Serbia

SERBIA

Information about travelling to Serbia

Serbia is located in Southeastern Europe, between Macedonia and Hungary

Facts about Serbia
Population10,159,046 note: al
CapitalBelgrade (Beograd)
Time zoneUTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begin
Location Southeastern Europe, between Macedonia and Hungary

General info about Serbia
The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was formed in 1918; its name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. Various paramilitary bands resisted Nazi Germany's occupation and division of Yugoslavia from 1941 to 1945, but fought each other and ethnic opponents as much as the invaders. The military and political movement headed by Josip TITO (Partisans) took full control of Yugoslavia when German and Croatian separatist forces were defeated in 1945. Although Communist, TITO's new government and his successors (he died in 1980) managed to steer their own path between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a half decades. In 1989, Slobodan MILOSEVIC became president of the Serbian Republic and his ultranationalist calls for Serbian domination led to the violent breakup of Yugoslavia along ethnic lines. In 1991, Croatia, Slovenia, and Macedonia declared independence, followed by Bosnia in 1992. The remaining republics of Serbia and Montenegro declared a new Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (FRY) in April 1992 and under MILOSEVIC's leadership, Serbia led various military campaigns to unite ethnic Serbs in neighboring republics into a "Greater Serbia." These actions led to Yugoslavia being ousted from the UN in 1992, but Serbia continued its - ultimately unsuccessful - campaign until signing the Dayton Peace Accords in 1995. MILOSEVIC kept tight control over Serbia and eventually became president of the FRY in 1997. In 1998, an ethnic Albanian insurgency in the formerly autonomous Serbian province of Kosovo provoked a Serbian counterinsurgency campaign that resulted in massacres and massive expulsions of ethnic Albanians living in Kosovo. The MILOSEVIC government's rejection of a proposed international settlement led to NATO's bombing of Serbia in the spring of 1999 and to the eventual withdrawal of Serbian military and police forces from Kosovo in June 1999. UNSC Resolution 1244 in June 1999 authorized the stationing of a NATO-led force (KFOR) in Kosovo to provide a safe and secure environment for the region's ethnic communities, created a UN interim Administration Mission in Kosovo (UNMIK) to foster self-governing institutions, and reserved the issue of Kosovo's final status for an unspecified date in the future. In 2001, UNMIK promulgated a constitutional framework that allowed Kosovo to establish institutions of self-government and led to Kosovo's first parliamentary election. FRY elections in September 2000 led to the ouster of MILOSEVIC and installed Vojislav KOSTUNICA as president. A broad coalition of democratic reformist parties known as DOS (the Democratic Opposition of Serbia) was subsequently elected to parliament in December 2000 and took control of the government. DOS arrested MILOSEVIC in 2001 and allowed for him to be tried in The Hague for crimes against humanity. (MILOSEVIC died in March 2006 before the completion of his trial.) In 2001, the country's suspension from the UN was lifted. In 2003, the FRY became Serbia and Montenegro, a loose federation of the two republics with a federal level parliament. Widespread violence predominantly targeting ethnic Serbs in Kosovo in March 2004 caused the international community to open negotiations on the future status of Kosovo in January 2006. In May 2006, Montenegro invoked its right to secede from the federation and - following a successful referendum - it declared itself an independent nation on 3 June 2006. Two days later, Serbia declared that it was the successor state to the union of Serbia and Montenegro. A new Serbian constitution was approved in October 2006 and adopted the following month. After 15 months of inconclusive negotiations mediated by the UN and four months of further inconclusive negotiations mediated by the US, EU, and Russia, on 17 February 2008, the UNMIK-administered province of Kosovo declared itself independent of Serbia.
Disease threats
degree of risk: intermediate food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea and hepatitis A
Languages spoken
Serbian 88.3% (official), Hungarian 3.8%, Bosniak 1.8%, Romany (Gypsy) 1.1%, other 4.1%, unknown 0.9% (2002 census) note: Romanian, Hungarian, Slovak, Ukrainian, and Croatian all official in Vojvodina
What about drugs?
transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Western Europe on the Balkan route; economy vulnerable to money laundering
Ethnic division
Serb 82.9%, Hungarian 3.9%, Romany (Gypsy) 1.4%, Yugoslavs 1.1%, Bosniaks 1.8%, Montenegrin 0.9%, other 8% (2002 census)
Climate
in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall); in other parts, continental and Mediterranean climate (relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall and hot, dry summers and autumns)
Resources
oil, gas, coal, iron ore, copper, zinc, antimony, chromite, gold, silver, magnesium, pyrite, limestone, marble, salt, arable land
Economy
MILOSEVIC-era mismanagement of the economy, an extended period of economic sanctions, and the damage to Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry during the NATO airstrikes in 1999 left the economy only half the size it was in 1990. After the ousting of former Federal Yugoslav President MILOSEVIC in September 2000, the Democratic Opposition of Serbia (DOS) coalition government implemented stabilization measures and embarked on a market reform program. After renewing its membership in the IMF in December 2000, a down-sized Yugoslavia continued to reintegrate into the international community by rejoining the World Bank (IBRD) and the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD). A World Bank-European Commission sponsored Donors' Conference held in June 2001 raised $1.3 billion for economic restructuring. In November 2001, the Paris Club agreed to reschedule the country's $4.5 billion public debt and wrote off 66% of the debt. In July 2004, the London Club of private creditors forgave $1.7 billion of debt just over half the total owed. Belgrade has made only minimal progress in restructuring and privatizing its holdings in major sectors of the economy, including energy and telecommunications. It has made halting progress towards EU membership and is currently pursuing a Stabilization and Association Agreement with Brussels. Serbia is also pursuing membership in the World Trade Organization. Unemployment remains an ongoing political and economic problem.
Environment
air pollution around Belgrade and other industrial cities; water pollution from industrial wastes dumped into the Sava which flows into the Danube

