1,000 live births (2005 est.) ^< `1 76.14 years `- 72.42 years `. 80.1 years (2005 est.) ^= 1.24 children born/woman (2005 est.) ^> less than 0.1% (2001 est.) ^? 280 (2001 est.) ^@ less than 100 (2003 est.) ^A `2 Slovene(s) `3 Slovenian ^B Slovene 83.1%, Serb 2%, Croat 1.8%, Bosniak 1.1%, other or unspecified 12% (2002 census) ^C Catholic 57.8%, Orthodox 2.3%, other Christian 0.9%, Muslim 2.4%, unaffiliated 3.5%, other or unspecified 23%, none 10.1% (2002 census) ^D Slovenian 91.1%, Serbo-Croatian 4.5%, other or unspecified 4.4% (2002 census) ^E `M NA `1 99.7% `- 99.7% `. 99.6% (2003 est.) 
]$ ^F `4 Republic of Slovenia `5 Slovenia `V Republika Slovenija `W Slovenija `X People's Republic of Slovenia, Socialist Republic of Slovenia ^H parliamentary democratic republic ^I Ljubljana ^J 182 municipalities (obcine, singular - obcina) and 11 urban municipalities* (mestne obcine , singular - mestna obcina ) Ajdovscina, Beltinci, Benedikt, Bistrica ob Sotli, Bled, Bloke, Bohinj, Borovnica, Bovec, Braslovce, Brda, Brezice, Brezovica, Cankova, Celje*, Cerklje na Gorenjskem, Cerknica, Cerkno, Cerkvenjak, Crensovci, Crna na Koroskem, Crnomelj, Destrnik, Divaca, Dobje, Dobrepolje, Dobrna, Dobrova-Horjul-Polhov Gradec, Dobrovnik-Dobronak, Dolenjske Toplice, Dol pri Ljubljani, Domzale, Dornava, Dravograd, Duplek, Gorenja Vas-Poljane, Gorisnica, Gornja Radgona, Gornji Grad, Gornji Petrovci, Grad, Grosuplje, Hajdina, Hoce-Slivnica, Hodos-Hodos, Horjul, Hrastnik, Hrpelje-Kozina, Idrija, Ig, Ilirska Bistrica, Ivancna Gorica, Izola-Isola, Jesenice, Jezersko, Jursinci, Kamnik, Kanal, Kidricevo, Kobarid, Kobilje, Kocevje, Komen, Komenda, Koper-Capodistria*, Kostel, Kozje, Kranj*, Kranjska Gora, Krizevci, Krsko, Kungota, Kuzma, Lasko, Lenart, Lendava-Lendva, Litija, Ljubljana*, Ljubno, Ljutomer, Logatec, Loska Dolina, Loski Potok, Lovrenc na Pohorju, Luce, Lukovica, Majsperk, Maribor*, Markovci, Medvode, Menges, Metlika, Mezica, Miklavz na Dravskem Polju, Miren-Kostanjevica, Mirna Pec, Mislinja, Moravce, Moravske Toplice, Mozirje, Murska Sobota*, Muta, Naklo, Nazarje, Nova Gorica*, Novo Mesto*, Odranci, Oplotnica, Ormoz, Osilnica, Pesnica, Piran-Pirano, Pivka, Podcetrtek, Podlehnik, Podvelka, Polzela, Postojna, Prebold, Preddvor, Prevalje, Ptuj*, Puconci, Race-Fram, Radece, Radenci, Radlje ob Dravi, Radovljica, Ravne na Koroskem, Razkrizje, Ribnica, Ribnica na Pohorju, Rogasovci, Rogaska Slatina, Rogatec, Ruse, Salovci, Selnica ob Dravi, Semic, Sempeter-Vrtojba, Sencur, Sentilj, Sentjernej, Sentjur pri Celju, Sevnica, Sezana, Skocjan, Skofja Loka, Skofljica, Slovenj Gradec*, Slovenska Bistrica, Slovenske Konjice, Smarje pri Jelsah, Smartno ob Paki, Smartno pri Litiji, Sodrazica, Solcava, Sostanj, Starse, Store, Sveta Ana, Sveti Andraz v Slovenskih Goricah, Sveti Jurij, Tabor, Tisina, Tolmin, Trbovlje, Trebnje, Trnovska Vas, Trzic, Trzin, Turnisce, Velenje*, Velika Polana, Velike Lasce, Verzej, Videm, Vipava, Vitanje, Vodice, Vojnik, Vransko, Vrhnika, Vuzenica, Zagorje ob Savi, Zalec, Zavrc, Zelezniki, Zetale, Ziri, Zirovnica, Zuzemberk, Zrece note: there may be 45 more municipalities ^K 25 June 1991 (from Yugoslavia) ^L Independence Day/Statehood Day, 25 June (1991) ^M adopted 23 December 1991, effective 23 December 1991 ^N based on civil law system ^O 18 years of age; universal (16 years of age, if employed) ^P `6 President Janez DRNOVSEK (since 22 December 2002) `7 Prime Minister Janez JANSA (since 9 November 2004) `8 Council of Ministers nominated by the prime minister and elected by the National Assembly `9 president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; election last held 10 November and 1 December 2002 (next to be held in the fall of 2007); following National