Austria as planned. Austria country description. Medical care and insurance

POPULATION: About 7.9 million people (1993). Austrians make up approximately 98% of the population. Croats, Slovenes, Czechs, and Hungarians also live here.

GEOGRAPHY: Austria is located in the very center of Europe. In the north the country borders with the Czech Republic, in the northeast with Slovakia, in the east with Hungary, in the south with Slovenia, Italy and Switzerland, in the west Austria borders with Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Germany. The total area of ​​the country is 83.8 thousand sq. km.

CLIMATE: Temperate, continental. The coldest winter month is January, the temperature drops to -2 C. The hottest are July and August, the temperature is about +20 C. Precipitation ranges from 600 to 1100 mm.

LANGUAGE: Official language- German.

CURRENCY: Austrian schilling (ATS). 1 shilling is equal to 100 groschen. Banknotes in circulation are 20, 50, 100, 500, 1000, 5000 shillings.

RELIGION: 78% of the population are Catholics, 8% are Protestants, 2% are Muslims, 12% are atheists.

POLITICAL STATE: federal parliamentary republic with a presidential form of government.

TIME: It is 2 hours behind Moscow.

MAIN ATTRACTIONS: first of all, the beauty of Vienna and the most famous ski resorts. The Alps have picturesque villages, excellent skiing conditions, and professional instructors. Vienna: symbol of the city - St. Stephen's Cathedral, Graben Street, St. Ruprecht's Church and Schönbrunn Castle, Vienna Amusement Park, Vatican Church, City Hall, Belvedere Palace, meeting of the musical society, collection of ancient musical instruments at the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Graphics Museum - Albertina gallery, main Art Museum Austria - the Museum of Art History, the Chapel of St. Bernard, the Town Hall and Parliament buildings, in front of which stands the statue of Pallas Athena, the Burgtheater, the Staatsoper, the ancient Viennese parks of Augarten and Prater. Very popular among tourists are the Vienna State Museum of Art, the Albertina Museum, the Vienna Woods, 70 km to the west of Vienna - the ruins of the Durnstein fortress (XII century), the State Jewish Museum, 25 km to the southwest - the Cistercian monasteries in Heiligenkreutz. The pearl of Vienna is the former imperial court of the Hofburg (XIII century) with the "Schatzkammer" - one of the richest gold storehouses in the world, where the treasures of the Order of the Golden Fleece, the highest order of Austria and Spain, are kept. One of the masterpieces of the collection is the crown of the Holy Roman Empire, made in 962, and the Austrian imperial crown, which was used to crown the Habsburgs. Salzburg: Salzburg Lakes, Salzburg Cathedral (founded in the 8th century, rebuilt in 1611-1628), surrounded by three squares with the luxurious residence of the prince-archbishops, the Baroque Museum, the Salt Mountains, the house in which Mozart was born, Helburn Palaces with a magnificent a park decorated with joker fountains, and Mirabel, Geerfidegasse, the Eisriesenwelt cave ("world of the ice giants") in Tennengebirge, south of Salzburg. Styria and Carinthia attract with a huge number of medieval castles and majestic nature. Innsbruck: Ambras Castle (XVI century), ski resort. Kitzbühel is a resort located in the Tyrolean Alps. Karniche is a famous sports center and resort located in the very south of Austria. Saalbach and Hinterglemm are the most popular ski resorts. Lech am Arlberg is a fashionable resort offering the highest service. Baden, a resort with healing hot sulfur springs, located 25 km south of Vienna, has been popular with crowned heads and artists for a long time. The most popular ski resorts are Innsbruck, Kitzbühel, Badgasstein, Baden bei Wien, Seefeld, Otztal, Zillertal, Saalbach-Hinterglemm, St. Anton, Zell am See-Kaprun, Galtür, Gaschurn, Stubaital, St. Johann, Pitztal , Carinthia, Salzkammergut, St. Wolfgang, Hintertux.

