ster nuclear research for peaceful purposes only

members - (20) Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Norway,
Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK

observers - (8) EC, India, Israel, Japan, Russia, Turkey, United
Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), US

European Space Agency (ESA): established - 31 May 1975

aim - to promote peaceful cooperation in space research and technology

members - (17) Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany,
Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal,
Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, UK

cooperating states - (5) Canada, Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland,
Romania

European Union (EU): note - see European Union entry at the end of the
"country" listings

First World: another term for countries with advanced, industrialized
economies; this term is fading from use; see developed countries (DCs)

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO): established - 16 October 1945

aim - to raise living standards and increase availability of
agricultural products; a UN specialized agency

members - (192) includes all UN member countries except Brunei,
Liechtenstein, and Singapore (189 total); plus Cook Islands, EC, Faroe
Islands, and Niue

former Soviet Union (FSU): former term often used to identify as a
group the successor nations to the Soviet Union or USSR; this group of
15 countries consists of: Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Estonia,
Georgia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Moldova, Russia,
Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan

former USSR/Eastern Europe (former USSR/EE): the middle group in the
hierarchy of developed countries (DCs), former USSR/Eastern Europe
(former USSR/EE), and less developed countries (LDCs); these countries
are in political and economic transition and may well be grouped
differently in the near future; this group of 27 countries consists of:
Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Bosnia and Herzegovina,
Bulgaria, Croatia, Czech Republic, Estonia, Georgia, Hungary,
Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Latvia, Lithuania, Macedonia, Moldova, Poland,
Romania, Russia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine,
Uzbekistan, Yugoslavia; this group is identical to the IMF group
"countries in transition" except for the IMF's inclusion of Mongolia

Four Dragons: the four small Asian less developed