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Japan

2021-10-05T04:29:24Z

TheGreatestMonk: New Prime Minister.

{{Country
|name =Japan
|map =Japan rel96.jpg
|map2 =Japan location.png
|flag =Flag of Japan.png
|arms =Imperial Seal of Japan.jpg
|capital =Tokyo
|capital-raw =
|government =Parliamentary democracy; Constitutional Monarchy
|government-raw =
|language =Japanese
|king =
|queen =
|monarch-raw =Emperor [[Naruhito]]
|president =
|president-raw =
|chancellor =
|chancellor-raw =
|pm =
|pm-raw =Fumio Kishida
|area =377,832 sq. miles
|pop =125,000,000 (2020)
|pop-basis =
|gdp =$5,000,000,000,000 (2020)
|gdp-year =
|gdp-pc =$40,000 (2020)
|currency =Yen
|idd =
|tld =
}}
'''Japan''' is a nation that consists of a group of islands off the eastern coast of [[Asia]]. Its capital, [[Tokyo]], is the largest metropolitan area in the world, with over 36 million people. Japan is divided into a total of 47 [[prefecture]]s.<ref>Demographia - 50 Largest World Metropolitan Areas Ranked:
2000 Estimates,[http://www.demographia.com/db-world-metro2000.htm]</ref> Japan has a culture that is more masculine in nature than comparable Western countries.

Japan has long suppressed [[Christianity]] and is now paying a hefty price for that, by suffering from a long-term population and economic decline, and thereby allowing [[China]] to replace Japan as [[Asia]]'s largest economy. Lacking the benefits of Christianity, Japan has one of the highest suicide rates in the world.<ref>https://www.cbsnews.com/news/twitter-killer-serial-killer-sentenced-to-death-japan/</ref> Japan's population peaked in 2008 at 128.08 million, and has been declining and increasing its average age ever since.

In the August 2009 national elections, the [[Liberal Democratic Party]] (LDP) suffered a massive defeat as voters blamed it for the poor economy, numerous corruption scandals and Prime Minister [[Taro Aso]]'s uninspiring leadership. The LDP has ruled Japan for nearly all of the last 50 years and is generally conservative, but it lost two-thirds of its seats.

The opposition [[Democratic Party of Japan]] (DPJ) swept the nation, winning 302 of the 480 seats in the powerful lower house, compared to only 112 seats before. DPJ leader [[Yukio Hatoyama]] was installed as prime minister but was replaced by [[Naoto Kan]] in June 2010. Kan was succeeded by Yoshihiko Noda in September 2011.

The DPJ has promised massive spending programs will cost 16.8 trillion yen ($177 billion) annually when they are fully operational in 2013. That is a huge burden for a country that has a large and rapidly growing fiscal deficit caused by stimulus packages and bailouts that never seem to work. Japan's national debt has soared to nearly 190% of its annual GDP (gross domestic product). The nation was ranked #4 in the world in per capita income in 1989, just before its slump began; it is now down to #14. India, with ten times as many people, has almost the same total GDP and will soon surpass Japan, in about ten years, becoming the world's third-largest economy and Asia's second-largest economy.

{{language box
|kanji=日本国
|romaji=Nihon-koku
}}
==Geography==
[[Image:Cherry Blossom Japan.jpg|thumb|Cherry Blossoms and Mt. Fuji.]]
The islands of Japan are scattered between 24ºN and 45ºN latitude (roughly 1,800 miles, or [[Florida]] to [[Maine]]). As a result, the climate varies greatly. Japan extends along the eastern or Pacific coast of Asia. The four main islands, running from north to south, are [[Hokkaido]], [[Honshu]] (or the mainland), [[Shikoku]], and [[Kyushu]]. [[Okinawa]] Island is about 380 miles south-west of Kyushu. About 3,000 smaller islands are included in the archipelago. In total land area, Japan is slightly smaller than California. About 73% of the country is mountainous, with a chain running through each of the main islands. Japan's highest mountain is the world-famous [[Mount Fuji]] (or ''Fuji-san'') at 12,385 feet. Since so little flat area exists, many hills and mountainsides are cultivated all the way to the summits. As Japan is situated in a volcanic zone along the Pacific depth, frequent low-intensity earth tremors and occasional volcanic activity are felt throughout the islands. Destructive earthquakes occur several times a century. Hot springs are numerous and have been developed as resorts.

Temperature extremes are less pronounced than in the United States, but the climate varies considerably. Sapporo, on the northernmost main island, has warm summers and long, cold winters with heavy snowfall. Tokyo, Nagoya, Kyoto, Osaka, and Kobe, in central and western parts of the largest island of Honshu, experience relatively mild winters with little or no snowfall and hot, humid summers. Fukuoka, on the island of Kyushu, has a climate similar to that of Charleston, South Carolina, with mild winters and wet summers. Okinawa is subtropical.

The cherry blossom (Sakura) is Japan's unofficial national flower. It has been celebrated for many centuries and takes a very prominent position in [[Mono no aware|Japanese culture]].<ref>[http://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2011.html Cherry Blossom]</ref>

==Demographics==

===Population===
Japan's population, currently 125 million, has experienced a phenomenal growth rate during the past 100 years as a result of scientific, industrial, and sociological changes, but this has ended because of falling birth rates and a lack of immigration. In 2006, Japan's population declined for the first time, two years earlier than predicted. High sanitary and health standards and a diet of fish and rice produce a life expectancy exceeding that of the United States. However, the population of Japan is expected to fall to only 107 million in 2050, and by 2100, it would be down to 75 million, falling below the United Kingdom.

===Decline===
[[File:Niños japoneces.jpg|left]]
Japan's population peaked in 2008, and has declined to 126 million in 2020. The [[birth rate]] has now increased from 2006's record low, but this has been offset by an all-time-high in the [[death rate]]. 51% of the population is female, and people over 65 now make up 26.4% of the country.<ref>''[[Japan Times]]'': '[http://search.japantimes.co.jp/mail/nn20070803a2.html Population shrinks again despite increase in births]'. 3rd August 2007; "Japan's changing demography: Cloud, or silver linings?" ''Economist'' (Jul 26th 2007) at [https://www.economist.com/world/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9539825].</ref>

In 1947 the proportion of Japanese over 65 was around 5% of the population, well below that in Britain, France or America. Today the elderly account for one-fifth of the population, and average lifespans have grown remarkably. Life expectancy today is 82, up from a little over 50 in 1947.

The baby boom came in 1947-1949, when 2.7m children a year were born. In 2007 the baby-boom generation began to retire (60 is the mandatory retirement age at most companies). Japan's birth rate fell below the replacement rate of 2.1 in the early 1970s. It slid to a low of 1.26 in 2005. In 2005 the population began to fall in absolute terms, despite increasing life expectancy. It is now shrinking at a pace unprecedented for any nation in peacetime. The National Institute of Population and Social Security Research estimates a total population of 95m by 2050, compared to 127m in 2007, with the elderly accounting by then for two-fifths of the total.<ref>"Japan's changing demography: Cloud, or silver linings?" ''Economist'' (Jul 26th 2007) at [https://www.economist.com/world/displaystory.cfm?story_id=9539825].</ref>

===Policies===
The DPJ, elected in a landslide in 2009, has promised an ambitious social-spending plan that includes a child allowance of $3,300 a year. It is designed to encourage more births as a solution to Japan's declining population and rising average population age, as well as being a stimulus to spending to get the economy out of its long slump.

===Cities===
[[File:Kobe port.jpg|thumb|Port of Kobe.]]
Japan is an urban society with only about 4% of the labor force engaged in agriculture. Many farmers supplement their income with part-time jobs in nearby towns and cities. About 80 million of the urban population is heavily concentrated on the Pacific shore of Honshu and in northern Kyushu. Major population centers include: Metropolitan Tokyo with approximately 12.5 million; Yokohama with 3.6 million; Osaka with 2.6 million; Nagoya with 2.2 million; Sapporo with 1.9 million; Kyoto and Kobe with 1.5 million each; Kawasaki and Fu''''kuoka with 1.4 million each, and Saitama with 1.2 million. Japan faces the same problems that confront urban industrialized societies throughout the world: overcrowded cities, congested roads, air pollution, and rising juvenile delinquency.
*Population (2007 est.): 127.5 million.
*Population growth rate (2007 est.): -0.088%.
*Ethnic groups: Japanese; Korean (0.5%).
*Religions: Shinto and Buddhist; Christian (about 0.7%).
*Language: Japanese.
*Education: Literacy—99%.
*Health (2007 est.): Infant mortality rate—2.8/1,000. Life expectancy—males 78 yrs., females 85 yrs.
*Work force (67 million, 2003): services—42%; trade, manufacturing, mining, and construction—46%; agriculture, forestry, fisheries—5%; government—3%.

