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The nature of Eastern Europe and its features. Central Eastern Europe

Lecture

Theme: CENTRAL EASTERN EUROPE (CEE)

Plan

Historical stages economic development of landscapes in Central and Eastern Europe.
Assessment of natural resource potential.

2.1. Composition and quality of forest resources

3. The main features of the economy.

4. Main types of land use. Forms Agriculture.
1. Historical stages of economic development of the landscapes of foreign Europe.

The Central Eastern Europe (CEE) region covers 15 post-socialist countries (from north to south: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, federation of Serbia and Montenegro (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia), Slovenia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia, Albania). The area of the region, representing a single territorial array, is almost 1.7 million km 2 with a population of 132 million people (1995). Of its constituent countries, the group of larger European states includes only Poland and Romania; other countries are relatively small in size (territory from 20 to 110 thousand km 2 with a population of 2 to 10 million people).

This region of Europe has gone through a difficult path of political and socio-economic development in the context of the dramatic struggle for the major European powers for spheres of influence on the continent for the peoples inhabiting it. This struggle was waged with particular force in the 19th-20th centuries. between Austria-Hungary, Germany, Russia, Turkey, as well as France and Great Britain. In the course of this struggle and the intensified national liberation movements of the local population, new states were formed and former states were destroyed. After the First World War, the Austro-Hungarian Empire collapsed, Poland reappeared on the map of Europe, Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia were formed, and the territory of Romania more than doubled.

Subsequent changes to political map CEE were the result of the victory over Nazi Germany and Italy during the Second World War. Chief among them: the return to Poland of its western and northern lands with wide access to Baltic Sea, Yugoslavia - the Julian Krajina and the Istrian peninsula, inhabited mainly by Slovenes and Croats.

During the transition of the CEE countries from a centrally planned economy to a market one (late 80s - early 90s), political, socio-economic and national-ethnic contradictions sharply aggravated in them. As a result, Czechoslovakia, along ethnic lines, split into two states - the Czech Republic and the Slovak Republic, and Yugoslavia - into five states: the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, the republics of Croatia, Slovenia, Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

The CEE countries are located between the countries of Western Europe and the republics that were (until 1992) part of the USSR. Related to this are a number of common features their political and socio-economic development at the stage of transition to a market economy. They are in the process of deep structural economic restructuring, fundamental changes in the nature and orientation of external economic ties.

The CEE states are striving to expand their participation in the pan-European economic integration, primarily in the field of transport, energy, ecology, and the use of recreational resources. The region has access to the Baltic, Black and Adriatic seas, the navigable Danube flows through it for the most part; the territory of the region can be widely used for the transit of goods and passengers between Western Europe, CIS countries and Asia. For example, with the completion in 1993 of the Bamberg (on the Main) - Regensburg (on the Danube) canal, the possibility of through trans-European water transportation between the North and Black Seas opens (from Rotterdam at the mouth of the Rhine to Sulina at the mouth of the Danube, a waterway of 3400 km). This is an important link in the development of a unified European network of inland waterways. Another example of the expanding use of the geographical position of the CEE countries is the transit shipments through pipelines of natural gas and oil from Russia to the countries of Western and Southern Europe. The CEE countries signed (1994) an agreement on the European Energy Charter, which laid down the economic mechanisms for the global energy space of all of Europe.

2. Atnatural resource assessment , features of settlement and regional differences in hostactivities in the modern territory of the CEE countries, it is important to represent thewithout the most important structural and morphological features of itsrelief.

Region covers: part European plain in the north (Baltic states, Poland), Hercynian midlands and hilly uplands (Czech Republic), part of Alpine-Carpathian Europe with folded mountains up to 2.5-3 thousand m and low accumulative plains - the Middle and Lower Danube (Slovenia, Hungary, Slovakia, Romania, northern Croatia, Serbia and Bulgaria), the South European Dinaric and Rhodope-Macedonian massifs with intermountain basins and foothill plains up to 2-2.5 thousand meters (most of Croatia and Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia, Albania and southern Bulgaria).

The features of the geological and tectonic structures determine the composition and nature geographical distribution mineral countries. Large (on a European scale) deposits are of the greatest economic importance: hard coal (the Upper Silesian basin in the south of Poland and the neighboring Ostrava-Karvina basin in the north-east of the Czech Republic), brown coal (Serbia, Poland, the Czech Republic), oil and natural gas Romania , Albania), oil shale (Estonia), rock salt (Poland, Romania), phosphorites (Estonia), natural sulfur (Poland), lead-zinc ores (Poland, Serbia, Bulgaria), copper ores (Poland, Serbia), bauxite (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary), chromites and nickel (Albania); in a number of countries there are deposits of uranium ores of industrial importance.

In general, the CEE countries are insufficiently provided with primary energy resources. Up to 9/10 of the region's hard coal reserves (about 70 billion tons) are in Poland alone. More than 1/3 of the pan-European lignite reserves are located in CEE; they are more dispersed across the countries of the region, but still more than half lies in Serbia and Poland. No country (except Albania) has sufficient reserves of oil and natural gas. Even Romania, which is better off with them, is forced to partially cover its needs for them through imports. Of the total CEE technical hydro potential of 182 billion kWh, about half falls on the republics of the former Yugoslavia (primarily Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina) and more than 20% on Romania. The region is rich in healing mineral springs, some of which are effectively used (especially in the Czech Republic).

