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Amsterdam; The Hague is the seat of government

16,318,199 (July 2004 est.)

The Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EC (now the EU), and participated in the introduction of the Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) in 1999.

constitutional monarchy

purchasing power parity - $461.4 billion (2003 est.)

8.5 million (2003)

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