===Religion===
[[Image:Nara.jpg|thumb|Great Buddha at Nara]]

Historically, the Japanese government has shifted between no official religion, [[Shinto|Shintō]], and [[Buddhism]].<ref name="WebJapanFactSheet">[http://web-japan.org/factsheet/ Web Japan Fact Sheet], sponsored by the [http://www.mofa.go.jp/ Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan]</ref> Modern Japan has no state religion.<ref>Article 20 of the [[Current Constitution of Japan (Full Text)|Japanese Constitution]] erects a legal barrier between political and religious entities.</ref>

Shintoism and Buddhism are Japan's two principal religions. Shintoism is founded on myths and legends emanating from the early animistic worship of natural phenomena. Since it was unconcerned with problems of afterlife which dominate Buddhist thought, and since Buddhism easily accommodated itself to local faiths, the two religions comfortably coexisted, and Shinto shrines and Buddhist temples often became administratively linked. Today many Japanese are adherents of both faiths. From the 16th to the 19th century Shintoism flourished.

Adopted by the leaders of the Meiji restoration, Shintoism received state support and was cultivated as a spur to patriotic and nationalistic feelings. Following World War II, state support was discontinued, and the emperor disavowed divinity. Today Shintoism plays a more peripheral role in the life of the Japanese people. The numerous shrines are visited regularly by a few believers and, if they are historically famous or known for natural beauty, by many sightseers. Many marriages are held in the shrines, and children are brought there after birth and on certain anniversary dates; special shrine days are celebrated for certain occasions, and numerous festivals are held throughout the year. Many homes have "god shelves" where offerings can be made to Shinto deities.
[[File:Daibutsu-den in Todaiji Nara.jpg|thumb|330px|left|Temple Daibutsu-den in Todaiji, [[Nara]].]]
Buddhism first came to Japan in the 6th century and for the next 10 centuries exerted profound influence on its intellectual, artistic, social, and political life. Most funerals are conducted by Buddhist priests, and many Japanese visit family graves and Buddhist temples to pay respects to ancestors.

Confucianism arrived with the first great wave of Chinese influence into Japan between the 6th and 9th centuries. Overshadowed by Buddhism, it survived as an organized philosophy into the late 19th century and remains today as an important influence on Japanese thought and values.

Christianity, first introduced into Japan in 1549, was virtually stamped out by the government a century later; it was reintroduced in the late 1800s and has spread slowly. Today Christianity has an estimated 3 million adherents throughout Japan.

Beyond the three traditional religions, many Japanese today are turning to a great variety of popular religious movements normally lumped together under the name "new religions." These religions draw on the concept of Shinto, Buddhism, and folk superstition and have developed in part to meet the social needs of elements of the population. The officially recognized new religions number in the hundreds, and total membership is reportedly in the tens of millions.

Japan has also spawned its share of [[cults]], including the exceptionally lethal but fortunately short-lived [[Aum Shinrikyo]] movement of the early 1990s, which in 1994 became the first non-state organization to kill people with [[nerve gas]].

== Art ==
[[Image:Birds Japanese painting.jpg|180px|right|Birds, Japanese painting]]
[[Image:Hokusai Sea Wave Kanagawa.jpg|180px|right|Behind the Great Wave off Kanagawa]]
Japanese art comes from prehistoric times. It has been influenced by [[Chinese]] art and Zen Buddhism, as well as by Western art. Painting (絵画) is one of the oldest Japanese art, and the most popular one. Main Painting Schools are: Suibokuga, Kanō, Rimpa, Tosa-ha, Nanga and Shijo.

Japanese interpretations and painters may be studied in the following periods:

* Ancient Japan
* [[Nara]] period
* Heian and [[Kamakura]] periods
* Muromachi period
: Josetsu (如拙) (1405 – 1423), the father of Japanese ink painting.
* Azuchi-Momoyama period
: Kanō Eitoku (狩野永徳) (1543 - 1590), prominent patriarch of the Kanō School.
* Edo period
: Tawaraya Sōtatsu (俵屋宗達) (c. 1600s), co-founder of the Rimpa School.
: [[Katsushika Hokusai]] (葛飾北斎) (1760 — 1849), Ukiyo-e (浮世絵) genre painter and printmaker. "Behind the Great Wave at Kanagawa" (c.1829) is one of the most renowned Japanese paintings.
* Meiji period
* Taisho period
* Showa period
: Ogura Yuki (小倉遊亀) (1895 - 2000), traditional female painter.
* Contemporary period
: Shinoda Toko (篠田桃紅) (b. 1913), female painter, sumi (ink) paintings and prints.
{{Clear}}

==Tourism==
Japan is a country that offers the tourist exotic beauty and marvelous attractions. It has so many outstanding places to visit that it is difficult to choose among them. Examples are [[Tokyo]] the capital, [[Nikko]], a pilgrimage site, [[Kamakura]], with one of Japan's best collections of shrines, temples, and monuments, [[Kyoto]] "The Thousand Year Capital", which was Japan's capital for years, [[Osaka]], [[Hiroshima]], [[Nara]], [[Nagasaki]] and [[Sapporo]]. It is said that the three most scenic spots of Japan are [[Itsukushima Shrine|Miyajima]] (Shrine Island), Amano Hashidate, located on the Tango Peninsula in the northern part of [[Kyoto]] Prefecture, and Matsushima, located in Miyagi Prefecture (3 hours from Tokyo); (Miyagi Prefecture (宮城県, Miyagi-ken) is located in the Tōhoku Region on [[Honshu]] island, northeastern Japan; [[Sendai]] is its capital).<ref>[http://www.thereareplaces.com/newguidebook/pdest/Asia/jppts.htm Best Places to Visit in Japan.]</ref>

<center>
<gallery>
File:Japan Miyajima s.jpg|Torii of [[Itsukushima Shrine]].
File:Amano Hasidate Japan.jpg|Amano Hasidate.
File:Matsushima Japan.jpg|Matsushima.
</gallery>
</center>

==Government and Political Conditions==
Japan is a constitutional monarchy with a parliamentary government. There is universal adult suffrage with a secret ballot for all elective offices. Sovereignty, previously embodied in the emperor, is vested in the Japanese people, and the Emperor is defined as the symbol of the state.
[[File:National Diet Tokyo.jpg|thumb|left|300px|The National Diet, Tokyo.]]
Japan's Government is a parliamentary democracy, with a House of Representatives and a House of Councillors. Executive power is vested in a cabinet composed of a prime minister and ministers of state, all of whom must be civilians. The prime minister must be a member of the [[National Diet|Diet]] and is designated by his colleagues. The prime minister has the power to appoint and remove ministers, a majority of whom must be Diet members. The judiciary is independent.

The five major political parties represented in the National Diet are the [[Democratic Party of Japan]] (DPJ), the [[Liberal Democratic Party of Japan|Liberal Democratic Party]] (LDP), the New Clean Government Party (Komeito), the [[Japanese Communist Party]] (JCP) and the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Japan's judicial system, drawn from customary law, civil law, and Anglo-American common law, consists of several levels of courts, with the Supreme Court as the final judicial authority. The Japanese constitution includes a bill of rights similar to the U.S. Bill of Rights, and the Supreme Court has the right of judicial review. Japanese courts do not use a jury system, and there are no administrative courts or claims courts. Because of the judicial system's basis, court decisions are made in accordance with legal statutes. Only Supreme Court decisions have any direct effect on later interpretation of the law.

Japan does not have a federal system, and its 47 prefectures are not sovereign entities in the sense that U.S. states are. Most depend on the central government for subsidies. Governors of prefectures, mayors of municipalities, and prefectural and municipal assembly members are popularly elected to 4-year terms.

====Recent Political Developments====
The post-World War II years saw tremendous economic growth in Japan, with the political system dominated by the Liberal Democratic Party (LDP). That total domination lasted until the Diet lower house elections in July 1993, in which the LDP failed for the first time to win a majority. The LDP returned to power in 1994, with majorities in both houses of the Diet. In elections in July 2007, the LDP lost its majority in the upper house, with the DPJ now holding the largest number of seats but with no party possessing a clear majority. Currently, the LDP maintains a majority in the lower house.

Shinzo Abe was elected Prime Minister in a Diet vote in September 2006. Abe was the first prime minister to be born after World War II and the youngest prime minister since the war. However, Abe resigned abruptly on September 12, 2007, not long after the LDP lost control of the upper house in the July 2007 elections in which the LDP's handing of domestic issues was a leading issue. Yasuo Fu''''kuda of the LDP was elected prime minister by the Diet on September 25, 2007, to replace Abe. Fu''''kuda, whose father served as prime minister in the late 1970s, is known as a moderate and for his experience building consensus behind the scenes.