Cities in Serbia

ada     aleksinac     alibunar     apatin     arandelovac     arilje     azanja     babusnica     bac     backa palanka     backa topola     backi jarak     backi petrovac     backo gradiste     backo petrovo selo     badovinci     bajina basta     bajmok     baljevac     banatski karlovac     banatsko novo selo     banja koviljaca     barajevo     baric     batocina     bavaniste     becej     bela crkva     bela palanka     belgrade     beli potok     beocin     beska     bezdan     bogatic     bogovina     bolec     boljevac     bor     borca     bosilegrad     brus     brza palanka     brzi brod     bujanovac     cacak     cajetina     cantavir     celarevo     cicevac     coka     crepaja     crvenka     cuprija     curug     despotovac     dimitrovgrad     dobanovci     dolovo     donja vrezina     donji komren     donji milanovac     durdevo     futog     gnjilane     gornji milanovac     grdelica     grocka     guca     horgos     indija     irig     ivanjica     jagodina     jakovo     jasa tomic     josanicka banja     kac     kacarevo     kaluderica     kanjiza     karavukovo     kisac     kladovo     kljajicevo     klupci     koceljeva     kosjeric     kosovo polje     kosovska mitrovica     kostolac     kovacica     kovilj     kovin     kragujevac     kraljevo     krupanj     krusevac     kucevo     kucura     kula     kursumlija     kusadak     lacarak     lajkovac     lapovo     lazarevac     lebane     leskovac     lesnica     lestane     ljig     ljubovija     loznica     loznicko polje     lozovik     lucani     macvanska mitrovica     majdanpek     majur     mali idos     mali zvornik     mataruska banja     medveda     melenci     mionica     mladenovac     mokrin     mol     negotin     nis     nova pazova     nova varos     novi banovci     novi becej     novi knezevac     novi pazar     novi sad     obrenovac     odzaci     omoljica     opovo     orahovac     osecina     ostruznica     ovca     padina     padinska skela     palic     pancevo     paracin     pec     petrovac     petrovaradin     pinosava     pirot     pocerski pricinovic     podujevo     pozarevac     pozega     predejane     presevo     priboj     prigrevica     prijepolje     pristina     prizren     prokuplje     raca     radinac     raska     resavica     ribnica     ripanj     rudovci     ruma     rumenka     rusanj     ruski krstur     sabac     sajkas     senta     sevojno     sid     sivac     sjenica     smederevo     smederevska palanka     sombor     sonta     sopot     srbobran     sremcica     sremska kamenica     sremska mitrovica     sremski karlovci     stanisic     stara moravica     stara pazova     starcevo     stari banovci     subotica     surcin     surdulica     svilajnac     svrljig     temerin     titel     topola     trstenik     tutin     ub     ugrinovci     umka     urosevac     uzice     valjevo     velika plana     veliki crljeni     veliki trnovac     veliko gradiste     veternik     vinca     vladicin han     vlasotince     vojka     vranje     vranjska banja     vrbas     vrcin     vrnjacka banja     vrsac     vucje     zabalj     zajecar     zitiste     zlatibor     zrenjanin     zvecka    


Airports in Serbia
Aerodrom BeogradBEG
BatajnicaBJY
NisINI
PristinaPRN


Beer in Serbia (0.33l)
Belgrade~ 0.9 EUR
Belgrade~ 0.9 EUR
Kolut~ 0.5 EUR
Kragujevac~ 0.6 EUR
Lajkovac~ 0.6 EUR
Lebane~ 0.2 EUR
Mali Zvornik~ 0.5 EUR
Novi Sad~ 0.6 EUR
Novi Sad~ 0.6 EUR
Pancevo~ 0.6 EUR
Subotica~ 0.9 EUR
Uzice~ 0.7 EUR
Vladicin Han~ 0.4 EUR
Zajecar~ 0.5 EUR
Zrenjanin~ 0.6 EUR

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