Flag of Czech Republic

National Anthem of Czech Republic

Neighbours of Czech Republic

• Austria
• Germany
• Poland
• Slovakia

Search

Enter your search terms

Web www.kengeo.com Submit search form

Czech Republic description

The Czech Republic [ˈtʃɛk ɹiˈpʌblɨk] (Czech: Česká republika, IPA: [ˈt͡ʃɛskaː ˈrɛpuˌblɪka], short form in Czech: Česko, IPA: [ˈt͡ʃɛskɔ]), also called Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe and a member state of the European Union. The country has borders with Poland to the northeast, Germany to the west, Austria to the south, and Slovakia to the east. The capital and largest city is Prague (Czech: Praha). The country is composed of the historic regions of Bohemia and Moravia, as well as parts of Silesia. The Czech Republic is a pluralist multi-party parliamentary representative democracy. President Václav Klaus is the current head of state. The Prime Minister is the head of government (currently Mirek Topolánek). The Parliament has two chambers — the Chamber of Deputies and the Senate. The Czech Republic joined NATO in 1999 and the European Union in 2004. It is also a member of the OECD, the Council of Europe and the Visegrád Group. The Czech landscape is quite varied. Bohemia to the west consists of a basin, drained by the Elbe (Czech: Labe) and the Vltava rivers, and surrounded by mostly low mountains such as the Krkonoše range of the Sudetes. The highest point in the country, Sněžka, at 1,602 m (5,262 ft), is located here. Moravia, the eastern part of the country, is also quite hilly. It is drained mainly by the Morava River, but it also contains the source of the Oder (Czech: Odra) River. Water from the landlocked Czech Republic flows to three different seas: the North Sea, Baltic Sea and Black Sea. The Czech Republic also leases the Moldauhafen, a 30,000-square-metre (7.4-acre) lot in the middle of the Hamburg Docks, which was awarded to Czechoslovakia by Article 363 of the Treaty of Versailles to allow the landlocked country a place where goods transported downriver could be transferred to seagoing ships. The territory reverts to Germany in 2028.