===Principal Government Officials===
[[File:Emperor Akihito Japan.jpg|thumb|Emperor Akihito.]]
*Head of State—Emperor Akihito
*Prime Minister (Head of Government)--
*Cabinet Secretary Takeo Kawamura
*Finance Minister Shoichi Nakagawa
*Defense Minister Yasukazu Hamada,
*Minister of Foreign Affairs Hirofumi Nakasone
*Permanent Representative to the UN Kenzo Oshima
{{Clear}}

===Foreign Relations===
Japan is the world's second-largest economy and a major economic power both in Asia and globally. Japan has diplomatic relations with nearly all independent nations and has been an active member of the United Nations since 1956. Japanese foreign policy has aimed to promote peace and prosperity for the Japanese people by working closely with the West and supporting the United Nations.
[[File:Japanese sailors.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Japanese sailors.]]
In recent years, the Japanese public has shown a substantially greater awareness of security issues and increasing support for the Self Defense Forces. This is in part due to the Self Defense Forces' success in disaster relief efforts at home, and its participation in peacekeeping operations such as in Cambodia in the early 1990s and Iraq in 2005-2006. However, there are still significant political and psychological constraints on strengthening Japan's security profile. Although a military role for Japan in international affairs is highly constrained by its constitution and government policy, Japanese cooperation with the United States through the 1960 U.S.-Japan Security Treaty has been important to the peace and stability of East Asia. Currently, there are domestic discussions about possible reinterpretation or revision of Article 9 of the Japanese constitution. Prime Minister Abe made revising or reinterpreting the Japanese constitution a priority of his administration. All postwar Japanese governments have relied on a close relationship with the United States as the foundation of their foreign policy and have depended on the Mutual Security Treaty for strategic protection.

While maintaining its relationship with the United States, Japan has diversified and expanded its ties with other nations. Good relations with its neighbors continue to be of vital interest. After the signing of a peace and friendship treaty with China in 1978, ties between the two countries developed rapidly. Japan extended significant economic assistance to the Chinese in various modernization projects and supported Chinese membership in the World Trade Organization (WTO). Japan's economic assistance to China is now declining. In recent years, however, Chinese exploitation of gas fields in the East China Sea has raised Japanese concerns given disagreement over the demarcation of their maritime boundary. Prime Minister Abe's October 2006 visits to Beijing and Seoul helped improve relations with China and South Korea that had been strained following Prime Minister Koizumi's visits to Yasukuni Shrine. At the same time, Japan maintains economic and cultural but not diplomatic relations with Taiwan, with which a strong bilateral trade relationship thrives.

Japanese officials believe the February 25, 2008 inauguration of Republic of Korea President Lee Myung-bak marks a "new era" in Japan-South Korea relations, as Tokyo and Seoul look to develop "future-oriented" ties while avoiding contentious historical differences. Those historical differences include territorial disputes involving the Liancourt Rocks, use of Korean females as "Comfort Women" during World War II, and historical and ethnic animosities that continue to complicate Japan's political relations with South Korea despite growing economic and cultural ties.

A surprise visit by Prime Minister Koizumi to Pyongyang, North Korea on September 17, 2002, resulted in renewed discussions on contentious bilateral issues—especially that of abductions to North Korea of Japanese citizens—and Japan's agreement to resume normalization talks in the near future. In October 2002, five abductees returned to Japan, but soon after negotiations reached a stalemate over the fate of abductees' families in North Korea. Japan's economic and commercial ties with North Korea plummeted following Kim Jong-il's 2002 admission that D.P.R.K. agents abducted Japanese citizens. Japan strongly supported the United States in its efforts to encourage Pyongyang to abide by the nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and its agreements with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA). In 2006, Japan responded to North Korea's July missile launches and October nuclear test by imposing sanctions and working with the United Nations Security Council. The U.S., Japan, and South Korea closely coordinate and consult trilaterally on policy toward North Korea, and Japan participates in the Six-Party Talks to end North Korea's nuclear arms ambitions. Tokyo, however, refuses to provide assistance called for under the February 13, 2007 Six-Party Talks agreement until North Korea takes satisfactory steps to resolve the abduction issue.

Japan's relations with Russia are hampered by the two sides' inability to resolve their territorial dispute over the islands that make up the Northern Territories (Southern Kuriles) seized by the Soviet Union at the end of World War II. The stalemate over territorial issues has prevented conclusion of a peace treaty formally ending the war between Japan and Russia. The United States supports Japan on the Northern Territories issue and recognizes Japanese sovereignty over the islands. Russian Coast Guard boats sometimes seize Japanese fishing vessels operating in waters surrounding the disputed area. In August 2006, a Russian patrol shot at a Japanese fishing vessel, claiming the vessel was in Russian waters, killing one crewmember and taking three seamen into custody. In October 2007, Russia raised objections to U.S.-Japan cooperation on missile defense, and in February 2008, Tokyo protested the incursion into Japanese airspace of a Russian bomber. Despite the lack of progress in resolving the Northern Territories and other disputes, however, Japan and Russia continue to develop other aspects of the overall relationship, including two large, multibillion-dollar oil-natural gas consortium projects on Sakhalin Island.

Japan has pursued a more active foreign policy in recent years, recognizing the responsibility that accompanies its economic strength. It has expanded ties with the Middle East, which provides most of its oil, and has been the second-largest assistance donor (behind the U.S.) to Iraq and Afghanistan. In 2006, Japan's Ground Self Defense Force completed a successful two-year mission in Iraq, and the Diet extended the Anti-Terrorism Special Measures Law which allowed for Japan's Maritime Self Defense Force refueling activities in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in the Indian Ocean. On July 10, 2007, the Japanese Government decided to extend the Air Self-Defense Force's (ASDF) airlift support mission in Iraq to July 31, 2008. Under the Iraq Special Measures Law a wing of the ASDF's C-130 transport planes, based in Kuwait, will continue to carry personnel and supplies for the U.S.-led multinational forces and the United Nations in Iraq. The law has been extended to July 31, 2009, and will be voted on again in 2008.

Japan increasingly is active in Africa and Latin America—recently concluding negotiations with Mexico and Chile on an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA)--and has extended significant support to development projects in both regions.

[[File:Mexico - Japan Business.jpg|center|thumb|280px|Mexico-Japan Business.]]
<blockquote>
Mexico and Japan implemented an Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA) on April 1st , 2005. The EPA is a comprehensive free trade agreement that has contributed to the expansion of commerce, investment, and tourism between the two countries. Japan represents the most important market for Mexican exports in Asia; and, Mexico is the most important destination for Japanese exports in Latin America. Moreover, cumulative Japanese company investments in Mexico total more than US$ 10 billion for the past decade, in sectors as diverse as automotive, electronics, electric, energy, agribusiness, transportation, real estate, and services.<ref>[http://www.mexicotradeandinvestment.com/]</ref>
</blockquote>

A Japanese-conceived peace plan became the foundation for nationwide elections in [[Cambodia]] in 1998. Japan's economic engagement with its neighbors is increasing, as evidenced by the conclusion of an EPA with Singapore and the Philippines, and its ongoing negotiations for EPAs with Thailand and Malaysia.

In May 2007, just prior to the G8 Summit in Heiligendamm, Prime Minister Abe announced an initiative to address greenhouse gas emissions and seek to mitigate the impact of energy consumption on climate. At the January 2008, [[World Economic Forum]] in Davos, Switzerland, Prime Minister Fu''''kuda reiterated his commitment to this plan. As host of the G8 Summit in July 2008, Japan will focus on four themes: environment and climate change, development and Africa, the world economy, and political issues including non-proliferation.

In September 2010, a Chinese fishing boat deliberately rammed two Japan Coast Guard patrol vessels off the Senkaku Islands.

===Relations with the United States===
The U.S.-Japan alliance is the cornerstone of U.S. security interests in Asia and is fundamental to regional stability and prosperity. Despite the changes in the post-Cold War strategic landscape, the U.S.-Japan alliance continues to be based on shared vital interests and values. These include stability in the Asia-Pacific region, the preservation and promotion of political and economic freedoms, support for human rights and democratic institutions, and securing of prosperity for the people of both countries and the international community as a whole.
[[File:Surrender of Japan - USS Missouri.jpg|thumb|left|280px|Surrender of Japan - USS Missouri.]]
Japan provides bases and financial and material support to U.S. forward-deployed forces, which are essential for maintaining stability in the region. Under the U.S.-Japan Treaty of Mutual Cooperation and Security, Japan hosts a carrier battle group, the III Marine Expeditionary Force, the 5th Air Force, and elements of the Army's I Corps. The United States currently maintains approximately 50,000 troops in Japan, about half of whom are stationed in Okinawa.