2.1. CEE countries vary greatly in size, composition and quality forest resources. In the south of the region, in the mountainous regions of the Balkan Peninsula, as well as in the Carpathians, increased forest cover is characteristic with a predominance of conifers and beech, while in the predominantly flat and heavily plowed Hungary and Poland, the supply of forests is much less. In Poland and the Czech Republic, a significant part of productive forests is represented by artificial plantations, primarily pines.

One of the main wealth of CEE is its soil and climatic resources. There are large areas of naturally fertile soils, mostly of the chernozem type. These are, first of all, the Lower and Middle Danube plains, as well as the Upper Thracian lowland. Due to the extensiveness of agriculture before the Second World War, about 10-15 centners of grain crops were collected here. In the 1980s, the yield already reached 35-45 centners per hectare, but was still lower than the yields in some Western countries. European countries ah with less humus-rich lands.

In the process of aggravation of the political and socio-economic situation in CEE in the late 1980s and early 1990s, interethnic contradictions intensified. This led to the collapse of Czechoslovakia and Yugoslavia. Now the Czech Republic and Slovenia have joined the first group of single-ethnic countries with a small share of national minorities. At the same time, interethnic problems (and in some cases even acute conflicts) continue to complicate the development of Romania, Bulgaria and especially Serbia, Macedonia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Intensive migrations are closely related to interethnic problems and economic factors. Mass internal migration of the population was especially great in the first post-war decade (in Poland and Czechoslovakia, associated with the movement of Germans to Germany from the Polish reunited lands and the border regions of the Czech Republic, as well as in Yugoslavia - from the mountainous regions destroyed by the war to the plains, etc.) . There was also emigration; in search of work, over 1 million people emigrated from Yugoslavia in the 60-80s (most to Germany and Austria) and a little less from Poland, some ethnic Turks emigrated from Bulgaria to Turkey, and most ethnic Germans emigrated from Romania (to Germany). In the early 1990s, internal and external migration of the population in the former Yugoslavia increased sharply as a result of the most acute ethnic conflicts; the bulk of them are refugees from Bosnia and Herzegovina and Croatia. Some of them sought to leave the zones of interethnic conflicts, while others were subjected to forced resettlement in order to achieve greater ethnic homogeneity of the population in certain areas (for example, the eviction of Serbs from Croatian Western Slavonia or Croats from the north of Bosnia and from the east of Slavonia).

3. The main features of the economy. Most of the CEE countries (excluding the Czech Republic) embarked on the path of capitalist development later than the leading countries of Western Europe and, on the eve of the Second World War, belonged to the economically less developed European states. Their economy was dominated by extensive agriculture. During the Second World War, the countries of the region (especially Poland and Yugoslavia) suffered heavy material and human losses. After the war, as a result of political and socio-economic transformations, they switched to a centrally planned type of economy, in contrast to the market economy of Western European countries. Over almost half a century of development (from 1945 to 1989-1991), a specific type of economy was formed in the CEE countries, characterized by excessive centralization of management and monopolization of the social and economic spheres of life.

The level of their economic development has risen significantly; at the same time, there was a significant convergence of the levels of the countries of the region. During the expanding industryIn the course of this process, a new sectoral and territorial structure of the economy was formed withthe predominance of industry, especially its basic industries. A new production infrastructure was created, primarily in the field of energy and transport, the involvement of the economy in foreign economic relations increased (especially significantly in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, and Slovenia). However, the achieved level of development was still significantly lower than that of the leading countries of Western Europe. At the same time, in terms of some quantitative indicators, there was a significant convergence of individual CEE countries with the states of Western Europe (for example, in coal mining, electricity production, steel and basic non-ferrous metal smelting, production of mineral fertilizers, cement, fabrics, shoes, as well as sugar, grain, etc. . per capita). However, a large gap has formed in the quality of manufactured products, in the degree of implementation modern technologies and more economical productions. Manufactured products, although they were sold in the countries of the region and especially in the huge but less demanding market of the USSR, were for the most part uncompetitive in Western markets. The accumulated shortcomings of a structural and technological nature (the predominance of industries heavy with obsolete equipment, increased material and energy intensity, etc.) led to an economic crisis in the 1980s. The period of forced industrialization in the first post-war decades was replaced by stagnation and then a decline in production. The beginning of the process of transition from a centrally planned economy to a market economy with the replacement of the “transferable ruble” in foreign economic calculations with a convertible currency and at world prices had grave consequences for the economies of most CEE countries. The integration economic ties between the CEE countries and the republics of the former USSR, on which their economic systems were basically closed, turned out to be destroyed to a large extent. A radical restructuring on a new, market basis of the entire national economy of CEE was required. Since the beginning of the 1990s, the CEE countries have entered the stage of establishing a more efficient economic structure.

