query: The USS Constitution has a crew of only 20 officers and sailors.

pos: USS Constitution USS Constitution is a wooden-hulled , three-masted heavy frigate of the United States Navy , named by President George Washington after the Constitution of the United States of America . She is the world 's oldest commissioned naval vessel afloat . Constitution was launched in 1797 , one of six original frigates authorized for construction by the Naval Act of 1794 and the third constructed . Joshua Humphreys designed the frigates to be the young Navy 's capital ships , and so Constitution and her sisters were larger and more heavily armed and built than standard frigates of the period . Constitution was built in the North End of Boston , Massachusetts at Edmund Hartt 's shipyard . Her first duties with the newly formed U.S. Navy were to provide protection for American merchant shipping during the Quasi-War with France and to defeat the Barbary pirates in the First Barbary War .   Constitution is most noted for her actions during the War of 1812 against the United Kingdom , when she captured numerous merchant ships and defeated five British warships : , , , , and . The battle with Guerriere earned her the nickname of `` Old Ironsides '' and public adoration that has repeatedly saved her from scrapping . She continued to serve as flagship in the Mediterranean and African squadrons , and circled the world in the 1840s . During the American Civil War , she served as a training ship for the United States Naval Academy . She carried American artwork and industrial displays to the Paris Exposition of 1878 .   Constitution was retired from active service in 1881 , and served as a receiving ship until designated a museum ship in 1907 . In 1934 , she completed a three-year , 90-port tour of the nation . Constitution sailed under her own power for her 200th birthday in 1997 , and again in August 2012 to commemorate the 200th anniversary of her victory over Guerriere .   Constitutions stated mission today is to promote understanding of the Navy 's role in war and peace through educational outreach , historical demonstration , and active participation in public events as part of the Naval History & Heritage Command . As a fully commissioned U.S. Navy ship , her crew of 60 officers and sailors participate in ceremonies , educational programs , and special events while keeping Constitution open to visitors year round and providing free tours . The officers and crew are all active-duty U.S. Navy personnel and the assignment is considered to be special duty in the U.S. Navy . Traditionally , command of the vessel is assigned to a Navy commander . She is usually berthed at Pier 1 of the former Charlestown Navy Yard , at one end of Boston 's Freedom Trail . In May 2015 , Constitution entered Dry Dock 1 to begin a three-year restoration program .

neg: USS Galena (1880) USS Galena , was a wooden steamer built at the Norfolk Navy Yard in 1879 and commissioned there August 26 , 1880 , with Commander James O'Kane in command . Galena was the second ship of the United States Navy to bear that name .   Galena departed Hampton Roads December 19 , 1880 and reached Gibraltar January 12 , 1881 . She cruised between the ports of France , Spain , Portugal , Turkey , Greece , along the coast of Africa and to the Canary , Cape Verde and Madeira Islands . On April 7 , 1881 she arrived at Chios , in the Aegean Sea and remained until April 15 helping to relieve the distress caused by a severe earthquake . Her surgeon went ashore to treat the injured ; her crew furnished work parties to help clear the rubble ; and her steam launch moved relief supplies . Another mission began June 10 , 1882 when she reached Alexandria , Egypt , to embark American citizens and personnel of the American Consulate for protection aboard during a rebellion . An Italian ship was chartered as a haven for about 135 refugees until June 27 when Admiral James W. Nicholson arrived in to relieve Galena .   Galena departed Alexandria July 11 , 1882 for operations along the eastern seaboard of South America out of Rio de Janeiro . From October 19 , 1882 to January 31 , 1883 she was the flagship of Rear Admiral Peirce Crosby , commanding American Naval Forces in the South Atlantic . She arrived at New York City September 10 , 1883 to serve in the North Atlantic along the eastern seaboard and throughout the Caribbean to the shores of Aspinwall , Colombia ( now Colón , Panama ) . This included station duty at Key West ( May 1 , -- August 16 , 1884 ) to prevent illegal filibustering expeditions from the United States to Cuba .

