Liechtenstein
Population: 37 313
GDP: 5 113 000 000.00 $
Companies & Organizations: 1
The Principality of Liechtenstein was established within the Holy Roman Empire in 1719. Occupied by both French and Russian troops during the Napoleonic Wars, it became a sovereign state in 1806 and joined the Germanic Confederation in 1815.
Liechtenstein became fully independent in 1866 when the Confederation dissolved. Until the end of World War I, it was closely tied to Austria, but the economic devastation caused by that conflict forced Liechtenstein to enter into a customs and monetary union with Switzerland. Since World War II (in which Liechtenstein remained neutral), the country's low taxes have spurred outstanding economic growth.
In 2000, shortcomings in banking regulatory oversight resulted in concerns about the use of financial institutions for money laundering. However, Liechtenstein implemented anti-money laundering legislation and a Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty with the US that went into effect in 2003.
Population: 37,313 (2014)
Nationality: noun: Liechtensteiner(s) adjective: Liechtenstein
Ethnic groups: Liechtensteiner 65.6%, other 34.4%
Languages: German 94.5% (official) (Alemannic is the main dialect), Italian 1.1%, other 4.3%
Religions: Roman Catholic (official) 75.9%, Protestant Reformed 6.5%, Muslim 5.4%, Lutheran 1.3%, other 2.9%, none 5.4%, unspecified 2.6%
GDP: $ 5 113 000 000.00 (2010)
Liechtenstein has no military forces, but the modern National Police maintains close relations with neighboring forces.
Liechtenstein has strengthened money laundering controls, but money laundering remains a concern due to Liechtenstein's sophisticated offshore financial services sector.
Capital: Vaduz
Location: Central Europe, between Austria and Switzerland. Along with Uzbekistan, one of only two doubly landlocked countries in the world; variety of microclimatic variations based on elevation.
Geographic coordinates:
47 16 N, 9 32 E
Area:
total: 160 sq km
land: 160 sq km
water: 0 sq km
Land boundaries:
total: 76 km
border countries: Austria 34.9 km, Switzerland 41.1 km
Coastline: 0 km (doubly landlocked).
Natural resources: hydroelectric potential, arable land.