Greece is one of the oldest civilized countries in the world and for many years, one of the most successful and prosperous. The country of Greece is located in Southern Europe. Its location near large bodies of water makes it prime real estate for importing and exporting goods to other countries. Being a peninsula, it is bordered on all three sides by the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea. The surrounding countries around Greece are: Albania, Turkey, Bulgaria, and The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia. .
Being such a wealthy and populous country, Greece needs a governing body to represent the country. Athens is the capitol of Greece and about 40% of the country's population resides here. In regards to its government, Greece is currently a parliamentary democracy. Although Greece in its history was one of the first countries to come up with the ideal of democracy (i.e. Socrates, Plato, etc.) the referendum that was to do away with the monarchy that Greece was under did not come until much later. The current government has only been effect since 1974 when the monarchy was abolished by Greece's current constitution. This is similar to the government that Great Britain has. Greece has a parliament like Great Britain but it is called the Vouli which consists of 300 members who usually serve for four years. The Prime Minister is the leader of the Vouli, and he generally is the one that issues legislation. Greece also has a President who is elected by the Vouli. His political powers are limited though and he can serve at maximum two five-year terms. .
The current Prime Minister of Greece is Konstandinos Simitis. He is the head of government and has been the Prime Minister since January 19, 1996. The current president of Greece and chief of state is Kostis Stephanopoulos. He has been in office since March 10, 1995. These two leaders work together to make a sort of checks and balances system that the United States uses.