neg: 20 Squadron 20 Squadron or 20th Squadron may refer to :   No. 20 Squadron RAAF , a unit of the Australian Royal Air Force  No. 20 Squadron RAF , a unit of the United Kingdom Royal Air Force  20th Fighter Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force  20th Bomb Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force  20th Intelligence Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force  20th Reconnaissance Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force  20th Special Operations Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force  20th Space Control Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force  20th Operational Weather Squadron , a unit of the United States Air Force

neg: USS Arizona (BB-39) USS Arizona was a built for and by the United States Navy in the mid-1910s . Named in honor of the 48th state 's recent admission into the union , the ship was the second and last of the Pennsylvania class of `` super-dreadnought '' battleships . Although commissioned in 1916 , the ship remained stateside during World War I. Shortly after the end of the war , Arizona was one of a number of American ships that briefly escorted President Woodrow Wilson to the Paris Peace Conference . The ship was sent to Turkey in 1919 at the beginning of the Greco-Turkish War to represent American interests for several months . Several years later , she was transferred to the Pacific Fleet and remained there for the rest of her career .   Aside from a comprehensive modernization in 1929 -- 31 , Arizona was regularly used for training exercises between the wars , including the annual Fleet Problems ( training exercises ) . When an earthquake struck Long Beach , California , on March , 10 , 1933 , the Arizonas crew provided aid to the survivors . In July 1934 , the ship was featured in a Jimmy Cagney film , Here Comes the Navy , about the romantic troubles of a sailor . In April 1940 , she and the rest of the Pacific Fleet were transferred from California to Pearl Harbor , Hawaii , as a deterrent to Japanese imperialism .   During the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 , Arizona was bombed . After a bomb detonated in a powder magazine , the battleship exploded violently and sank , with the loss of 1,177 officers and crewmen . Unlike many of the other ships sunk or damaged that day , Arizona was irreparably damaged by the force of the magazine explosion , though the Navy removed parts of the ship for reuse . The wreck still lies at the bottom of Pearl Harbor and the USS Arizona Memorial , dedicated on 30 May 1962 to all those who died during the attack , straddles the ship 's hull .

neg: List of commanding officers of USS Oklahoma (BB-37) USS Oklahoma was a battleship that served in the United States Navy from 2 May 1916 , to 1 September 1944 . The ship capsized and sank during the attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 , but she was righted in 1943 . While other ships sunk during the Pearl Harbor attack were repaired and returned to service , she was not and never returned to duty . Instead , Oklahoma was stripped of guns and superstructure , and sold for scrap . She sank while under tow to the mainland on 17 May 1947 , 500 mi northeast of Hawaii .   When Navy personnel receive orders to take command of a ship in the United States they will receive an order from the Chief of Naval Personnel stating : `` Proceed to the port in which USS -LSB- name of ship -RSB- may be and upon arrival , report to your immediate superior in command , if present , otherwise by message , for duty as commanding officer of USS -LSB- name of ship -RSB- . '' In the 1990 edition of the United States Navy Regulations Article 0807 states that before leaving his command the commanding officer or CO will inspect the ship with the new CO and have the crew perform some sort of drill or exercise , `` unless conditions render it impracticable or inadvisable . '' Also , before the old commanding officer leaves the ship he should turn over all keys to the incoming CO. . Before the CO leaves the ship he is entitled to a say a few words and , according to Naval regulations `` the officer relieved , though without authority after turning over the command , is , until final departure , entitled to all ceremonies and distinctions accorded a commanding officer . ''   During her nearly three decades of service , the Oklahoma had 22 commanding officers . The first Captain was Roger Welles , who took command after Oklahoma '' 's commissioning in 1916 , serving over a year . The longest serving commanding officer was John D. Wainwright , who served over for over two years in the position , from 13 May 1930 -- 25 June 1932 . Oklahoma '' s last commanding officer was Howard D. Bode , although he was not on board when the battleship was sunk at Pearl Harbor . When the Japanese attacked , Bode was on the USS Maryland and Commander Jesse L. Kenworthy Jr. , acting as the ship 's captain , gave the order to abandon ship .