Assembly elections, the leader of the majority party or the leader of a majority coalition is usually nominated to become prime minister by the president and elected by the National Assembly; election last held 9 November 2004 (next National Assembly elections to be held October 2008) `: Janez DRNOVSEK elected president; percent of vote - Janez DRNOVSEK 56.5%, Barbara BREZIGAR 43.5%; Janez JANSA elected prime minister; National Assembly vote - 57 to 27 ^Q bicameral Parliament consisting of a National Assembly or Drzavni Zbor (90 seats; 40 are directly elected and 50 are selected on a proportional basis; note - the numbers of directly elected and proportionally elected seats varies with each election; members are elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms) and the National Council or Drzavni Svet (this is primarily an advisory body organized on corporatist principles with limited legislative powers; it may propose laws, ask to review any National Assembly decisions, and call national referenda; members are indirectly elected to five-year terms by an electoral college) `9 National Assembly - last held 3 October 2004 (next to be held October 2008) `: percent of vote by party - SDS 29.1%, LDS 22.8%, ZLSD 10.2%, NSi 9%, SLS 6.8%, SNS 6.3%, DeSUS 4.1%, other 11.7%; seats by party - SDS 29, LDS 23, ZLSD 10, NSi 9, SLS 7, SNS 6, DeSUS 4, Hungarian and Italian minorities 1 each ^R Supreme Court (judges are elected by the National Assembly on the recommendation of the Judicial Council); Constitutional Court (judges elected for nine-year terms by the National Assembly and nominated by the president) ^S Democratic Party of Retired (Persons) of Slovenia or DeSUS [Anton ROUS]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDS [Anton ROP]; New Slovenia or NSi [Andrej BAJUK]; Slovene Democratic Party or SDS [Janez JANSA]; Slovene National Party or SNS [Zmago JELINCIC]; Slovene People's Party or SLS [Janez PODOBNIK]; Slovene Youth Party or SMS [Darko KRANJC]; United List of Social Democrats or ZLSD [Borut PAHOR] ^T NA ^U Australia Group, BIS, CE, CEI, EAPC, EBRD, EIB, EU (new member), FAO, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM (guest), NATO, NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNMIK, UNTSO, UPU, WCO, WEU (member affiliate), WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC ^V `N Ambassador Samuel ZBOGAR `O 1525 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 `P [1] (202) 667-5363 `Q [1] (202) 667-4563 `R New York and Cleveland ^W `N Ambassador Thomas B. ROBERTSON `Z Presernova 31, 1000 Ljubljana `[ American Embassy Ljubljana, Department of State, 7140 Ljubljana Place, Washington, DC 20521-7140 `P [386] (1) 200-5500 `Q [386] (1) 200-5555 ^X three equal horizontal bands of white (top), blue, and red, with the Slovenian seal (a shield with the image of Triglav, Slovenia's highest peak, in white against a blue background at the center; beneath it are two wavy blue lines depicting seas and rivers, and above it are three six-pointed stars arranged in an inverted triangle, which are taken from the coat of arms of the Counts of Celje, the great Slovene dynastic house of the late 14th and early 15th centuries); the seal is located in the upper hoist side of the flag centered in the white and blue bands 