Over the past decade the alliance has been strengthened through revised Defense Guidelines, which expand Japan's noncombatant role in a regional contingency, the renewal of our agreement on Host Nation Support of U.S. forces stationed in Japan, and an ongoing process called the Defense Policy Review Initiative (DPRI). The DPRI redefines roles, missions, and capabilities of alliance forces and outlines key realignment and transformation initiatives, including reducing the number of troops stationed in Okinawa, enhancing interoperability and communication between our respective commands, and broadening our cooperation in the area of ballistic missile defense.

Implementation of these agreements will strengthen our capabilities and make our alliance more sustainable. After the tragic events of September 11, 2001, Japan has participated significantly with the global war on terrorism by providing major logistical support for U.S. and coalition forces in the Indian Ocean.

Because of the two countries' combined economic and technological impact on the world, the U.S.-Japan relationship has become global in scope. The United States and Japan cooperate on a broad range of global issues, including development assistance, combating communicable disease such as the spread of HIV/AIDS and avian influenza, and protecting the environment and natural resources. Both countries also collaborate in science and technology in such areas as mapping the human genome, research on aging, and international space exploration. As one of Asia's most successful democracies and its largest economy, Japan contributes irreplaceable political, financial, and moral support to U.S.-Japan diplomatic efforts. The United States consults closely with Japan and the Republic of Korea on policy regarding North Korea. In Southeast Asia, U.S.-Japan cooperation is vital for stability and for political and economic reform. Outside Asia, Japanese political and financial support has substantially strengthened the U.S. position on a variety of global geopolitical problems, including the Gulf, Middle East peace efforts, and the Balkans. Japan is an indispensable partner on UN reform and the second largest contributor to the UN budget. Japan broadly supports the United States on nonproliferation and nuclear issues. The U.S. supports Japan's aspiration to become a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council.

== Economy ==
Japan was devastated by [[World War II]].<ref>World War II wiped out many of the gains Japan had made since 1868. About 40 percent of the nation's industrial plants and infrastructure were destroyed, and production reverted to levels of about fifteen years earlier.[http://www.country-data.com/cgi-bin/query/r-7176.html Japan - Patterns of Development]</ref>

Yet Japan's economy recovered over the years 1950-1980 through a partnership between government and industry. The goal in 1950 was to become the world leader in textiles, which was achieved by 1959. The goal in 1960 was to become the world's top producer in steel by 1970, and the goal in 1970 was to become the world's leader in the production of automobiles. Each goal was achieved within one year of the target date.<ref>[http://www.nightingale.com/Offers/ziglar-goalsvideo.html?promo=intgooga660&org=intgooga660&gclid=CIPP8tG736QCFUpe7AodkGqbKw Source: Zig Ziglar's motivational talk on goal setting]</ref>
[[File:Tokyo.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Tokyo.]]

Now Japan's industrialized, free market economy is the third-largest in the world. Its economy is highly efficient and competitive in areas linked to international trade, but productivity is far lower in protected areas such as agriculture, distribution, and services. After achieving one of the highest economic growth rates in the world from the 1960s through the 1980s, the Japanese economy slowed dramatically in the early 1990s, when the "bubble economy" collapsed, marked by plummeting stock and real estate prices. Together with the impact of the worldwide [[recession of 2008]], Japan's status as a global economic power is slipping fast, with [[China]] already surpassing Japan in 2011, thus becoming Asia's largest economy, and with India poised to surpass Japan as the world's third-largest economy by the late 2020s.

Japan's reservoir of industrial leadership and technicians, well-educated and industrious work force, high savings and investment rates, and intensive promotion of industrial development and foreign trade produced a mature industrial economy. Japan has few natural resources, and trade helps it earn the foreign exchange needed to purchase raw materials for its economy.

Japan's long-term economic prospects are considered good, and it has largely recovered from its worst period of economic stagnation since World War II. Real GDP in Japan grew at an average of roughly 1% yearly in the 1990s, compared to growth in the 1980s of about 4% per year. The Japanese economy is now in its longest postwar expansion after more than a decade of stagnation. Real growth in 2006 was 2.2% and was 1.9% in 2007.
*GDP (2007 est.): $5.103 trillion (official exchange rate); $4.34 trillion (PPP).
*Real growth rate (2007 est.): 1.9%.
*Per capita GDP (2007 est. PPP): $33,800.
*Natural resources: Fish and few mineral resources.
*Agriculture: Products—rice, vegetables, fruit, milk, meat, silk.
*Industry: Types—machinery and equipment, metals and metal products, textiles, autos, chemicals, electrical and electronic equipment.

=== Economic History ===
In 1960, with a GDP with over $40 billion,<ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_countries_by_largest_historical_GDP</ref> Japan was the ninth-largest economy, below the United States, the Soviet Union, Germany, France, the United Kingdom, Italy, China, and Canada. Because of economic reforms and economic freedom set out by the Japanese government, Japan boomed to $90 trillion in 1965, getting to sixth. The booming economy of Japan was doubling in less than five years, and got to fourth place with $200 billion in 1970. It went to $512.5 billion in 1975, becoming the third-largest economy. In 1980, Japan again more than doubled, with a $1.1 trillion GDP. Experts predicted another more-than-double in 1985. That wasn't the case. Instead, Japan went to $1.4 trillion in 1985, slowing down a little bit. In 1990, Japan had a $3.15 trillion GDP, more-than-doubling again, and now overtaking the Soviet Union's economy, and thus getting to 2nd. In 1995, Japan exploded to 5.5 trillion dollars, and experts thought Japan would overtake the US.<ref>https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-xpm-1995-04-10-9504100029-story.html</ref> But Japan slowed down in 2000, going down to $4.9 trillion, but keeping second place. In 2005, Japan went down further to $4.75 trillion, still being second. But, in 2010, Japan was a $6 trillion dollar economy, tying with China. In 2015, Japan was down to 3rd, with $4.4 trillion. Japan is now a very risky investment, barely getting to $5 trillion in 2020.

===Agriculture, Energy, and Minerals===
Only 15% of Japan's land is arable. The agricultural economy is highly subsidized and protected. With per hectare crop yields among the highest in the world, Japan maintains an overall agricultural self-sufficiency rate of about 40% on fewer than 5.6 million cultivated hectares (14 million acres). Japan normally produces a slight surplus of rice but imports large quantities of wheat, corn, sorghum, and soybeans, primarily from the United States. Japan is the largest market for U.S. agricultural exports.

Given its heavy dependence on imported energy, Japan has aimed to diversify its sources and maintain high levels of energy efficiency. Since the oil shocks of the 1970s, Japan has reduced dependence on petroleum as a source of energy from more than 75% in 1973 to about 52% in 2000. Other important energy sources are coal, liquefied natural gas, nuclear power, and hydropower. Today Japan enjoys one of the most energy-efficient developed economies in the world.

Deposits of gold, magnesium, and silver meet current industrial demands, but Japan is dependent on foreign sources for many of the minerals essential to modern industry. Iron ore, [[Coke from coal|coke]], copper, and bauxite must be imported, as must many forest products.

===Labor===
Japan's labor force consists of some 66.07 million workers, 40% of whom are women. Labor union membership was estimated to be about 10 million in 2006.

===U.S./Japanese Economic Relations===
U.S. economic policy toward Japan is aimed at increasing access to Japan's markets and two-way investment, stimulating domestic demand-led economic growth, promoting economic restructuring, improving the climate for U.S. investors, and raising the standard of living in both the United States and Japan. The U.S.-Japan bilateral economic relationship—based on enormous flows of trade, investment, and finance—is strong, mature, and increasingly interdependent. Further, it is firmly rooted in the shared interest and responsibility of the United States and Japan to promote global growth, open markets, and a vital world trading system. In addition to bilateral economic ties, the U.S. and Japan cooperate closely in multilateral fora such as the WTO, Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, the World Bank, and the International Monetary Fund, and regionally in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation forum (APEC).

Japan is a major market for many U.S. products, including chemicals, pharmaceuticals, films and music, commercial aircraft, nonferrous metals, plastics, and medical and scientific supplies. Japan also is the largest foreign market for U.S. agricultural products, with total agricultural exports valued at $10.1 billion in 2007, a 20% increase over the $8.39 billion in agricultural exports recorded by the U.S. Department of Agriculture in 2006. Revenues from Japanese tourism to the United States reached nearly $13 billion in 2005.

Trade between the United States and Japan remained strong in 2006. Total trade grew about 0.2% year-on-year. U.S. exports to Japan reached $62.7 billion in 2007, up from $59.6 billion in 2006. U.S. imports from Japan totaled $145.5 billion in 2007 ($148.1 billion in 2006).