ENTRY RULES: Austria is part of the Schengen zone. To enter, you must have a foreign passport, a visa obtained on the basis of an invitation, and a paid consular fee in the amount of 400 Austrian schillings. Regardless of the type of invitation, the embassy issues a multiple visa - for multiple entries into the country within the period specified in the visa.

CUSTOMS RULES: in Austria there are no restrictions on the import or export of foreign and local currency (export of national currency - no more than 50 thousand schillings). The export, without special permission, of objects and things of historical and artistic value is prohibited.

INFORMATION TELEPHONE: throughout Austria 1611

There is an airport in the capital of each state. The main marinas are located in Linz and near Vienna. The largest cities are Vienna, Graz, Linz and Salzburg.

Austria, whose territory is elongated in the form of a wedge, strongly tapering to the west, occupies little space on the map. Its area is 83.8 thousand km2. It facilitates her communication with others European countries, of which it directly borders seven. The most important in terms of economic potential and the most densely populated eastern part of the country borders the Czech Republic and Slovakia, in the north with, in the southeast with. This provides Austria with favorable -geographical conditions for mutually beneficial trade with neighboring countries. In the west, Austria borders on and is closely connected with it. In the northwest and south it is adjacent to and.

Its position in the center of Europe makes Austria the crossroads of a number of trans-European meridional routes (from the Scandinavian and central European states through the Alpine passes of Brenner and Semmering to Italy and other countries). Service transit transportation cargo and passengers gives Austria certain income in foreign currency. In addition, as can be easily established from a physical map, the state borders of Austria for the most part coincide with natural boundaries - mountain ranges or . Only with Hungary, and (for a short distance) they pass through almost flat terrain.

When our compatriot, heading to Austria by train, crosses the Czech-Austrian border in the north-eastern corner of the country, he is somewhat disappointed. Where is Alpine Austria? All around, as far as the eye can see, is a treeless, plowed plain, as flat as a table. Here and there you can see green gardens and vineyards, brick houses and lonely trees on the borders and along the roads. and hilly lowlands extend from here far to the south along the entire border with Hungary and occupy 20% of the territory. But having reached Vienna, we find ourselves in a more typical natural environment for Austria: mountains, the Vienna (Wienerwald) - the north-eastern outpost of the mighty Alps and a sublimely hilly, wide and open valley, rising noticeably in westward. If you climb one of the peaks Vienna Woods, for example, Kalenberg (“Bald Mountain”), then far to the north and north-west in the blue haze beyond the Danube you can see the low, ridged, forest-covered granite ridges of Sumava, only some of whose peaks rise slightly above 700 meters. This ancient hill occupies 0.1 of the country's territory. Undoubtedly, they are dominant in Austria; they (together with the foothills) occupy 70% of the country’s area. These are the Eastern Alps. This is the customary name for the alpine part lying to the east of the valley along which the state border passes here. What is the difference between the Eastern Alps and the Western Alps? To the east of the Rhine fault, the Alpine ridges take a latitudinal direction, begin to fan out and descend. The Eastern Alps are wider and lower than the Western Alps and are more accessible. There are fewer glaciers here, and the largest ones are about half as long as those in Switzerland. The Eastern Alps have more and especially forests, and the Eastern Alps are much richer than the Western Alps.

If you cross the Alps from north to south, you will easily notice that geological structure and the composition of their constituents is located symmetrically relative to the axial zone. This zone is the highest and most powerful group of ridges covered with glaciers and snow, among which the Hohe Tauern stands out with the highest point of the country - the double-headed peak Glossglockner (“Big Ringer”), reaching 3997 m; Ötztal, Stubai, Zillertai Alps. All of them, together with the adjacent ridges to the west and east, are composed of hard crystalline rocks - granites, gneisses, crystalline schists.

