Disputes - international:
none
Illicit drugs:
major European producer of ecstasy, illicit amphetamines, and other
synthetic drugs; important gateway for cocaine, heroin, and hashish
entering Europe; major source of US-bound ecstasy; large financial
sector vulnerable to money laundering
This page was last updated on 8 February, 2007
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@Netherlands Antilles
Introduction Netherlands Antilles
Background:
Once the center of the Caribbean slave trade, the island of Curacao
was hard hit by the abolition of slavery in 1863. Its prosperity
(and that of neighboring Aruba) was restored in the early 20th
century with the construction of oil refineries to service the newly
discovered Venezuelan oil fields. The island of Saint Martin is
shared with France; its southern portion is named Sint Maarten and
is part of the Netherlands Antilles; its northern portion is called
Saint-Martin and is part of Guadeloupe (France).
Geography Netherlands Antilles
Location:
Caribbean, two island groups in the Caribbean Sea - composed of
five islands, Curacao and Bonaire located off the coast of
Venezuela, and St. Maarten, Saba, and St. Eustatius lie east of the
US Virgin Islands
Geographic coordinates:
12 15 N, 68 45 W