U.S. foreign direct investment in Japan reached $91.8 billion in 2006, up from $79.3 billion in 2005, according to data compiled by the U.S. Department of Commerce's Bureau of Economic Analysis. New U.S. investment was especially significant in financial services, Internet services, and software, generating new export opportunities for U.S. firms and employment for U.S. workers.

==History==
[[File:Samourai photo 1867 PD.jpg|thumb|Samurai, photo 1867.]]
See [[History of Japan]]
====20th century====
The Showa Period (1926–89), under Emperor [[Hirohito]], was an era of incredible change from traditional villages to modern cities, from a great empire and early success in [[World War II]] to utter ruin and surrender. In 1931 seized Japan [[Manchuria]], and in 1937 it launched a full-scale invasion of [[History of China|China]]. The U.S. vehemently protested and insisted that Japan pull back, but it refused, so the U.S. stopped shipping it oil. Japan responded by attacking the U.S. at [[Pearl Harbor]] in December 1941, and soon conquered much of East and Southeast Asia. In a series of spectacular naval battles, such as the [[Battle of Midway]] (June 1942), Japan lost control of the Pacific and was subject to massive air raids culminating in nuclear attacks on [[Hiroshima]] and Nagasaki.

Japan, in utter ruins, was occupied by the U.S. until 1951, as Emperor Hirohito led a regime that Americanized the nation, modernized and liberalized its economy and polity, and become an economic superpower, staunch American ally, and a democracy that gave up all its empire and its military power. The emperor stepped down from his traditional godly status but remains the powerful symbol of national identity and unity. Political power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives. The economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, but Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally.

====Current Status====
Japan's modern economy has many world leading industries and companies, being driven by exports and a mastery of high technology. However, in the 1990s, the economy underwent a major slowdown in part because of overinvestment and an asset price [[economic bubble|bubble]] during the late 1980s. Japan has a huge government debt, which exceeds the Gross Domestic product (176% of GDP) and also faces the challenge of a low birth rate, low immigration and an aging of the population which will further increase the debts. [[China]] also is becoming a larger economy and a bigger international trading partner than Japan.

====2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami ====
[[File:Japan quake sendai.jpg|left|200px]]
A massive 9.0-magnitude earthquake and several powerful aftershocks struck the eastern coast of Japan on March 11, 2011 (12:46 a.m. in Washington), triggering a [[tsunami]] that devastated the coastline north of [[Tokyo]] with waves up to 20 meters (66 ft.) high. The earthquake epicenter was in the western Pacific Ocean, 130 kilometers east of [[Sendai]], [[Honshu]] island. The earthquake occurred along the subduction zone between two tectonic plates.
[[File:Japan radiation 2011.jpg|right|140px|Japanese radiation, 2011.]]
The Japan Meteorological Agency said the earthquake was the strongest in the country's history;<ref>[https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/story/2011/03/11/ST2011031100651.html?sid=ST2011031100651 Japan Quake - Tsunami]</ref> the death toll is around 16,000 people; Prime Minister Naoto Kan called it the nation's worst crisis since World War II.<ref>https://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2011-03-13-japan-earthquake_N.htm</ref>

The [[earthquake]] has caused three nuclear power plant cooling systems to fail and those affected reactors. Thousands of residents were evacuated.<ref>[https://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/03/11/japan-issues-emergency-nuke-plant-leak Radiation Levels Surge Outside Two Nuclear Plants in Japan.]</ref>
{{Clear}}

== See also ==
[[Image:Arbol japon.jpg|right|Japanese landscape]]
*[[Japan and America]]
*[[World War II]]
*[[Oriental art]]
*[[Matthew Perry]]
*[[Nikko]]
*[[Ainu]]
*[[Aomori]]
*[[Geisha]]
*[[Japanese painting]]
*[[Gallery of Japanese Painting]]
*[[Japanese dates]]
*[[Bonseki]]

== External links ==
*[http://www.japan-guide.com/ Traveling and living.] Japan - Guide.
*[http://www.iun.edu/~hisdcl/h207_2002/jecontakeoff.htm Japanese economic takeoff after 1945]
*[http://www.thereareplaces.com/newguidebook/pdest/Asia/jppts.htm Best Places to Visit in Japan.]
*[http://explainedwithmaps.com/japan-a-vanishing-nation/ Explained With Maps: Japan, a vanishing nation] (video documentary)

[[File:Tsurugaoka-hachimangu Shrine main shrine.jpg|thumb|left|300px|Tsurugaoka-hachimangu Shrine.]]

{{Clear}}

==Basic further reading==
{{See also|Bibliography of Japan}}

===References===
* Huffman, James L., ed. ''Modern Japan: An Encyclopedia of History, Culture, and Nationalism.'' (1998). 316 pp.
* Itasaka, Gen, ed. ''Japan Encyclopedia,'' 9 vols. Tokyo: Kodansha, 1983. with beautiful pictures
* Perkins, Dorothy. ''Encyclopedia of Japan: Japanese History and Culture, from Abacus to Zori.'' (1991). 410 pp.
* Stockwin, J. A. A. ''Dictionary of the Modern Politics of Japan.'' (2003). 291pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=107546295# online edition]

===Guides===
* DK, '' Japan'' (Eyewitness Travel Guides) (2007) [https://www.amazon.com/Japan-Eyewitness-Travel-Guides-Publishing/dp/0756628768/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190467544&sr=8-1 excerpt and text search]
* Reiber, Beth, and Janie Spencer. ''Frommer's Japan'' (2006) [https://www.amazon.com/Frommers-Japan-Complete-Beth-Reiber/dp/0471763918/ref=pd_bbs_sr_2/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190467544&sr=8-2 excerpt and text search]
* Rowthorn, Chris et al. ''Lonely Planet Japan'' (2005) [https://www.amazon.com/Lonely-Planet-Japan-Chris-Rowthorn/dp/1740599241/ref=pd_bbs_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190467544&sr=8-3 excerpt and text search]
===History===
* Allinson, Gary D. ''The Columbia Guide to Modern Japanese History.'' (1999). 259 pp. [https://www.amazon.com/Columbia-Guide-Modern-Japanese-History/dp/0231111444/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Allinson, Gary D. ''Japan's Postwar History.'' (2nd ed 2004). 208 pp. [https://www.amazon.com/Japans-Postwar-History-Second-Allinson/dp/0801489121/ref=sr_1_3/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394878&sr=1-3 excerpt and text search]
* Gordon, Andrew. ''A Modern History of Japan: From Tokugawa Times to the Present'' (2003) [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=103548936 online edition]; also [https://www.amazon.com/Modern-History-Japan-Tokugawa-Present/dp/0195110617/ref=sr_1_1/103-4827826-5463040?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1190394957&sr=1-1 excerpt and text search]
* Hane, Mikiso. ''Modern Japan: A Historical Survey'' (2nd ed 1992), 474pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=57239340 online edition]
* Perez, Louis G. ''The History of Japan'' (1998) 244pp [http://www.questia.com/PM.qst?a=o&d=93932879 online edition]

==References==
<references/>

{| style="width: 100%; background:transparent; border: 2px solid #000099;" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1"
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|style=" background-color: none;"| Some content for this article is in the [[Public Domain]] in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the U.S. Code
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{{Asian Countries}}

[[Category:Japan]]
[[Category:Japanese History]]
[[Category:Featured articles]]
[[Category:Buddhism]]

Ethiopia

2021-09-11T05:48:07Z

TheGreatestMonk:

{{Country
|name =የኢትዮጵያ ፌዴራላዊ ዲሞክራሲያዊ ሪፐብሊክ ''ye-Ītyōpiyā Fēdēralāwī Dīmōkrāsīyāwī Rīpeblīk''
|map =Ethiopia rel99.jpg
|map2 =Location of Ethiopia.png
|flag =Flag of Ethiopia.png
|arms =Arms of Ethiopia.png
|capital =Addis Ababa
|capital-raw =
|government =Federal Parliamentary Republic
|government-raw =
|language =Amharic
|king =
|queen =
|monarch-raw =
|president =Sahle-Work Zewde
|president-raw =
|chancellor =
|chancellor-raw =
|pm =Abiy Ahmed
|pm-raw =
|area =426,371 sq mi
|pop =115,000,000 (2020)
|pop-basis =
|gdp =$95,000,000,000 (2020)
|gdp-year =
|gdp-pc =$826 (2020)
|currency =Birr
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}}
The '''Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia''' is an [[African]] [[country]] bordering [[Sudan]], [[Eritrea]], [[Kenya]] and [[Somalia]]. Except for the Italian occupation of 1936-1941, Ethiopia is the only African country to never have been colonised by a European imperialist power.,<ref>[https://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/et.html CIA World Fact Book]</ref> and is one of the oldest [[Christian]] nations on Earth. A bloody border dispute with [[Eritrea]] following that country's secession in 1991 has claimed many lives, and the country has experienced several [[famine]]s in the past century. Perhaps most notable of these is the 1974 famine that led to the [[Marxist]] ouster of Emperor [[Haile Selassie]] and the 1984-1985 famine that inspired [[Bob Geldof]] to begin the Band-Aid/Live Aid project. The nation's capital is Addis Ababa.