The largest - Pasterze - has a length of about 10 km and an area of ​​32 km 2. To the north and south of the axial zone lie ridges composed of hard sedimentary rocks, mainly limestones and dolomites: the Lichtal Alps, Karwendel, Dachstein, Hochschwat and other Northern Limestone ridges Alps up to the Vienna Woods mentioned above at the extreme
northeast. Unlike the peaked peaks of crystalline ridges, limestone mountains are giant blocks with more or less flat, slightly inclined surfaces and almost vertical or even overhanging slopes. The years are mostly bare, and there are sinkholes, caves and other forms of karst formed by melted rainwater in soluble limestones and dolomites.

The peripheral zone of the Alps is formed by low, softly contoured peaks and slopes of the Pre-Alps, composed of loose sedimentary rocks. Within Austria, this zone is well defined in the north, but absent in the south. One of the features of the Alps is that they are dissected by deep and wide transverse valleys, due to which the deep parts of the Alps are relatively easily accessible, and low, convenient passes make it possible to cross the country from north to south in a number of places without much difficulty. Thus, the famous Brenner Pass has a height of 1371 m, and the Semmering Pass - 985 m. It is no coincidence that roads have long been built through the Alpine passes, some without tunnels.

Full official form of the state name: Republic

Form of government: Federal Republic

Membership in international organizations: is a member of the UN (since 1955) and is a member of a number of specialized UN agencies (UNESCO, UNIDO, WHO, FAO, IFAD, ILO, ICAO, ITU, UPU, WIPO, WMO, IAEA, IBRD, IFC, IMF, MAP, etc. ). is a member of the EU, WTO, OECD, OSCE, CoE, CEI, EBRD, Interpol and other organizations

Square: 83,879 km² (114th in the world)

Border: total length 2562 km
* in the north with the Czech Republic - 362 km,
* in the northeast with Slovakia - 91 km,
* in the east with Hungary - 366 km,
* in the south with Slovenia - 330 km and Italy - 430 km,
* in the west with Liechtenstein - 35 km and Switzerland - 164 km,
* in the northwest with Germany - 784 km

Population: 8,401,940 people (2011 census) (94th in the world)

Population density: 101.4 people/km² (80th place in the world)

Capital: Vienna

: 9 lands

Official language: German

Currency: Euro

Internet domain:.at

Timezone:(UTC+1, summer UTC+2)

Telephone code:+61

OKSM codes: AU (alpha-2) AUS (alpha-3) 040 (digital code)

Geographical position

Flora and fauna

The country is rich forests(47% of the entire territory). For Austrian flora Characteristic is oak-beech forest in the valleys, and at an altitude of more than 500 m - beech-spruce mixed forest. Above 1200 m, spruce predominates; larch and cedar are also found. Alpine meadows in the foothills.

Fauna- typical Central European. There are roe deer, hare, deer, pheasant, partridge, fox, marten, badger, and squirrel. The surroundings of Lake Neusiedler See are unique protected places most bird nesting different types. In high mountainous areas The composition of the fauna of the Eastern Alps is typically Alpine.

Political system

Legislature

The highest body of legislative power and body of popular representation- a bicameral Federal Assembly consisting of the National Council (NS) and the Federal Council (Bundesrat). Joint sessions of the Federal Assembly are held to swear in the president and to decide on a declaration of war. It could also call a referendum to remove the president.

Legislative functions are performed by the National Assembly (together with the Bundesrat), elected for 4 years in direct general elections by secret ballot. The leadership of the National Assembly is carried out by the President of the National Assembly, as well as the second President of the National Assembly and the third President of the National Assembly. These three presidents form a collegium and act as the federal president when he is unable to do so.

Representation of political parties in the National Council

The second chamber of the Austrian parliament is the Bundesrat. Its 64 members represent 9 federal states in proportion to their population (for example, Lower - 12, and Vorarlberg and Burgenland - 3 each). Members of the Bundesrat are elected and delegated by the state parliaments for 4 or 6 years. The Bundesrat can protest the law, and then the National Council votes again with a larger quorum. The President of the Bundesrat is elected alternately alphabetical order from each land for a period of six months.