neg: Alexander Slidell Mackenzie Alexander Slidell Mackenzie ( April 6 , 1803 -- September 13 , 1848 ) , born Alexander Slidell , was a U.S. naval officer most famous for his 1842 decision to execute three suspected mutineers aboard a ship under his command , the USS Somers . Mackenzie was also an accomplished man of letters , producing several volumes of travel writing and biographies of early important U.S. naval figures , some of whom he knew personally . Mackenzie was the brother of U.S. Senator John Slidell of Louisiana , who was later involved in the American Civil War 's `` Trent Affair . ''   Mackenzie was captain of the USS Somers when it became the only U.S. Navy ship to undergo a mutiny which led to executions , including Philip Spencer , the nineteen-year-old son of the Secretary of War John C. Spencer . Mackenzie 's handling of the Somers Affair , including its lack of a lawful court martial , was controversial ; the incident was described at length in Vina Delmar 's novel The Big Family . It also inspired the novella Billy Budd by American author Herman Melville . The Somers Affair also led to the founding of the United States Naval Academy .

neg: American Glory (ship) American Glory is a small cruise ship owned and operated by American Cruise Lines ( ACL ) . She was built in 2002 by Chesapeake Shipbuilding in Salisbury , Maryland for overnight coastal , river , and inland waterway cruising within the continental United States . American Glory , as an American built , flagged , and owned vessel operated by US citizen crew members is compliant with the Passenger Vessel Services Act and can transport passengers directly between US ports . The vessel accommodates 49 passengers in her 31 staterooms with 14 having private balconies . All staterooms have private baths , windows , and interior entrances .   The ship deck plans :  Main Deck - 4 double and 3 single occupancy staterooms ; Dining Salon and lounge  Lounge Deck - 6 double occupancy staterooms with private balconies , 5 double and 1 single occupancy staterooms ; two lounges , forward and aft passenger decks  Carolina Deck - 7 double and 1 single occupancy staterooms with private balconies ; library , aft passenger deck  Observation Deck - recreation   Upon entering service in 2002 American Glory joined her sister ship American Eagle with had entered service for ACL in 2000 .

neg: Wardroom The wardroom is the mess cabin or compartment for commissioned naval officers above the rank of midshipman . Although typically applies to officers in a navy , it is also applicable to marine officers and coast guard officers in those nations that have such service branches . Typically the mess compartment aboard a naval or coast guard vessel , and on larger vessels , such as aircraft carriers of the U.S. Navy , there may more than one wardroom . It may also be used to refer to similar officer mess facilities at naval , marine , and coast guard installations ashore .   The term the wardroom is also used ( metonymically ) to refer to those individuals with the right to occupy that wardroom , meaning `` the officers of the wardroom . ''   The wardoom provides a place of recreation as well as being a dining room . Usually , a galley or scullery adjoins the wardroom . Service is provided by stewards , now known in some services as mess specialists or culinary specialists . On warships other than those of the U.S. Navy , there is usually a bar where alcoholic drinks can be purchased . Ships can be either `` wet '' or `` dry '' : the former allowing the consumption of alcohol at sea , while the latter only allows alcohol when alongside at port , if at all . Ships of the United States Navy have not allowed alcohol consumption onboard since 1913 , although since 1980 unique , by exception , single-day waivers have been granted to vessels deployed in excess of ninety 90 ) days without a port call .   Wardrooms have rules governing etiquette . Traditionally considered taboo are three topics : politics , religion , and sex ( earlier guidebooks referred to the latter as ladies , this being changed as increasing numbers of female officers joined the wardrooms of warships and coast guard cutters ) . On large ships in peacetime , talking about professional business is also frowned upon . It is also considered inappropriate to perform work or to meet with subordinates in a wardroom . Typically , upon entering the wardroom at meal time , members ask permission from the most senior officer present before joining the table .   The ship 's executive officer is usually the mess president . On warships and coast guard vessels , the commanding officer is normally not a member of the wardroom , but is invited to join the members for special occasions .