]% ^Y Slovenia, with its historical ties to Western Europe, enjoys a GDP per capita substantially higher than that of the other transitioning economies of Central Europe. In March 2004, Slovenia became the first transition country to graduate from borrower status to donor partner at the World Bank. Privatization of the economy proceeded at an accelerated pace in 2002-04. Despite lackluster performance in Europe in 2001-04, Slovenia maintained moderate growth. Structural reforms to improve the business environment have allowed for greater foreign participation in Slovenia's economy and have helped to lower unemployment. Further measures to curb inflation are still needed. Corruption and the high degree of coordination between government, business, and central bank policy were issues of concern in the run-up to Slovenia's 1 May 2004 accession to the European Union. In mid-2004 Slovenia agreed to adopt the euro by 2007 and, therefore, must keep its debt levels, budget deficits, interest rates, and inflation levels within the EU's Maastrict criteria. ^Z $39.41 billion (2004 est.) ^[ 3.9% (2004 est.) ^\ purchasing power parity - $19,600 (2004 est.) ^] `; 3% `< 36% `= 60% (2004 est.) ^^ 870,000 (2004 est.) ^_ agriculture 6%, industry 40%, services 55% (2002) ^` 6.4% (2004 est.) ^a NA _! `> 3.9% `? 23% (1998) _d 28.4 (1998) _" 3.3% (2004 est.) _P 24.9% of GDP (2004 est.) _# `@ $13.36 billion `A $13.99 billion, including capital expenditures of NA (2004 est.) _Q 31.5% of GDP (2004 est.) _$ potatoes, hops, wheat, sugar beets, corn, grapes; cattle, sheep, poultry _% ferrous metallurgy and aluminum products, lead and zinc smelting, electronics (including military electronics), trucks, electric power equipment, wood products, textiles, chemicals, machine tools _& 3.9% (2004 est.) _' 12.49 billion kWh (2003) _( 11.8 billion kWh (2003) _) 7.448 billion kWh (2002) _* 5.194 billion kWh (2002) _+ 20 bbl/day (2001 est.) _, 53,300 bbl/day (2001 est.) _- NA _. NA _S 0 cu m (2001 est.) _T 1.04 billion cu m (2001 est.) _U 0 cu m (2001 est.) _V 1.04 billion cu m (2001 est.) _X $-51.64 million (2004 est.) _/ $14.97 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) _0 manufactured goods, machinery and transport equipment, chemicals, food _1 Germany 18.3%, Italy 11.6%, Austria 11.5%, France 7.4%, Croatia 7.4%, Bosnia and Herzegovina 4.8% (2004) _2 $16.07 billion f.o.b. (2004 est.) _3 machinery and transport equipment, manufactured goods, chemicals, fuels and lubricants, food _4 Germany 19.9%, Italy 17%, Austria 14.9%, France 10.2% (2004) _Y $8.493 billion (2004 est.) _5 $14.65 billion (2004 est.) _6 ODA, $62 million (2000 est.) _7 tolar (SIT) _8 tolars per US dollar - 192.38 (2004), 207.11 (2003), 240.25 (2002), 242.75 (2001), 222.66 (2000) _9 calendar year 
]& _: 812,300 (2003) _; 1,739,100 (2003) _< `B NA `C 100% digital (2000) `D country code - 386 _= AM 17, FM 160, shortwave 0 (1998) _> 48 (2001) _? .si _@ 45,491 (2004) _A 750,000 (2002) 
]' _e `! 1,201 km `b 1,201 km 1.435-m gauge (499 km electrified) (2004) _B `! 20,250 km `E 20,250 km (including 456 km of expressways) `F 0 km (2002) _[ gas 2,526 km; oil 11 km (2004) _C Koper _K `\ 23 _D 14 (2004 est.) _E `! 6 `] 1 `G 1 `^ 1 `_ 2 `T 1 (2004 est.) _L `! 8 `^ 2 `_ 2 `T 4 (2004 est.) 
]( _F Slovenian Army (includes Air and Naval Forces) _M 17 years of age for voluntary military service; conscription abolished in 2003 (2004) _] males age 17-49: 496,929 (2005 est.) Manpower fit for military service: males age 17-49: 405,593 (2005 est.) _^ `` 12,816 (2005 est.) _N $370 million (FY00) _O 1.7% (FY00) 
]) _H the Croatia-Slovenia land and maritime boundary agreement, which would have ceded most of Piran Bay and maritime access to Slovenia and several villages to Croatia, remains unratified and in dispute; as a member state that forms part of the EU's external border, Slovenia must implement the strict Schengen border rules to curb illegal migration and commerce through southeastern Europe while encouraging close cross-border ties with Croatia _I minor transit point for cocaine and Southwest Asian heroin bound for Western Europe, and for precursor chemicals 