The Republic of Macedonia is a landlocked country on the Balkan peninsula in southeastern Europe. It is bordered by Serbia to the north, Bulgaria to the east, Greece to the south and Albania to the west. However the foreign relations between Kosovo and Republic of Macedonia were officialised on 9 October 2008 when the latter recognized Kosovo after its declaration of independence from Serbia on 17 February of the same year.

It was admitted to the United Nations in 1993 under the provisional reference the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, commonly abbreviated to FYROM, pending resolution of a naming dispute with Greece. Many other international institutions and countries have recognised the country under the same reference, although an overall majority of countries recognise it under its constitutional name.

The Republic of Macedonia lies in the northwestern third of the wider geographical region of Macedonia, with about 40% of the region’s population. The capital is Skopje, with 506,926 inhabitants according to a 2004 census, and there are a number of smaller cities, notably Bitola, Kumanovo, Prilep, Tetovo, Ohrid, Veles, Štip, Kocani, Gostivar and Strumica. It has more than 50 lakes and sixteen mountains higher than 2,000 meters (6,550 ft).

The country is a member of the UN and the Council of Europe and a member of La Francophonie, the World Trade Organization (WTO), and the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe. Since December 2005 it is also a candidate for joining the European Union and has applied for NATO membership.
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