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.
Full Name: Republic of Slovenia
Area: 20,273 sq km (land: 20,151 sq km, water: 122 sq km)
Population: 2,005,692 (July 2009 est.)
Capital City: Ljubljana
People: Slovene 83.1%, Serb 2%, Croat 1.8%, Bosniak 1.1%, other or unspecified 12% (2002 census)
Language: Slovenian 91.1%, Serbo-Croatian 4.5%, other or unspecified 4.4% (2002 census)
Religion: 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)
Government Type: Parliamentary democratic republic
Chief of State President Danilo TURK (since 22 December 2007)
Head of Government: Prime Minister Borut PAHOR (since 7 November 2008)
GDP: $US 54.64 billion (2008 est.)
GDP per Capita: $US 29,600 (2008 est.)
Inflation: 5.7% (2008 est.)
Unemployment: 6.7% (2008 est.)
Industries: Ferrous metallurgy and aluminum products, lead and zinc smelting, electronics (including military electronics), trucks, electric power equipment, wood products, textiles, chemicals, machine tools
Currency: Euro (€ - EUR)
Member of EU: Yes
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