Industry . In the 50-80s, a large industrial potential was created in the CEE countries, designed mainly to cover the needs of the region and close interaction with the national economy of the USSR, where a significant part of industrial production was sent. This direction of industrial development was reflected in the formation of an industry structure, which was distinguished by a number of features.

In the course of industrialization, fuel and energy and metallurgical bases were created, which served as the basis for the development of the machine-building industry. It is mechanical engineering in almost all countries of the region (excluding Albania) that has become the leading industry and the main supplier of export products. Almost re-created chemical industry, including organic synthesis. The rapid development of mechanical engineering, chemistry and electric power industry contributed to the fact that their share in the gross industrial output reached half. At the same time, the share of products of the light and food and flavor industries has significantly decreased.

Fuel and energy industry The region was created on the basis of the use of local resources (to a greater extent in Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania) and imported energy sources (to the greatest extent in Hungary, Bulgaria). In the total fuel and energy balance, the share of local resources ranged from 1/4 (Bulgaria, Hungary) to 3/4 (Poland, Romania). In accordance with the structure of local resources, most countries were characterized by a coal orientation with a wide use of brown coals of low calorific value. This led to higher specific capital investments in the production of fuel and electricity and increased their cost.

CEE is one of the largest coal mining regions in the world. In the mid-1990s, it produced more than 150 million tons of hard coal per year (130-135 in Poland and up to 20 in the Czech Republic). The CEE countries are the world's first region for the extraction of brown coal (about 230-250 million tons per year). But if the main production of coal is concentrated in one basin (it is divided by the Polish-Czech border into two unequal parts - into the Upper Silesian and Ostrava-Karvinsky), then the extraction of brown coal is carried out in all countries, moreover, from many deposits. More of it is mined in the Czech Republic, the former Yugoslavia and Poland (50-70 million tons each), Romania and Bulgaria (30-40 million tons each).

Brown coal (like a smaller part of hard coal) is consumed mainly in thermal power plants near the mining sites. Significant fuel and electric power complexes have been formed there - the main bases for the production of electricity. Among them, larger complexes are located in Poland (Upper Silesian, Belkhatuvsky, Kuyavdsky, Bogatynsky), Czech Republic (North Czech), Romania (Oltensky), Serbia (Belgrade and Kosovo), Bulgaria (East Maritsky). In Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Albania, the share of hydropower plants in electricity production is high, and in Hungary, Bulgaria, Slovakia, the Czech Republic, and Slovenia - nuclear power plants. Some power plants also use natural gas (in mostly imported from Russia, A in Romania- local). Electricity production in the region reached 370 billion kWh per year in the 1980s. Electricity consumption was significantly higher than production due to its systematic purchase in the former USSR (over 30 billion kWh per year), especially in Hungary, Bulgaria, and Czechoslovakia.

Non-ferrous metallurgy plants were created mainly on the local raw material base. This industry has received greater development in Poland (copper, zinc), the former Yugoslavia (copper, aluminum, lead and zinc), Bulgaria (lead, zinc, copper), Romania (aluminum). The copper-smelting industry of Poland (the achieved level is over 400 thousand tons of copper) and the aluminum industry of the former Yugoslavia (300-350 thousand tons) have good prospects; significant reserves of bauxite High Quality available in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia and Montenegro. On their basis, aluminum plants were built in the area of Zadar (Croatia), Mostar (Bosnia and Herzegovina), Podgorica (Montenegro) and Kidricevo (Slovenia). But the largest aluminum smelter in the region operates in Slatina (in southern Romania), operating on domestic and imported raw materials. Yugoslavia and Hungary were suppliers of bauxite and alumina to other countries (Poland, Slovakia, Romania, but most of all to Russia).

The scale and structure of metallurgy significantly affected the nature and specialization of mechanical engineering. In particular, in Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia and Romania, its metal-intensive industries are more widely represented, and in the former Yugoslavia and Bulgaria, industries using large volume non-ferrous metals (cable production, electrical engineering, handling equipment).

The main specialization of mechanical engineering in the CEE countries is the production of means of transport and agricultural machinery, machine tools and technological equipment, electrical products and devices. In each of the countries, specialization has developed, aimed at covering the basic needs of the region itself and the former USSR. First of all, Poland (especially fishing), Croatia specialized in the production of sea vessels; locomotives, passenger and freight cars - Latvia, Czech Republic, Poland, Romania, buses - Hungary, minibuses - Latvia, electric cars and motocars - Bulgaria, excavators - Estonia, etc.

In general, the location of mechanical engineering is characterized by a high concentration of enterprises within the center and north of the Czech lands, the Middle Danube valley (including Budapest) and its tributaries the Morava and Vaga. In Poland, this industry is dispersed in large cities in the middle part of the country (the main centers are Warsaw, Poznan, Wroclaw), as well as in the Upper Silesian agglomeration. Machine-building centers stand out in the zone Bucharest - Ploiesti - Brasov (Romania), as well as in the capital cities - Sofia, Belgrade and Zagreb.

