France is a state in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian,Pacific,and Atlantic oceans.[15] Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea,and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean.It is often referred to as l’Hexagone ("The Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its territory.It is bordered (clockwise starting from the northeast) by Belgium,Luxembourg,Germany,Switzerland,Italy and Monaco; with Spain and Andorra to the south.France is linked to the United Kingdom by the Channel Tunnel,which passes underneath the English Channel.In addition to these borders on the European continent France has land borders with Suriname and Brazil through French Guiana,as well as with the Netherlands through the Collectivity of Saint Martin.It is the largest west-European country and possesses the second-largest Exclusive Economic Zone in the world,covering 11,035,000 km2 (4,260,000 mi2),just behind the one of the United States (11,351,000 km2 / 4,383,000 mi2).
Over the past 500 years,[16] France has been a major power with strong cultural,economic,military and political influence in Europe and in the world.During the 17th and 18th centuries,France colonised great parts of North America; during the 19th and early 20th centuries,France built the second largest empire of the time,including large portions of North,West and Central Africa,Southeast Asia,and many Caribbean and Pacific Islands.
France is a unitary semi-presidential republic with its main ideals expressed in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.The French Republic is defined as indivisible,secular,democratic and social by its constitution.[17] France is one of the world's most developed countries[18] and possesses the fifth largest economy by nominal GDP[19] and Europe's second largest economy.France enjoys a high standard of living as well as a high public education level,and has also one of the world's highest life expectancies.[20] It is the most visited country in the world,receiving 82 million foreign tourists annually.[21] France has the world's fourth largest nominal military budget,the third largest military in NATO and EU's largest army.France also possesses the third largest nuclear weapons stockpile in the world[22]-with 300 active warheads as of 25 May 2010- and the world's second largest diplomatic network (only second to the network of the United States)[23].
France is a founding member of the United Nations,and a member of the Francophonie,the G8,G20,NATO,OECD,WTO,and the Latin Union.It also is a founding member state of the European Union and is the largest one by area.[24] It is one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.In 2007,France was listed 14th on the Human Development Index and 24th on the Corruption Perceptions Index.