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France is the biggest country in Western Europe
with an overall surface of 549,000 square
kilometers.
It has common borders with five other countries of
the European Union and one with Switzerland, and
the Channel Tunnel connects it to England. On the
west it opens on the Atlantic Ocean and on the east
on the Mediterranean.
The size of the borders : 3427 kms of coastline,
451 kms with Germany, 60 with Andorra, 620 with
Belgium, 623 with Spain, 488 kms with Italy, 73
with Luxemburg, 4.4 kms with Monaco and 573 kms
with Switzerland.
Metropolitan France is made up of 22 regions and
there are four Overseas territories : Guadeloupe,
Guyana, Martinique and Reunion.
There are over 2 million inhabitants in the French
territories overseas, three quarters of whom live
in the DOM TOM (the French Departments and
Territories Overseas).
France, which is situated on the western side of
Europe has a large geographical diversity.
There are vast plains in the north.
The Jura, the Vosges, the Massif Central, the Alps,
very ancient mountain ranges, form a spine all
along the eastern part.
The west of the country is much flatter and covered
with rivers.
The rivers are relatively small. There are for
example the Seine, the Yonne, the Marne and the
Oise.
They tend to flow towards the Atlantic and the
English Channel. The Rhine runs north and the Saone
and the Rhone to the Mediterranean.
There are several coastal rivers : the Somme, the
Vilaine, the Adour, the Herault.
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