Italy

Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia

42 50 N, 12 50 E

Europe

almost twice the size of Georgia; slightly larger than Arizona

7,600 km

predominantly Mediterranean; alpine in far north; hot, dry in south

mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands

coal, antimony, mercury, zinc, potash, marble, barite, asbestos, pumice, fluorspar, feldspar, pyrite (sulfur), natural gas and crude oil reserves, fish, arable land

24,460 sq km (2021)

a fairly even population distribution exists throughout most of the country, with coastal areas, the Po River Valley, and urban centers (particularly Milan, Rome, and Naples) attracting larger and denser populations

strategic location dominating central Mediterranean, as well as southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe

Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north, Albanian-Italians, Croat-Italians, and Greek-Italians in the south)

Christian 80.8% (overwhelmingly Roman Catholic with very small groups of Jehovah's Witnesses and Protestants), Muslim 4.9%, unaffiliated 13.4%, other 0.9% (2020 est.)

-0.05% (2025 est.)

7.13 births/1,000 population (2025 est.)

11.2 deaths/1,000 population (2025 est.)

3.55 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2025 est.)

a fairly even population distribution exists throughout most of the country, with coastal areas, the Po River Valley, and urban centers (particularly Milan, Rome, and Naples) attracting larger and denser populations

4.316 million ROME (capital), 3.155 million Milan, 2.179 million Naples, 1.802 million Turin, 913,000 Bergamo, 850,000 Palermo (2023)

31.4 years (2020 est.)

6 deaths/100,000 live births (2023 est.)

1.27 children born/woman (2025 est.)

0.62 (2025 est.)

4.19 physicians/1,000 population (2022)

3.2 beds/1,000 population (2020 est.)

19.9% (2016)

51.8% (2023 est.)

parliamentary republic

civil law system; Constitutional Court reviews legislation under certain conditions

accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction

18 years of age; universal except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25

ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer), CD, CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-7, G-8, G-10, G-20, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), Schengen Convention, SELEC (observer), SICA (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMOGIP, UNOOSA, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, Wassenaar Arrangement, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC

17 March 1861 

Republic Day, 2 June (1946)

five-pointed white star (Stella d'Italia)

red, white, green

this coat of arms has been a symbol of the Italian Republic since May 5, 1948, when Paolo Paschetto’s design won a two-year public competition; the olive branch symbolizes national and global peace; the oak branch stands for the strength and the dignity of the Italian people, and the steel cog-wheel for their hard work; the single star represents Italy’s solidarity

high-income, core EU economy; strong services, manufacturing, and tourism sectors; modest growth supported by net exports, low inflation, and public investments via EU funds; tight labor market with aging workforce and shortages in specialized skills; high public debt levels

$2.373 trillion (2024 est.)

milk, wheat, grapes, tomatoes, maize, olives, apples, oranges, sugar beets, rice (2023)

tourism, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics

0.2% (2024 est.)

25.828 million (2024 est.)

20.1% (2021 est.)

24.8% (of GDP) (2023 est.)

Germany 11%, USA 11%, France 10%, Spain 5%, UK 5% (2023)

packaged medicine, garments, cars, refined petroleum, vehicle parts/accessories (2023)

Germany 15%, France 9%, China 8%, Netherlands 6%, Spain 5% (2023)

natural gas, crude petroleum, cars, packaged medicine, garments (2023)

two Italian media giants dominate, with 3 national terrestrial stations;  privately owned companies have 3 national terrestrial stations; a large number of private stations, a satellite TV network; 3 AM/FM nationwide radio stations; about 1,300 commercial radio stations

.it

I

655 (2025)

163 (2025)

Italian Armed Forces (Forze Armate Italiane): Army (Esercito Italiano, EI), Navy (Marina Militare Italiana, MMI; includes aviation, marines), Italian Air Force (Aeronautica Militare Italiana, AMI); Carabinieri Corps (Arma dei Carabinieri, CC) (2025)

approximately 170,000 active-duty military personnel; approximately 105,000 Carabinieri (2025)

the military's inventory includes a mix of domestically manufactured, imported, and jointly produced weapons systems; imports come mostly from Europe and the US; the Italian defense industry is capable of producing equipment across all the military domains with particular strengths in aircraft, armored vehicles, and naval vessels; it also participates in joint development and production of advanced weapons systems with other European countries and the US (2025)

17 or 18 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women ; voluntary service is a minimum of 12 months with the option to extend in the Armed Forces or compete for positions in other government security organizations; conscription abolished 2004 (2025)

Italy has on average about 8,000 military personnel deployed in support of NATO, UN, and other foreign missions; significant ground troop deployments include Bulgaria (750), Hungary (250), Kosovo (870), Latvia (300), and Lebanon (875); in addition, air and naval units are deployed in support of NATO missions (2025)