neg: Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution The Twenty-first Amendment ( Amendment XXI ) to the United States Constitution repealed the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution , which had mandated nationwide Prohibition on alcohol on January 16 , 1919 . The Twenty-first Amendment was ratified on December 5 , 1933 . It is unique among the 27 amendments of the U.S. Constitution for being the only one to repeal a prior amendment and to have been ratified by state ratifying conventions .

neg: Limited duty officer A limited duty officer ( LDO ) is an officer in the United States Navy or United States Marine Corps who was selected for commissioning based on skill and expertise , and is not required to have a bachelor 's degree . They are employed in situations where it is desirable to have an officer with strong , specific technical knowledge and seasoned leadership . Per Title 10 , U.S. Code , an LDO is a permanent commissioned officer appointed under section 5589 in a permanent grade above chief warrant officer , W-5 , and designated for limited duty .   LDOs do not attend a conventional pre-commissioning program such as a twelve - to fourteen-week Officer Candidate School program . Instead , they typically attend a four-to-five week LDO/CWO indoctrination school as commissioned officers . In the U.S. Navy , this school was previously under the auspices of Naval Aviation Schools Command at NAS Pensacola , Florida . It is now known as the LDO/CWO Academy under the auspices of Officer Training Command at Naval Station Newport , Rhode Island .

neg: USS Muscoota USS Muscoota , was a 1370-ton Mohongo-class iron `` double-ender '' steam gunboat of the United States Navy during the American Civil War .   The ship was built at Greenpoint , New York , and commissioned in January 1865 . She was at Norfolk , Virginia , in May 1865 when ordered to Key West as part of an effort to prevent Confederate President Jefferson Davis escaping abroad . Muscoota remained in the Gulf of Mexico area at least until August 1866 , when she was sent north in response to a serious outbreak of Yellow Fever among her crew .   Sold in June 1869 , she was extensively rebuilt for merchant employment and renamed Tennessee . The ship had only a short civilian career , as she was destroyed by fire near Little River , North Carolina , on 29 June 1870 .

neg: Submarine Squadron 20 Submarine Squadron 20 is a United States Navy unit responsible for the maintenance and operation of five Ohio-class ballistic missile submarines .

neg: USS England (DLG-22) The second USS England ( DLG/CG -22 ) , a guided missile cruiser , was a ship of the United States Navy named in honor of Ensign John C. England . Originally called a `` destroyer leader '' or frigate , in 1975 she was re-designated a cruiser in the Navy 's 1975 ship reclassification .   Ensign John Charles England was born in Harris , Missouri , on 11 December 1920 . He attended Pasadena City College , in Pasadena , California and was on the pep-squad there . He enlisted in the Naval Reserve on 6 September 1940 and was commissioned ensign on 6 June 1941 . On 3 September 1941 he reported for duty on the battleship and was killed three months later while saving others aboard during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 .   CG/DLG -22 was the second USS England . The first was , the ship that sank six enemy submarines in 12 days in May 1944 . That act caused the Chief of Naval Operations , Admiral Ernest King , to declare `` There 'll always be an England in the United States Navy . '' DE-635 was decommissioned in 1945 .   To fulfill Admiral King 's promise , USS England DLG-22 was built by Todd Shipyards , Los Angeles Division , San Pedro , California . The keel was laid on 4 October 1960 , launched 6 March 1962 , and commissioned on 7 December 1963 . Her designation was changed in 1976 to CG-22 at Bremerton Naval Shipyard during an overhaul .   England served in every major Pacific engagement from Vietnam to Desert Storm , from rescuing pilots , performing as plane guard or picket , to showing force around the globe . England was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation Ribbon for supporting search and rescue operations in the Gulf of Tonkin from 3 January to 6 June 1966 .   England was awarded the Navy Unit Commendation a final time for actions performed 2 August to 16 August 1990 . As the leading Naval Warship in the region , England assumed primary shipping interdiction and air defense roles while forces were mobilized to support what would become Operation Desert Shield . She was decommissioned on 21 January 1994 , mothballed in the Suisun Bay for ten years and later scrapped in 2004 .

