Background: Following the First World War, the closely related Czechs and Slovaks of the
former Austro-Hungarian Empire merged to form Czechoslovakia. During the
interwar years, the new country's leaders were frequently preoccupied with
meeting the demands of other ethnic minorities within the republic, most notably
the Sudeten Germans and the Ruthenians (Ukrainians). After World War II, a
truncated Czechoslovakia fell within the Soviet sphere of influence. In 1968, an
invasion by Warsaw Pact troops ended the efforts of the country's leaders to
liberalize Communist party rule and create "socialism with a human face."
Anti-Soviet demonstrations the following year ushered in a period of harsh
repression. With the collapse of Soviet authority in 1989, Czechoslovakia
regained its freedom through a peaceful "Velvet Revolution." On 1 January 1993,
the country underwent a "velvet divorce" into its two national components, the
Czech Republic and Slovakia. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the
European Union in 2004.
Location: Central Europe, southeast of Germany
Population: 10,241,138 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 14.7% (male 773,028/female 731,833)
15-64 years:
71.1% (male 3,651,018/female 3,627,006)
65 years and over: 14.2%
(male 565,374/female 892,879) (2005 est.)
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