During the post-war period, the chemical industry was essentially re-created in CEE. At the first stage, when mainly large enterprises basic chemistry (especially in the production of mineral fertilizers and chlorine-containing products), Poland and Romania, which had large reserves of the necessary raw materials, found themselves in a more favorable position. Later, with the development of the organic synthesis industry, its production began to be created in other CEE countries, but for the most part on the basis of oil and natural gas imported from Russia (and in Romania and their local resources) and coke chemistry (Poland, Czechoslovakia ); increased specialization in the production of pharmaceutical products (especially Poland, Hungary, Yugoslavia, Bulgaria) and small-tonnage chemistry.

Light industry satisfies the basic needs of the population in fabrics, clothing, footwear; a significant part of its production is exported. CEE countries occupy a prominent place in Europe in the production of cotton, wool and linen fabrics, leather shoes, as well as such specific products as costume jewelry, art glass and art ceramics (Czech Republic). The main areas of the textile industry have historically developed in the center of Poland (Lodz) and on both sides of the Sudetenland - in the south of Poland and in the north of the Czech Republic.

The region has a large shoe industry - in the 80s over 500 million pairs of shoes were produced per year. It is more developed in Poland, the Czech Republic, Romania, Croatia. In particular,; The Czech Republic in the manufacture and export of footwear per capita is among the leading countries in the world. Such centers as Zlin (in the Czech Republic), Radom and Helmek (Poland), Timisoara and Cluj-Napoca (Romania), Borovo and Zagreb (Croatia) are widely known in the industry.

CEE has all the main branches of the food industry, but at the same time, each country specializes in the development certain types products in accordance with the nature of local agricultural raw materials and national customs in the consumption of certain food products. In the northern group of countries, the share of industries processing livestock products is much higher; among the products of plant origin, their share in the production of sugar and beer is high. Southern countries stand out for the production of vegetable oil, canned vegetables, grape wines, fermented tobacco and tobacco products. A significant part of these types of products of sub-sectors specialized in the north and south of the region is intended for export.

In the context of the transition to a market economy in the CEE countries, the main changes in industry are the reduction in the share of basic industries (coal and ferrous metallurgy), as well as mechanical engineering. Particularly significant are intra-industry changes in the direction of reducing production of increased energy and material consumption. Several countriesregion receives loans from Western Europe for the purchase of high-techequipment and replacement of outdated production facilities with new ones, the products of which are useddemand in the world market. Modernization of industry by the mid-90smore successful in Hungary, the Czech Republic and Poland. The most difficult situation inindustries of the republics of the former Yugoslavia (with the exception of Slovenia); they provedwere embroiled in a multi-year conflict that was largely disorganizedshaft their economy.

4. Agriculture. The expansion of agricultural production is one of the important areas of perspective specialization of the CEE countries. For this, the region has favorable soil and climatic conditions. During the post-war period, the gross agricultural output has increased significantly, and the yields of the main crops and the productivity of livestock have increased several times. But in terms of the general level of development, especially in terms of labor productivity, the agriculture of the CEE countries is still significantly inferior to that of Western Europe. In this regard, there are differences among individual CEE countries. For example, high level agriculture in the Czech Republic, Hungary, and below - in the countries of the Balkan Peninsula and in Poland. In general, the population of CEE is provided with basic agricultural products and a large part of it is exported. In turn, the region, like Western Europe, needs to import tropical products and some types of agricultural raw materials (primarily cotton). In the process of transition to a market economy, agriculture in CEE is increasingly facing difficulties in marketing products in Western markets in the context of the crisis of overproduction and intense competition there. Together With At the same time, the vast Russian market is located close to CEE, to which, on new, mutually beneficial conditions, products that are scarce for Russia are supplied in large quantities, primarily vegetables, fruits, grapes and products of their processing.

The place of the CEE region in European agricultural production is determined mainly by the production of grain, potatoes, sugar beets, sunflowers, vegetables, fruits, and meat and dairy products.

In the diet of the inhabitants of the southern group of countries, beans stand out, while in the northern group, especially in Poland, potatoes. Poland alone grew almost as many potatoes as the whole of Western Europe or other largest producers in the world - Russia, China. In the Middle and Lower Danubian plains within Hungary, Serbia, Romania and Bulgaria, a lot of sunflower is grown; more sunflower seeds are produced on their lands than in all of Western Europe (only Ukraine is the largest producer in Europe). In the northern group of countries (especially in Poland), another oilseed crop is common - rapeseed. In the Baltic States and Poland, flax has long been cultivated. Sugar beet is also grown there, although this crop has become widespread in all CEE countries. The region is a major producer of vegetables, fruits and grapes, with the southern countries especially growing tomatoes and peppers, plums, peaches and grapes, a significant part of which is destined for export, including to the northern part of the region.

During the post-war period, a significant increase in crop production and a change in its structure in favor of fodder crops contributed to the development of animal husbandry and an increase in the share of its products in total agricultural production (on average, up to half, but in Latvia, the Czech Republic, Slovenia, Bulgaria, the share of animal husbandry is even higher). In Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic, Hungary, the breeding of cattle and pigs is of greater importance. They have a higher slaughter weight of livestock and average milk yields. In the southern group of countries, the overall level of animal husbandry is lower; grazing and sheep breeding are common.

