| Canada is a country in North America; it occupies the second place in the world (after Russia) with respect to area. It is surrounded by the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic oceans and has borders with the USA in the south and in the Northwest. The form of government is a parliamentary system of federal constitutional monarchy.
Occupied originally by local people, Canada was formed as the union of three British colonies (which were the French colonies during the times of New France). Today, it is a federation, consisting of 10 provinces and 3 territories. Canada gained independence from the United Kingdom as a result of the peace process from 1867 to 1982.
Canada is a bilingual and multicultural country, where English and French languages are recognized as the official languages on a national level. A technologically advanced and industrially developed state, Canada has a diversified economy, which is based on rich natural resources and trade (particularly with the USA, with which, Canada comprehensively collaborates since the existence of the colonies and the formation of Confederation).
Presently, Canada consists of one province with a prevailing French-speaking population, Quebec, and 9 predominantly English-speaking provinces, also named “English Canada” in comparison with French-speaking Quebec.
The name Canada originated from the word, meaning "village" or "settlement" in the Iroquois's language, that were living along the coasts of the river St. Lawrence. In 1535, the inhabitants of this place, where now Quebec City is situated, used this word to send the explorer Jacques Cartier to the village Stadacona. Cartier used the word "Canada" to designate not only this village but also the entire area, which was under Donnacona, the leader of the village Stadacona. By 1545, European books and maps designated this region as "Canada".
Canada occupies a huge northern portion of North America. 75 percent of its territory is in the north zone. Canada has a common border with the USA in the south and in the northwest (between Alaska and Yukon) and stretches from the Atlantic Ocean in the east up to the Pacific Ocean in the west and the Arctic in the north. From 1925 onwards, Canada owns part of the Arctic region between the longitude 60 degrees west and longitude 141 degrees west; however, the possession of the Arctic by Canada is not universally recognized. The North most settlement in Canada and in the world is Alert, the base of the Canadian armed forces at the top of Ellesmere Island (latitude 82.5 degrees north 834 km — 450 nautical miles — from the North Pole). Canada is the second largest country in the world.
The density of the population (approximately 3.5 people per square kilometer) is one of the lowest in the world. The densely populated area of the country is Quebec-Windsor, along the flat coast of the river St. Lawrence and in the southeast of the Great Lakes. The extensive Canadian sheet, rocky region, cleared by the last glacial age, deprived of fertile lands and rich with minerals, lakes and rivers is located to the North of this Quebec-Windsor region. More lakes are in Canada than any other country in the world and Canada has a considerable stock of fresh water resources. |
Canada blocked the takeover of its leading space company MacDonald Dettwiler and Associates to US firm Alliant Techsystems. In the official statement, Canadian Industry Minister claimed that this acquisition would be against Canada's national interests, would jeopardize Canadian security and would undermine the future of Canadian space industry. 