Representation of political parties in the Federal Council

Elections to all bodies of popular representation are universal, direct, free and equal by secret ballot. The right to vote is granted to all citizens over 18 years of age. Participation in presidential elections is mandatory. Elections to the National Assembly are held according to a proportional system (three-stage proportional system: 1 vote for a certain party list, within the list - for a certain candidate in the regional and land electoral districts). Parties that win a regional mandate or receive 4% of the votes throughout the country enter the National Assembly.

Executive branch

Supreme body of executive power- federal government. Formed on February 28, 2003 from representatives of the ANP and APS, the government consists of 11 federal ministries: social security, generations and consumer protection (Minister Vice-Chancellor H. Haupt, APS); foreign affairs; internal affairs; Justice; national defense; finance; economics and labor; agriculture and forestry, environment and water management; Health and Women's Affairs; transport, innovation and technology; education, science and culture.

The government is headed by the Federal Chancellor. He forms the cabinet and coordinates its work. When making decisions, the principle of unanimity applies. The Chancellor must take into account the opinion of the Vice-Chancellor, whose role in the Austrian coalition government is great.

Heads of government (federal chancellors)

Judicial branch

Administrative division

The Austrian Federation consists of 9 states that have their own parliament (Landtag), constitution and government. The Lower and Upper lands lie on both sides of the Danube, and Salzburg, Tyrol, Vorarlberg, Carinthia and Styria are entirely or mostly in the Alps; Burgenland is located on the outskirts of the Middle Danube Lowland in the east of the country. The city of Vienna - the capital - is administratively equal to the lands.

Population

Cities

Largest cities: Vienna, Graz (238 thousand people), Linz (203 thousand people), Salzburg (144 thousand people), Innsbruck (118 thousand people). The share of the urban population is 60%.

National composition

Ethnic composition The population is homogeneous, about 98% are German-speaking Austrians. In addition, there are 6 recognized national minorities: Croats, Slovenes, Czechs, Slovaks, Hungarians, Roma (about 300 thousand people in total).

The number of foreigners according to the 2001 census is 707 thousand people. (8.8%), according to estimates - more than 760 thousand, of which 45% are citizens of the former Yugoslavia.

Economic-geographical location

Republic of Austria – Austria is a state located in the center of Europe. The country's territory is surrounded on all sides by land. The state borders: with the Czech Republic (in the north); with Slovakia (in the northeast); with Hungary (in the east); with Italy and Slovenia (in the south); with Switzerland and Liechtenstein (in the west) and with Germany (in the northwest).

Austria - union state. It includes:

  • Lower and Upper Austria,
  • Styria,
  • Burgerland,
  • Carinthia,
  • Vorarlberg,
  • Tyrol,
  • Vein,
  • Salzburg.

The territory of Austria is elongated in the shape of a wedge. The total area of ​​the territory is 83.8 thousand square meters. km.

The country's main marinas are located near Vienna and Linz. Largest cities: Vienna, Linz, Graz, Salzburg.

The geographical location favors the development of economic ties with neighboring countries.

Austria is a crossroads for a number of trans-European transport flows.

Natural conditions

The natural features of Austria are largely predetermined by the presence on the territory of the country mountain system Eastern Alps. Mountain ranges occupy up to 70% of the entire territory of the country, most of which are represented by the Eastern Alps. The Eastern Alps are divided into: the Salzburg and North Tyrol Alps (in the north) and the Carnic and Zillertal Alps (in the south). High Taeurn is the most powerful mountain range in the country. Mount Großglockner – highest point countries (3797 m).

Pasterze is the largest glacier in the Eastern Alps (more than 10 km long).

The Stubai, Ötztal and Zillertal Alps are a ridge granite-gneiss mountain zone. Alpine landforms are clearly expressed here - steep-walled valleys and sharp ridges. To the south and north of the ridge zone stretch the Limestone Alps, in the northern regions turning into the Pre-Alps, which descend to the Danube. The Eisriesenwelt ice cave is located in the Tennengebirge mountains. The pre-alps are ridged low mountains, overgrown with forest.