Eastern Europe as a historical and geographical region includes: Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, countries formed as a result of the collapse of the former Yugoslavia (Slovenia, Croatia, Serbia, Bosnia, Herzegovina, Montenegro, Macedonia), Albania, Latvia, Lithuania , Estonia.

There is also an opinion that the countries of this region should be attributed to either Central or Central Europe, since it is more correct to call Eastern Europe Ukraine, Belarus, Moldova and European part Russia.

But the name "Eastern Europe" has stuck with the countries of this region and is recognized throughout the world.

Geographical position. Natural resources

The countries of Eastern Europe represent a single natural-territorial array stretching from the Baltic to the Black and Adriatic Seas. The region and adjacent countries are based on the ancient Precambrian platform, covered by a cover of sedimentary rocks, as well as the area of Alpine folding.

An important feature of all the countries of the region is their transit position between the countries of Western Europe and the CIS.

The countries of V. Europe differ from each other in geographic location, configuration, size of the territory, wealth of natural resources.

From the reserves of natural resources stand out: coal (Poland, Czech Republic), oil and natural gas (Romania), iron ore (countries of the former Yugoslavia, Romania, Slovakia), bauxite (Hungary), chromite (Albania).

In general, it must be said that the region is experiencing a shortage of resources, and in addition, it is a prime example"incompleteness" of a set of minerals. So, in Poland there are large reserves of coal, copper ores, sulfur, but almost no oil, gas, iron ore. In Bulgaria, on the contrary, there is no coal, although there are significant reserves of lignite, copper ores, and polymetals.

Population

The population of the region is about 130 million people, but the demographic situation, which is not easy in all of Europe, is the most alarming in Eastern Europe. Despite the active demographic policy pursued for several decades, the natural population growth is very small (less than 2%) and continues to decrease. In Bulgaria and Hungary, there is even a natural decline in population. main reason This is a violation of the age and sex structure of the population as a result of the Second World War.

In some countries, the natural increase is higher than the average for the region (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia), and it is the largest in Albania - 20%.

The largest country in the region is Poland (about 40 million people), the smallest is Estonia (about 1.5 million people).

The population of Eastern Europe is characterized by a complex ethnic composition, but one can note the predominance Slavic peoples. Of the other peoples, the Romanians, Albanians, Hungarians, and Lithuanians are the most numerous. Poland, Hungary, Albania are distinguished by the most homogeneous national composition. Lithuania.

Eastern Europe has always been an arena of national and ethnic conflicts. After the collapse of the socialist system, the situation became more complicated, especially on the territory of the most multinational country in the region - Yugoslavia, where the conflict escalated into an interethnic war.

The most urbanized country in Eastern Europe is the Czech Republic (3/4 of the population lives in cities). There are quite a lot of urban agglomerations in the region, the largest of them are Upper Silesian (in Poland) and Budapest (in Hungary). But most countries are characterized by historically formed small towns and villages, and for the Baltic countries - farms.

economy

The countries of Eastern Europe today are not characterized by a pronounced socio-economic unity. But in general it can be said that _. in the 2nd half of the 20th century. great changes took place in the economies of the countries of Eastern Europe. Firstly, industries developed at a faster pace - by the 80th reptiles of V. Europe turned into one of the most industrial regions of the world, and secondly, previously very backward regions also began to develop industrially (For example, Slovakia in the former Czechoslovakia, Moldova in Romania, northeast Poland). Such results became possible thanks to the implementation of regional policy.

Energy

Due to the shortage of oil reserves, this area is focused on coal, most of the electricity is generated at thermal power plants (more than 60%), but hydroelectric power plants and nuclear power plants also play an important role. One of the largest nuclear power plants, Kozloduy in Bulgaria, has been built in the region.

Metallurgy

In the post-war period, the industry actively grew and developed in all countries of the region, and non-ferrous metallurgy relies mainly on its own raw materials, while ferrous metallurgy relies on imported ones.

mechanical engineering

The industry is also represented in all countries, but is most developed in the Czech Republic (primarily machine tool building, production of household appliances and computer technology); Poland and Romania are distinguished by the production of metal-intensive machines and structures, Hungary, Bulgaria, Latvia - by the electrical industry; in addition, shipbuilding is developed in Poland and Estonia.

Chemical industry

The region's chemical industry lags far behind Western Europe due to the lack of raw materials for the most advanced branches of chemistry - oil. But still, the pharmaceutical industry of Poland and Hungary, the glass industry of the Czech Republic can be noted.

Agriculture of the region

Mainly meets the needs of the population in food. Under the influence of scientific and technological revolution, significant changes took place in the structure of the economy of the countries of Eastern Europe: agro-industrial complex arose, specialization of agricultural production took place. It manifested itself most clearly in grain farming and in the production of vegetables, fruits, and grapes.

The structure of the economy of the region is heterogeneous: in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Poland, and the Baltic countries, the share of animal husbandry exceeds the share of crop production, in the rest - the ratio is still the opposite.

Due to the diversity of soil and climatic conditions, several zones of crop production can be distinguished: wheat is grown everywhere, but in the north (Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) rye and potatoes play an important role, vegetable growing and horticulture are cultivated in the central part of the subregion, and the "southern" countries specialize in subtropical crops.

