(MUNDO) ALBANIA

- Declared its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1912
- Was conquered by Italy in 1939
- Communist partisans took over the county 1944
- Allied itself first with the USSAR
- Allied itself with China
- Ended Communist rule and established a multiparty democracy
- high unemployment, widespread corruption, a dilapidated physical infrastructure
powerful organized crime networksm, combative political opponents
- First multiparty elections in 1991

Natural resources - petroleum, natural gas, coal, bauxite, chromite, copper, iron ore, nickel, salt, timber, hydropower

Ethnic groups - Albanian 95% Greek 3%
Religions - Muslim 70%, Albanian Orthodox 20%, Roman Catholic 10%
Languages - Albanian (official - derived from Tosk dialect)
Legal system - has a civil law system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Economy - lagging behind its Balkan neighbors, Albania is making the difficult transition to a more modern open-market economy