==Geography==
Ethiopia is located in the Horn of Africa and is bordered on the north and northeast by Eritrea, on the east by Djibouti and Somalia, on the south by Kenya, and the west and southwest by Sudan. The country has a high central plateau that varies from 1,800 to 3,000 meters (6,000 ft.-10,000 ft.) above sea level, with some mountains reaching 4,620 meters (15,158 ft.). The elevation is generally highest just before the point of descent to the Great Rift Valley, which splits the plateau diagonally. Several rivers cross the plateau—notably the Blue Nile flowing from Lake Tana. The plateau gradually slopes to the lowlands of Sudan on the west and the Somali-inhabited plains to the southeast.

The climate is temperate on the plateau and hot in the lowlands. At Addis Ababa, which ranges from 2,200 to 2,600 meters (7,000 ft.-8,500 ft.), maximum temperature is 26o C (80o F) and minimum 4o C (40o F). The weather is usually sunny and dry with the short (belg) rains occurring February–April and the big (meher) rains beginning in mid-June and ending in mid-September.

==People==
[[File:People of Ethiopia.jpg|left|230px]]
Ethiopia's population is highly diverse. Most of its people speak a Semitic or Cush itic language. The Oromo, Amhara, and Tigreans make up more than three-fourths of the population, but there are more than 77 different ethnic groups with their own distinct languages within Ethiopia. Some of these have as few as 10,000 members. In general, most of the Christians live in the highlands, while Muslims and adherents of traditional African religions tend to inhabit lowland regions. English is the most widely spoken foreign language and is taught in all secondary schools. Amharic is the official language and was the language of primary school instruction but has been replaced in many areas by local languages such as Oromifa and Tigrinya.
*Population (2006 est.): 77 million.
*Annual growth rate: 2.7%.
*Ethnic groups (est.): Oromo 40%, Amhara 25%, Tigre 7%, Somali 6%, Sidama 9%, Gurage 2%, Wolaita 4%, Afar 4%, other nationalities 3%.
*Religions (est.): Ethiopian Orthodox Christian 40%, Sunni Muslim 45-50%, Protestant 5%, remainder indigenous beliefs.
*Languages: Amharic (official), Tigrinya, Arabic, Guaragigna, Oromigna, English, Somali.
*Education: Years compulsory—none. Attendance (elementary) 57%. Literacy—43%.
*Health: Infant mortality rate—93/1,000 live births.
*Workforce: Agriculture—80%. Industry and commerce—20%.

===Religion===
An estimated 40 to 45% of the population of 77 million belongs to the Ethiopian Orthodox Church (EOC), which is predominant in the northern regions of Tigray and Amhara. Approximately 45% of the population is Sunni Muslim, of which the overwhelming majority is Sufi. Islam is most prevalent in the eastern Somali and Afar regions, as well as in many parts of Oromiya.

Christian evangelical and Pentecostal groups constitute an estimated 10% of the population. Established Protestant churches such as Mekane Yesus and the Kale Hiwot are strongest in the Southern Nations, Nationalities, and Peoples' Regional State (SNNPR); western and central Oromiya; and in urban areas. In the Gambella region, Mekane Yesus followers represent 60 per cent of the population. The Evangelical Church Fellowship claims 23 denominations under its religious umbrella throughout the country.

There are small numbers of Oriental Rite and Latin Rite Roman Catholics, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jews, animists, and practitioners of traditional indigenous religions.

The country has a small Falash Mura community. Falash Mura are being processed for immigration to Israel, and the number remaining is dwindling rapidly. The Israeli Government is expected to finalize the immigration of the remaining Falash Mura in 2008. Many additional individuals claiming to be Falash Mura are also seeking immigration to Israel, but many appear to be economic immigrants rather than genuine Falash Mura. The Government is cooperating with the Government of Israel to facilitate the emigration of the remaining Falash Mura community.

The Government banned the formation of political parties based on religion. There are no religious political parties in the country.

Minority religious groups have complained of discrimination in the allocation of government land for religious sites. Protestants reported inequities in treatment and access by local officials when seeking land for churches and cemeteries. Evangelical leaders felt that as perceived newcomers, they remained disadvantaged in the allocation of land compared with the EOC and the EIASC. The EIASC complained that it had more difficulty than the EOC obtaining land from the Government, while others believed that the EIASC was favoured for mosque locations.

==Government and Political Conditions==
Ethiopia is a federal republic under the 1994 constitution. The executive branch includes a president, Council of State, and Council of Ministers. Executive power resides with the prime minister. There is a bicameral parliament; national legislative elections were held in 2005. The judicial branch comprises federal and regional courts.

Political parties include the Ethiopian People's Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), the Coalition for Unity and Democracy (CUD), the United Ethiopian Democratic Forces (UEDF), and other small parties. Suffrage is universal at age 18.

In 2003, Ethiopia continued its transition from a unitary to a federal system of government. The EPRDF-led government of Prime Minister Meles Zenawi has promoted a policy of ethnic federalism, devolving significant powers to regional, ethnically based authorities. Ethiopia today has 9 semi-autonomous administrative regions and two special city administrations (Addis Ababa and Dire Dawa), which have the power to raise their own revenues. Under the present government, Ethiopians enjoy wider, albeit circumscribed, political freedom than ever before in Ethiopia’s history.

===Principal Government Officials===
*President—Mulatu Teshome
*Prime Minister—Hailemariam Desalegn
*Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Rural Development and Agriculture—Addisu Legesse
*Minister of National Defense—Kuma Demeksa
*Minister of Foreign Affairs—Seyoum Mesfin

===Foreign Relations===
Ethiopia was relatively isolated from major movements of world politics until Italian invasions in 1895 and 1935. Since World War II, it has played an active role in the world and African affairs. Ethiopia was a charter member of the United Nations and took part in UN operations in Korea in 1951 and the Congo in 1960. Former Emperor Haile Selassie was a founder of the Organization of African Unity (OAU), now known as the African Union (AU). Addis Ababa also hosts the UN Economic Commission for Africa. Ethiopia is also a member of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development, a Horn of Africa regional grouping.

Although nominally a member of the Non-Aligned Movement, after the 1974 revolution, Ethiopia moved into a close relationship with the Soviet Union and its allies and supported their international policies and positions until the change of government in 1991. Today, Ethiopia has very good relations with the United States and the West, especially in responding to regional instability and supporting the war on terrorism and, increasingly, through economic involvement.

Ethiopia's relations with Eritrea remained tense and unresolved. Following a brutal 1998-2000 border war in which tens of thousands died on both sides, the two countries signed a peace agreement in December 2000. A five-member independent international commission—Eritrean Ethiopia Boundary Commission (EEBC)--issued a decision in April 2002 and follow-up observations in March 2003 delimiting the border between the two countries, but thus far the parties have not agreed to final demarcation. The United Nations Mission in Ethiopia and Eritrea (UNMEE) peacekeeping mission patrols a 25-kilometre-wide Temporary Security Zone (TSZ) within Eritrea separating the two countries; a few minor incidents of violence have occurred, all between local villagers and militia or armed opposition groups supported by the other side. Both countries insist they will not instigate fighting, but both also remain prepared for any eventuality. Regarding its neighbour Somalia, the lack of central government and factional fighting in Somalia contributes to tensions along the boundaries of the two countries. Ethiopia has recently entered into a loose tripartite (nonmilitary) cooperation with Sudan and Yemen.

The irredentist claims of the extremist-controlled Council of Islamic Courts (CIC) in Somalia in 2006 posed a legitimate security threat to Ethiopia and the Transitional Federal Government (TFG) of Somalia. In December 2006, the TFG requested the assistance of the Ethiopian military to respond to the CIC's aggression. Within a few weeks, the joint Ethiopian-TFG forces routed the CIC from Somalia, and the deployment of the African Union's Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in March 2007 began to provide security in Mogadishu to allow for the quick withdrawal of Ethiopian troops from Somalia.