The main crops grown in the region are wheat, corn, vegetables, fruits.

The main wheat and corn regions of Eastern Europe were formed within the Middle and Lower Danube lowlands and the Danube hilly plain (Hungary, Rumania, Yugoslavia, and Bulgaria).

Hungary has achieved the greatest success in grain growing.

Vegetables, fruits, grapes are cultivated almost everywhere in the subregion, but there are areas where they primarily determine the specialization of agriculture. These countries and regions also have their own specialization in the range of products. For example, Hungary is famous for winter varieties of apples, grapes, onions; Bulgaria - oilseeds; Czech Republic - hops, etc.

Livestock. The northern and central countries of the region specialize in dairy and meat and dairy cattle breeding and pig breeding, while the southern countries specialize in mountain pasture meat and wool cattle breeding.

Transport

In Eastern Europe, lying at the crossroads that have long connected the eastern and western parts of Eurasia, the transport system has been formed over many centuries. Now, in terms of traffic volume, rail transport is leading, BUT automobile and sea transport are also intensively developing. The presence of the largest ports contributes to the development of foreign economic relations, shipbuilding, ship repair, and fishing.

Intra-regional differences

The countries of Eastern Europe can be conditionally divided into 3 groups according to the commonality of their EGL, resources, and level of development.

1. Northern group: Poland, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia. These countries are still characterized by a low degree of integration, but there are general tasks in the development of the maritime economy.

2. Central group: Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary. The economy of the first two countries has a pronounced industrial character. The Czech Republic ranks first in the region in terms of industrial output per capita.

3. Southern group: Romania, Bulgaria, countries of the former Yugoslavia, Albania. In the past, these were the most backward countries, and now, despite great changes in their economy, the countries of this group lag behind the countries of the 1st and 2nd groups in most indicators.

Natural resources of Eastern Europe

The countries of Eastern Europe are a single natural-territorial array stretching from the Baltic to the Black and Adriatic Seas. The region and its adjoining countries are based on the ancient Precambrian platform, covered by a cover of sedimentary rocks, as well as an area of alpine folding.

An important feature of all the countries of the region is their transit position between the countries of Western Europe and the CIS.

In general, it must be said that the region is experiencing a shortage of resources, and in addition, it is a vivid example of an "incomplete" set of minerals. So, in Poland there are large reserves of coal, copper ores, sulfur, but almost no oil, gas, iron ore. In Bulgaria, on the contrary, there is no coal, although there are significant reserves of lignite, copper ores, and polymetals.

Population of Eastern Europe

The population of the region is about 130 million people, but the demographic situation, which is not easy in all of Europe, is the most alarming in Eastern Europe. Despite the active demographic policy pursued for several decades, the natural population growth is very small (less than 2%) and continues to decrease. In Bulgaria and Hungary, there is even a natural decline in population. In some countries, the natural increase is higher than the average for the region (Bosnia and Herzegovina, Macedonia), and it is the largest in Albania - 20%.

The population of Eastern Europe is distinguished by a complex ethnic composition, but the predominance of the Slavic peoples can be noted. Of the other peoples, the Romanians, Albanians, Hungarians, and Lithuanians are the most numerous. Poland, Hungary, Albania are distinguished by the most homogeneous national composition. Lithuania. Eastern Europe has always been an arena of national and ethnic conflicts. After the collapse of the socialist system, the situation became more complicated, especially on the territory of the most multinational country in the region - Yugoslavia, where the conflict escalated into an interethnic war.

Economy of Eastern Europe

The countries of Eastern Europe today are not characterized by a pronounced socio-economic unity. But in general, we can say that in the 2nd half of the XX century. Great changes have taken place in the economies of Eastern Europe. Firstly, industries developed at a faster pace - by the 1980s Eastern Europe had become one of the most industrial regions in the world, and secondly, previously very backward regions also began to develop industrially.

Metallurgy in Eastern Europe

In the post-war period, the industry actively grew and developed in all countries of the region, and non-ferrous metallurgy relies mainly on its own raw materials, black - on imported.

Mechanical engineering of Eastern Europe

Chemical industry in Eastern Europe

Agriculture in Eastern Europe

Due to the diversity of soil and climatic conditions, several zones of crop production can be distinguished: wheat is grown everywhere, but in the north (Poland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania) rye and potatoes play an important role, vegetable growing and horticulture are cultivated in the central part of Eastern Europe, and the “southern” countries specialize in subtropical crops.

Vegetables, fruits, grapes are cultivated almost everywhere in Eastern Europe, but there are areas where they primarily determine the specialization of agriculture. These countries and regions also have their own specialization in the range of products.

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Features of the geological and tectonic structures determine the composition and nature of the geographical distribution of minerals in countries. Large (on a European scale) deposits are of the greatest economic importance: coal (the Upper Silesian basin in the south of Poland and the adjacent Ostrava-Karvina basin in the north-east of the Czech Republic), brown coal (Serbia, Poland, Czech Republic), oil and natural gas ( Romania, Albania), oil shale (Estonia), rock salt (Poland, Romania), phosphorites (Estonia), natural sulfur (Poland), lead-zinc ores (Poland, Serbia), bauxite (Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Hungary) , chromites and nickel (Albania); in a number of countries there are deposits of uranium ores of industrial importance.