On the left side of the Danube there is a part of the ancient Bohemian massif - the southern spurs of the Sumava, up to 500 m high (in some places the height reaches 1000 m).

1/5 of the entire area of ​​the country is occupied by flat territories and hilly lowlands: the Danube part of Austria, part of the Middle Danube Plain. There are significant areas of fertile land here.

The climate is moderate. In the western parts of the country, the influence of the Atlantic can be seen. In the eastern regions and in the mountains the climate is more continental.

The climatic conditions of the plains are warm and humid. The average temperature in July is +20º C. Winter is mild, the average temperature in January is +1-5º C. The average annual precipitation is 700-900 mm.

For every 100m rise, the average temperature drops by 0.5-0.6º C.

Snow occurs at an altitude of 2500-2800 m. Summer in the mountains is windy, damp, cold, and wet snow often falls. In winter, huge layers of snow accumulate on the mountain slopes, which often form avalanches.

Note 1

A characteristic feature of the mountainous regions of the country is the abundance of clean fresh water, which accumulates during the main part of the year in the form of glaciers and snow, and in the summer flows down to the Danube and forms lake basins.

Natural resources

Water resources. Largest river countries - Danube. The river is at its fullest in summer (due to the melting of snow and ice in mountainous areas). The tributaries of the Danube - Salzach, Inn, Drava, Ends - have great hydroelectric potential. These rivers are partially used for timber rafting. In the northern foothills of the Alps and in the Klagenfurt Basin (in the south) there are many deep lakes of glacial origin. Largest lake– Constance – partly belongs to Austria. The largest waterfalls in the world include the Kriml Falls. Mineral springs– Bad Ischl, Baden.

Forest resources. Forests occupy almost 2/3 of the country's territory. Forests are most common in the mountains. Mountain forests are the national wealth of Austria.

Minerals. The main mineral resources of the country are: oil and natural gas (Vienna Basin), brown coal (Upper Austria, Styria), magnesite (Faich, Styrian Alps). The territory contains deposits of iron ore (Eisenertz area, Mount Erzberg; Carinthia, Hüttenberg), lead-zinc ores (Klagenfurt area, Bleiberg, etc.), copper ores (Tirol, Mitterberg). The country produces table salt (Salzkamergut), marble, graphite, feldspar, granite, limestone, and kaolin.

Recreational resources. Austrian Alps – popular place recreation for skiers. The most visited resorts in the provinces: Tyrol, Salzburg, Carinthia. Tourists visit Styria and Vorlarlberg. Resorts where you can combine relaxation and wellness treatments (at thermal springs): Bad Hofgastein, Bad Gastein in the Gastein Ral region. Comfortable temperatures, clean air, and beautiful landscapes attract mountain tourists and other vacationers.

Flora and fauna

The foothills and lower regions of the mountain slopes are covered with broad-leaved tree species - beech, oak, hornbeam forests. Above are mixed beech-spruce and coniferous forests, mainly fir. Above 1200 m there are larch, spruce, and cedar. The zone of subalpine meadows - mattas - is located above the forest belt and is distinguished by the abundance of high-grass representatives first, and then - short-grass - alpine meadows - almas. In the belt of eternal snow and ice you can find a low-growing plant - silver edelweiss.

The vegetation cover of the plain-hilly areas of the country is almost completely changed under the influence of anthropogenic factors. Most of the land has been plowed, leaving small oak and beech groves.

The fauna of Austria is Central European. In high mountain areas - typically alpine. In protected areas in forests mountain ranges inhabited by: red deer, roe deer, elk, brown bear, mountain sheep, chamois, mountain goats, alpine marmot, mountain eagle, black grouse, wood grouse, partridges.

Hares, foxes, and rodents are found on the plains. In the steppe region near Lake Neusiedlersee there is a purple heron.

 

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