==Defense==
The Ethiopian National Defense Forces (ENDF) numbers about 200,000 personnel, which makes it one of the largest militaries in Africa. During the 1998-2000 border war with Eritrea, the ENDF mobilized strength reached approximately 350,000. Since the end of the war, some 150,000 soldiers have been demobilized. The ENDF continues a transition from its roots as a guerrilla army to an all-volunteer professional military organization with the aid of the U.S. and other countries. Training in peacekeeping operations, professional military education, military training management, counter-terrorism operations, and military medicine are among the major programs sponsored by the United States. Ethiopia now has one peacekeeping contingent in Liberia.

==Economy==
The current government has embarked on a cautious program of economic reform, including privatization of state enterprises and rationalization of government regulation. While the process is still ongoing, so far the reforms have attracted only meagre foreign investment, and the government remains heavily involved in the economy.

The Ethiopian economy is based on agriculture, which contributes 47% to GNP and more than 80% of exports, and employs 85% of the population. The major agricultural export crop is coffee, providing 35% of Ethiopia's foreign exchange earnings, down from 65% a decade ago because of the slump in coffee prices since the mid-1990s. Other traditional major agricultural exports are hides and skins, pulses, oilseeds, and the traditional "khat," a leafy shrub that has psychotropic qualities when chewed. Sugar and gold production has also become important in recent years.

Ethiopia's agriculture is plagued by periodic drought, soil degradation caused by inappropriate agricultural practices and overgrazing, deforestation, high population density, undeveloped water resources, and poor transport infrastructure, making it difficult and expensive to get goods to market. Yet agriculture is the country's most promising resource. Potential exists for self-sufficiency in grains and export development in livestock, flowers, grains, oilseeds, sugar, vegetables, and fruits.

Gold, marble, limestone, and small amounts of tantalum are mined in Ethiopia. Other resources with potential for commercial development include large potash deposits, natural gas, iron ore, and possibly oil and geothermal energy. Although Ethiopia has good hydroelectric resources, which power most of its manufacturing sector, it is totally dependent on imports for its oil. A landlocked country, Ethiopia has relied on the port of Djibouti since the 1998-2000 border war with Eritrea. Ethiopia is connected with the port of Djibouti by road and rail for international trade. Of the 23,812 kilometres of all-weather roads in Ethiopia, 15% are asphalt. Mountainous terrain and the lack of good roads and sufficient vehicles make land transportation difficult and expensive. However, the government-owned airline’s reputation is excellent. Ethiopian Airlines serves 38 domestic airfields and has 42 international destinations.

Dependent on a few vulnerable crops for its foreign exchange earnings and reliant on imported oil, Ethiopia lacks sufficient foreign exchange earnings. The financially conservative government has taken measures to solve this problem, including stringent import controls and sharply reduced subsidies on retail gasoline prices. Nevertheless, the large subsistence economy is incapable of meeting the budget requirements for drought relief, an ambitious development plan, and indispensable imports such as oil. The gap has largely been covered through foreign assistance inflows.
*Real GDP (2006 est.): $13.3 billion.
*Annual growth rate (2006 est.): 9.6%.
*Per capita income (2006 est.): $130.
*Average inflation rate (2006 est.): 13%.
*Natural resources: Potash, salt, gold, copper, platinum, natural gas (unexploited).
*Agriculture (47% of GDP): Products—coffee, cereals, pulses, oilseeds, khat, meat, hides and skins. Cultivated land—17%.
*Industry (12% of GDP): Types—textiles, processed foods, construction, cement, and hydroelectric power.
*Trade (2006 est.): Exports--$1.1 billion. Imports--$4.1 billion; plus remittances—official est. $400 million; unofficial est. $400 million.
*Fiscal year: July 8-July 7.

==History==
[[File:Murzi woman Ethiopia.jpg|thumb|280px|Murzi woman.]]
Ethiopia is credited with being the origin of mankind. Bones discovered in eastern Ethiopia date back 3.2 million years. Ethiopia is the oldest independent country in Africa and one of the oldest in the world. Herodotus, the Greek historian of the fifth century B.C. describes ancient Ethiopia in his writings. The Old Testament of the Bible records the Queen of Sheba's visit to Jerusalem. According to legend, Menelik I, the son of King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba, founded the Ethiopian Empire. Missionaries from Egypt and Syria introduced Christianity in the fourth century A.D. Following the rise of Islam in the seventh century, Ethiopia was gradually cut off from European Christendom. The Portuguese established contact with Ethiopia in 1493, primarily to strengthen their influence over the Indian Ocean and to convert Ethiopia to Roman Catholicism. There followed a century of conflict between pro-and anti-Catholic factions, resulting in the expulsion of all foreign missionaries in the 1630s. This period of the bitter religious conflict contributed to hostility toward foreign Christians and Europeans, which persisted into the 20th century and was a factor in Ethiopia's isolation until the mid-19th century.

Under the Emperors Theodore II (1855–68), Johannes IV (1872-89), and Menelik II (1889-1913), the kingdom was consolidated and began to emerge from its medieval isolation. When Menelik II died, his grandson, Lij Iyassu, succeeded to the throne but soon lost support because of his Muslim ties. The Christian nobility deposed him in 1916, and Menelik's daughter, Zewditu, was made empress. Her cousin, Ras Tafari Makonnen (1892-1975), was made regent and successor to the throne. In 1930, after the empress died, the regent, adopting the throne name Haile Selassie, was crowned emperor. His reign was interrupted in 1936 when Italian Fascist forces invaded and occupied Ethiopia. The emperor was forced into exile in England despite his plea to the League of Nations for intervention. Five years later, British and Ethiopian forces defeated the Italians, and the emperor returned to the throne.

After a period of civil unrest, which began in February 1974, the aging Haile Selassie I was deposed on September 12, 1974, and a provisional administrative council of soldiers, known as the Derg ("committee") seized power from the emperor and installed a government, which was socialist in name and military in style. The Derg summarily executed 59 members of the royal family and ministers and generals of the emperor's government; Emperor Haile Selassie was strangled in the basement of his palace on August 22, 1975.

Lt. Col. Mengistu Haile Mariam assumed power as head of state and Derg chairman, after having his two predecessors killed. Mengistu's years in office were marked by a totalitarian-style government and the country's massive militarization, financed by the Soviet Union and the Eastern Bloc, and assisted by Cuba. From 1977 through early 1978 thousands of suspected enemies of the Derg were tortured and/or killed in a purge called the "red terror." Communism was officially adopted during the late 1970s and early 1980s with the promulgation of a Soviet-style constitution, Politburo, and the creation of the Workers' Party of Ethiopia (WPE).

In December 1976, an Ethiopian delegation in Moscow signed a military assistance agreement with the Soviet Union. The following April, Ethiopia abrogated its military assistance agreement with the United States and expelled the American military missions. In July 1977, sensing the disarray in Ethiopia, Somalia attacked across the Ogaden Desert in pursuit of its irredentist claims to the ethnic Somali areas of Ethiopia. Ethiopian forces were driven back deep inside their own frontier but, with the assistance of a massive Soviet airlift of arms and Cuban combat forces, they stemmed the attack. The major Somali regular units were forced out of the Ogaden in March 1978. Twenty years later, development in the Somali region of Ethiopia lagged.

The Derg's collapse was hastened by droughts and famine, as well as by insurrections, particularly in the northern regions of Tigray and Eritrea. In 1989, the Tigrayan People's Liberation Front (TPLF) merged with other ethnically based opposition movements to form the Ethiopian Peoples' Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF). In May 1991, EPRDF forces advanced on Addis Ababa. Mengistu fled the country for asylum in Zimbabwe, where he still resides.

In July 1991, the EPRDF, the Oromo Liberation Front (OLF), and others established the Transitional Government of Ethiopia (TGE) which was comprised of an 87-member Council of Representatives and guided by a national charter that functioned as a transitional constitution. In June 1992 the OLF withdrew from the government; in March 1993, members of the Southern Ethiopia Peoples' Democratic Coalition left the government.

In May 1991, the Eritrean People's Liberation Front (EPLF), led by Isaias Afwerki, assumed control of Eritrea and established a provisional government. This provisional government independently administered Eritrea until April 23–25, 1993, when Eritreans voted overwhelmingly for independence in an UN-monitored free and fair referendum. Eritrea was with Ethiopia’s consent declared independence on April 27, and the United States recognized its independence on April 28, 1993.