In general, the CEE countries are insufficiently provided with primary energy resources. Up to 9/10 of the region's hard coal reserves (about 70 billion tons) are in Poland alone. More than 1/3 of the pan-European lignite reserves are located in CEE; they are more dispersed across the countries of the region, but still more than half lies in Serbia and Poland. No country (except Albania) has sufficient reserves of oil and natural gas. Even Romania, which is better off with them, is forced to partially cover its needs for them through imports. Of the total CEE hydro potential of 182 billion kWh, about half falls on the republics of the former Yugoslavia (primarily Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina) and more than 20% on Romania. The region is rich in healing mineral springs, some of which are effectively used (especially in the Czech Republic).

CEE countries vary greatly in terms of the size, composition and quality of their forest resources. In the south of the region, in the mountainous regions of the Balkan Peninsula, as well as in the Carpathians, increased forest cover is characteristic with a predominance of conifers and beech, while in predominantly flat and heavily plowed Poland and Hungary, the availability of forests is much less. In Poland and the Czech Republic, a significant part of productive forests is represented by artificial plantations, primarily pines.

However, one of the main wealth of CEE is its soil and climatic resources. There are large areas of naturally fertile soils, mostly of the chernozem type. This is primarily the Lower and Middle Danubian plains, as well as the Upper Thracian lowland. Due to the extensiveness of agriculture before the Second World War, about 10 - 15 centners were collected here. from ha. Cereal crops. IN

In the 1980s, the yield reached 35-45 centners. per ha., but was still lower than the fees in some Western European countries with less humus-rich lands.

According to soil and climatic conditions and other natural resources, the CEE countries can be conditionally divided into two groups: northern (the Baltic countries, Poland, the Czech Republic, Slovakia) and southern (other countries). These differences, consisting in higher temperatures during the growing season and more fertile soils in the southern group of countries, create an objective basis for the specialization and complementarity of both groups of countries in agricultural production. While most of the territory northern group countries is located in a zone of sufficient moisture, in the south - during the growing season, arid conditions often occur, causing the need for artificial irrigation (In the Lower Danube and Middle Danube lowlands, one of the most irrigated agricultural areas in Europe arose in the second half of the 20th century). At the same time, the climatic conditions of the southern group of countries, combined with healing mineral springs and wide access to warm seas create important prerequisites for organizing recreation for residents of not only these countries, but also the northern part of the region, as well as tourists from other, primarily European, states.

Population.

The dynamics of the CEE population is characterized by a number of features characteristic of the European continent as a whole: a decrease in the birth rate, an aging population and, accordingly, an increase in the death rate. At the same time, the CEE region, in contrast to Western Europe, is also characterized by a significant population decline due to a negative balance of migration. In the second half of the 1990s, the average population density of CEE (104 people per sq. km) was close to that in Western Europe. Country-by-country differences in population density range from 33 in Estonia to 131 people. At 1 km. sq. in the Czech Republic. Differences in population density within countries are more significant, due to both natural conditions and socio-economic factors. The process of urbanization had a great influence. For most CEE countries, in contrast to the developed countries of Western Europe, the stage of accelerated industrialization and, accordingly, increased concentration of production in cities occurred at a later time, mainly after the Second World War. Therefore, the rate of urbanization during this period was the highest. By the beginning of the 1990s, more than 2/3 of the population of the region was already concentrated in cities (up to 4/5 in Czechoslovakia). big cities little compared to Western Europe. Capital cities stand out sharply, among which are the largest two-million inhabitants Budapest and Bucharest, and some urban agglomerations (Upper Silesian).

natural conditions. The length of the coastline (excluding Russia) is 4682 km. Belarus, Slovakia, Hungary and the Czech Republic do not have access to the oceans.

The relief of the region includes lowlands, hilly plains and mountains. The territory is mostly flat. The mountain ranges are mainly located on the edges of the region: the south is surrounded by the Caucasus and Crimean mountains, the north is the Khibiny, the east of the European part of Russia is one of the oldest (Hercynian folding) mountain system in Europe - the Ural Mountains, the event of the region is the Sudeten, Bohemian and Carpathian mountains. In the mountains, vertical zonality is expressed.

The most mountainous system in the region is the Carpathians, which form a convex arc to the northeast, almost 1500 km long. Average heights - 1000 m, maximum - 2655 m (Gerlachovsky Shtit in the Tatras). To the Carpathian mountain country belong to the Western and Eastern Carpathians, the Beskids, the Southern Carpathians, the Western Romanian Mountains, and the Transylvanian Plateau. They are part of the Alpine geosynclinal region. The outer belt of the arc is made up of flysch (sandstones, conglomerates, shales), the inner belt is represented by volcanic rocks. There are many thermal springs.

