France

France - Is officially known as the French Republic. France is a European Country and shares borders with Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Andorra, Spain, United Kingdom by way of the English Channel, the Bay of Biscay and the Mediterranean Sea. France also holds departments and collectivity's over seas sharing land borders with Brazil and Suriname and the Netherlands Antilles. France is linked to the United Kingdom by the Channel Tunnel, which passes underneath the English Channel.
France has been one of the world's foremost powers for many centuries. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France colonized much of North America; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, France built one of the largest colonial empires of the time, including large portions of North, West and Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and many Pacific islands.
France is a founding member of the United Nations and the European Union.
France today is one of the most modern countries in the world and is a leader among European nations. In recent years, its reconciliation and cooperation with Germany have proved central to the economic integration of Europe, including the introduction of a common exchange currency, the euro, in January 1999. The government has partially or fully privatized many large companies, banks, and insurers, and has ceded stakes in such leading firms as Air France, France Telecom, Renault, and Thales. With at least 75 million foreign tourists per year, France is the most visited country in the world and maintains the third largest income in the world from tourism.