In Ethiopia, President Meles Zenawi and members of the TGE pledged to oversee the formation of multi-party democracy. The election for a 547-member constituent assembly was held in June 1994, and this assembly adopted the constitution of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia in December 1994. The elections for Ethiopia's first popularly chosen national parliament and regional legislatures were held in May and June 1995. Most opposition parties chose to boycott these elections, ensuring a landslide victory for the EPRDF. International and non-governmental observers concluded that opposition parties would have been able to participate had they chosen to do so. The Government of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia was installed in August 1995.
[[File:Haile Gebrselassie.jpg|thumb|left|Athlete Haile Gebrselassie.]]
In May 1998, Eritrean forces attacked part of the Ethiopia-Eritrea border region, seizing some Ethiopian-controlled territory. The strike spurred a two-year war between the neighbouring states that cost over 100,000 lives. Ethiopian and Eritrean leaders signed an Agreement on Cessation of Hostilities on June 18, 2000, and a peace agreement, known as the Algiers Agreement, on December 12, 2000. The agreements called for an end to the hostilities, a 25-kilometre-wide Temporary Security Zone along the Ethiopia-Eritrea border, the establishment of a United Nations peacekeeping force to monitor compliance, and the establishment of the Ethiopia Eritrea Boundary Commission (EEBC) to act as a neutral body to assess colonial treaties and applicable international law to render final and binding border delimitation and demarcation determinations. The United Nations Mission to Eritrea and Ethiopia (UNMEE) was established in September 2000. The EEBC presented its border delimitation decision on April 13, 2002. To date, neither Ethiopia nor Eritrea has taken the steps necessary to enable the EEBC to demarcate the border.

Opposition candidates won 12 seats in national parliamentary elections in 2001. Ethiopia held the freest and fair national campaign period in the country’s history before May 15, 2005 elections. Unfortunately, electoral irregularities and tense campaign rhetoric resulted in a protracted election complaints review process. Public protests turned violent in June 2005. The National Electoral Board released final results in September 2005, with the opposition taking over 170 of the 547 parliamentary seats and 137 of the 138 seats for the Addis Ababa municipal council. Opposition parties called for a boycott of parliament and civil disobedience to protest the election results. In early November 2005, Ethiopian security forces responded to public protests by arresting scores of opposition leaders, as well as journalists and human rights advocates, and detaining tens of thousands of civilians in rural detention camps for up to three months. In December 2005, the government charged 131 opposition, media, and civil society leaders with capital offences including "outrages against the constitution." Thirty-eight opposition leaders and journalists were convicted in June 2007. Approximately 150 of the elected opposition members of parliament have taken their seats. Ruling and opposition parties have engaged in a process of dialogue to address issues of democratic governance raised by the 2005 elections, including parliamentary rules of procedure, media regulation, and reform of the National Electoral Board.

In August 2012 Meles Zenawi died. Since April 2, 2018, Abiy Ahmed is the prime minister of Ethiopia.

==References==

<references/>
http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/mapcenter/map.aspx - An interactive map of the world

{| style="width: 100%; background:transparent; border: 2px solid #000099;" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="1"
!colspan=2 style="width: 100%; text-align: center; background-color: #000088; color: white; "|'''Copyright Details'''
|-
!style="background-color: #000088; color:white;"|License:
|style=" background-color: none;"| This work is in the [[Public Domain]] in the United States because it is a work of the United States Federal Government under the terms of Title 17, Chapter 1, Section 105 of the U.S. Code
|-
!style=" background-color: #000088; color:white;"|Source:
|style="background-color: none;border-top: 2px solid black"| File available from the {{{1|[[United States Federal Government]] [http://www.state.gov/r/pa/ei/bgn/2859.htm]}}}.
|}
{{African Countries}}
[[Category:Landlocked Countries]]
[[Category:Ethiopia]]
[[Category:African History]]

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-08-18T06:49:27Z

TheGreatestMonk:

Hi,

I am The Greatest Monk. I am a Conservative who knows that there are Sheep in Wolves Clothing here, and I must put an end to them. I see that Conservapedia lacks many things, and I am determined to make sure that Conservapedia, like a hungry Animal or unfinished Puzzle, can be complete.

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-06-30T03:47:14Z

TheGreatestMonk: This is only Temporary.

== Akihito =====

Hi everyone. I'm new here, and I haven't learnt how Conservapedia works right yet, but the first thing I'll do is remove this Akihito into its own page, and make Conservapedia great again since there are a few sheep in wolves clothing here.

{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Akihito
|image=
|birth_date=December 23, 1933 (age 87)
|birth_place=Tokyo, Japan
|death_date=
|death_place=
|religion=Shinto
|spouse=Michiko Shōda (m. 1959)
|children=Naruhito Fumihito Sayako
|alma_mater=
|party=
|office=Emperor of Japan
|term_start=January 7, 1989
|prime_minister=
|term_end=April 30 2019
|preceded=Showa
|succeeded=Naruhito
}}

Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is the former Emperor of Japan, who served from 7 January 1989 - 30 April 2019. He succeeded his father [https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito] and abdicated in favour of his son Naruhito. On his death, he'll be known as Heisei.

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-06-30T03:44:20Z

TheGreatestMonk:

== Akihito =====

{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Akihito
|image=
|birth_date=December 23, 1933 (age 87)
|birth_place=Tokyo, Japan
|death_date=
|death_place=
|religion=Shinto
|spouse=Michiko Shōda (m. 1959)
|children=Naruhito Fumihito Sayako
|alma_mater=
|party=
|office=Emperor of Japan
|term_start=January 7, 1989
|prime_minister=
|term_end=April 30 2019
|preceded=Showa
|succeeded=Naruhito
}}

Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is the former Emperor of Japan, who served from 7 January 1989 - 30 April 2019. He succeeded his father [https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito] and abdicated in favour of his son Naruhito. On his death, he'll be known as Heisei.

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-06-30T03:42:21Z

TheGreatestMonk:

== Akihito =====

{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Akihito
|image=
|birth_date=December 23, 1933 (age 87)
|birth_place=Tokyo, Japan
|death_date=
|death_place=
|religion=Shinto
|spouse=Michiko Shōda (m. 1959)
|children=
|alma_mater=
|party=
|office=Emperor of Japan
|term_start=January 7, 1989
|prime_minister=
|term_end=April 30 2019
|preceded=Showa
|succeeded=Naruhito
}}

Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is the former Emperor of Japan, who served from 7 January 1989 - 30 April 2019. He succeeded his father [https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito] and abdicated in favour of his son Naruhito. On his death, he'll be known as Heisei.

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-06-30T03:41:26Z

TheGreatestMonk:

== Akihito =====

{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Akihito
|image=
|birth_date=December 23, 1933 (age 87)
|birth_place=Tokyo, Japan
|death_date=
|death_place=
|religion=Shinto
|spouse=Michiko Shōda (m. 1959)
|children=
|alma_mater=
|party=
|office=Emperor of Japan
|term_start=January 7, 1989
|prime_minister=
|term_end=April 30 2019
|preceded=[https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito]
|succeeded=[https://conservapedia.com/Naruhito Naruhito]
}}

Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is the former Emperor of Japan, who served from 7 January 1989 - 30 April 2019. He succeeded his father [https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito] and abdicated in favour of his son Naruhito. On his death, he'll be known as Heisei.

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-06-30T03:40:32Z

TheGreatestMonk: Your welcome.

== Akihito

{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Akihito
|image=
|birth_date=December 23, 1933 (age 87)
|birth_place=Tokyo, Japan
|death_date=
|death_place=
|religion=Shinto
|spouse=Michiko Shōda (m. 1959)
|children=Naruhito, Fumihito, Sayoko
|alma_mater=
|party=
|office=Emperor of Japan
|term_start=January 7, 1989
|prime_minister=
|term_end=April 30 2019
|preceded=[https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito]
|succeeded=[https://conservapedia.com/Naruhito Naruhito]

Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is the former Emperor of Japan, who served from 7 January 1989 - 30 April 2019. He succeeded his father [https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito] and abdicated in favour of his son Naruhito. On his death, he'll be known as Heisei.

User:TheGreatestMonk

2021-06-30T03:39:15Z

TheGreatestMonk: All what I've done is made a better page for Akihito.

== Akihito =====

{{Infobox officeholder
|name=Akihito
|image=
|birth_date=December 23, 1933 (age 87)
|birth_place=Tokyo, Japan
|death_date=
|death_place=
|religion=Shinto
|spouse=Michiko Shōda (m. 1959)
|children=Naruhito
=Fumihito
=Sayoko
|alma_mater=
|party=
|office=Emperor of Japan
|term_start=January 7, 1989
|prime_minister=
|term_end=April 30 2019
|preceded=[https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito]
|succeeded=[https://conservapedia.com/Naruhito Naruhito]
}}

Akihito (born 23 December 1933) is the former Emperor of Japan, who served from 7 January 1989 - 30 April 2019. He succeeded his father [https://conservapedia.com/Emperor_Hirohito Hirohito] and abdicated in favour of his son Naruhito. On his death, he'll be known as Heisei.