Three-quarters of the region's territory is occupied by plains, and East European (Russian) is one of the largest on the globe (almost 5 million km2). In its north and in the center (the average height is more than 170 m) there are uplands (Timan and Donetsk ridges, Central Russian, Dnieper, Volga, Podolsk uplands, etc.), in the south - a strip of coastal lowlands - the Black Sea, Caspian Sea. The northern territories are characterized by a moraine-hilly relief, while the central and southern territories are characterized by ravine-beam relief. Most of the lowlands are located in the coastal areas and floodplains of the rivers: the Middle Danube (Pannonskaya), Black Sea, Pivnichnopilska, Pridneprovskaya lowlands.

The climate in most of the territory is temperate continental, the average temperatures in January are 3о..-5оС, in July +20 .. +23 оС, precipitation is up to 500-650 mm per year. In the north of the European part of Russia, the climate is subarctic and arctic (average winter temperatures are -25o .. -30, summers are short and moderately warm), in the extreme south of the region - the southern coast of Crimea - subtropical Mediterranean. Tropical air masses come mainly from the Mediterranean Sea in summer and cause cloudless and hot weather, warm (+2 o .. +4 o C) and humid in winter.

The river network in the region is quite dense. Plain rivers - the Danube, Vistula, Oder, Tisza, Volga, Kama, Dnieper, Dniester - and their tributaries are mostly full-flowing, have a calm flow and therefore relatively low energy.

There are many lakes here: the Karelian lake country, Ladoga, Onega, Chudskoye, Balaton, Shatsky lakes and others. Only in Lithuania there are almost 4000 of them. In Belarus, in the north of Ukraine, in Poland there are huge areas of swampy territories, the most famous are the Pripyat swamps.

There are healing mineral springs in Hungary, Lithuania (Druskininkai), the Czech Republic (Karlovy Vary), Ukraine (Mirgorod, Kuyalnik, etc.), Russia (mineral springs of the Caucasus).

Natural resources. The region has significant mineral resources, their richness and diversity is one of the first places in Europe. It fully satisfies its own needs for coal (Upper Silesia (Poland), Kladnensky, Ostrava-Karvinsky (Czech Republic), Donbass, Lvov-Volynsky (Ukraine), Skhidnodonbassky, Pechora (Russia) basins), brown coal, which is mined in all countries mainly open way(Podmoskovny basin in Russia, the Dnieper - in Ukraine, the central regions of Poland, northern Hungary). The Russian subsoil is rich in oil and gas (Volga-Ural, Timan-Pechora basins), there are insignificant reserves in Ukraine (Carpathian region, Dnieper-Donetsk basin) and Hungary (Middle Danube lowland), as well as in the south of Belarus (Rechitsa). Peat occurs in Belarus, Poland, Lithuania, in the north of Ukraine, the largest reserves of oil shale are in Estonia (Kohtla-Jarve) and Russia (Slates). A significant part of the fuel and energy resources, especially oil and gas, countries (except Russia) are forced to import.

Ore minerals are represented by iron ores (the Krivoy Rog basin in Ukraine, Karelia, the Kola Peninsula, the Kursk Magnetic Anomaly (KMA) in Russia), manganese (the Nikopol basin in Ukraine, the largest in Europe and the second largest in the world in terms of reserves), copper ores ( Lower Silesian basin in Poland and the Urals in Russia), bauxite (north-west of Hungary), mercury (Nikitovskoye deposit in Ukraine), nickel (Khibiny in Russia).

Among non-metallic minerals there are significant reserves of rock salt (Donbass and Crimea in Ukraine, the lower reaches of the Vistula in Poland), potash salt (Carpathian region in Ukraine, Soligorsk in Belarus, Solikamsk, Bereznyaki in Russia), sulfur (southeast and Carpathian region in Poland , the west and the Carpathians - the Novy Rozdol deposit - in Ukraine), amber (Latvia and the Kaliningrad region of Russia), phosphorites ( Leningrad region Russia, Estonia), apatites (Khibiny in Russia).

Forest resources are the largest in Russia (forest cover 50%), Estonia (49%), Belarus (47%), Slovakia (45%), Latvia (47%). The main part of the forest area is plantations that protect waters, fields, sea coast, landscape, as well as groves and parks in recreational areas. In Russia (mainly in the north), forests are of industrial importance. The average forest cover of the region is 37%.

Agro-climatic resources are favorable in the southern part of the region due to sufficient heat: Ukraine, southern Russia, Hungary.

The main recreational resources include the sea coast, mountain air, rivers, forests, mineral springs, karst caves. The most famous sea resorts are located in the region: Yalta, Alushta, Evpatoria (Ukraine), Sochi, Gelendzhik, Anapa (Russia), Jurmala (Latvia) and others. The largest lake resort is on Lake Balaton in Hungary. Ski resorts are located in the Carpathians, the Caucasus, the Tatras and the Khibiny. Forest machines for recreational purposes are widely used in Belarus, Ukraine, Russia, Poland. In Eastern European countries in Lately many national parks are being created, among which the most famous and popular is national park"Belovezhskaya Pushcha", where bison are protected.

Largely due to the European part of Russia natural resource potential region is the largest in Europe. And given the fact that in the northern regions of Russia there are huge reserves of fuel, some metallic (non-ferrous metals) and non-metallic (formerly potassium salts and apatites) minerals, its natural resources are of world importance.

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