neg: Constitution Day (United States) Constitution Day ( or Citizenship Day ) is an American federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the United States Constitution and those who have become U.S. citizens . It is normally observed on September 17 , the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia .   When Constitution Day falls on a weekend or on another holiday , schools and other institutions observe the holiday on an adjacent weekday .   The law establishing the present holiday was created in 2004 with the passage of an amendment by Senator Robert Byrd to the Omnibus spending bill of 2004 . Before this law was enacted , the holiday was known as `` Citizenship Day '' . In addition to renaming the holiday `` Constitution Day and Citizenship Day , '' the act mandates that all publicly funded educational institutions , and all federal agencies , provide educational programming on the history of the American Constitution on that day . In May 2005 , the United States Department of Education announced the enactment of this law and that it would apply to any school receiving federal funds of any kind .

neg: Lieutenant (junior grade) Lieutenant ( junior grade ) ( LTJG ) is a junior commissioned officer rank in the United States Navy , the United States Coast Guard , the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps , and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Commissioned Officer Corps ( NOAA Corps ) , with the pay grade of O-2 . The rank is also used in the United States Maritime Service . The NOAA Corps 's predecessors , the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey Corps ( 1917 -- 1965 ) and the Environmental Science Services Administration Corps or ESSA Corps ( 1965 -- 1970 ) , also used the rank .   Lieutenant , junior grade , ranks above ensign and below lieutenant and is equivalent to a first lieutenant in the other uniformed services ( the Army , Marine Corps and Air Force ) and sub-lieutenant in the Royal Navy and the navies of many Commonwealth countries .   Promotion to LTJG is governed by Department of Defense policies derived from the Defense Officer Personnel Management Act of 1980 . DOPMA guidelines suggest all `` fully qualified '' ensigns should be promoted to LTJG . The time for promotion to LTJG is a minimum of two years after commissioning in the Navy or 18 months in the Coast Guard . Lieutenants , junior grade typically lead petty officers and non-rated personnel , unless assigned to small aircraft or on staff duty . A LTJG 's usual shipboard billet is as a division officer .   Lieutenant , junior grade is often referred to colloquially as JG ( `` Jay-Jee '' ) . Prior to March 3 , 1883 , this rank was known in the Navy as Master .

neg: USS S-15 (SS-120) USS S-15 ( SS-120 ) was a second-group ( S-3 or `` Government '' ) S-class submarine of the United States Navy . Her keel was laid down on 13 December 1917 by the Lake Torpedo Boat Company in Bridgeport , Connecticut . She was launched on 8 March 1920 sponsored by Mrs. Simon Lake , and commissioned on 15 January 1921 with Lieutenant Commander David R. Lee in command .   Attached to SubDiv 18 , S-15 departed New London , Connecticut , on 31 May 1921 , and sailed via the Panama Canal , California , Hawaii , and Guam to the Philippines . She arrived at Cavite , Luzon , on 1 December . In 1922 , she sailed from Cavite on 11 October , visited Hong Kong from 14 October to 28 October , and returned to Cavite on 1 November . Sailing from Manila on 15 May 1923 , S-15 visited Shanghai , Chefoo , and Chinwangtao before returning via Woosung and Amoy to Cavite on 11 September . In the summer of 1924 , she again visited China and returned to Olongapo on 23 September .   Departing Cavite on 29 October , she arrived at Mare Island Naval Shipyard , California , on 30 December . Remaining at Mare Island in 1925 and 1926 , she operated along the west coast through 1927 . From February 1928 into 1935 , S-15 served in the Panama Canal area , although she visited Baltimore , Maryland , from 15 May to 5 June 1933 . She departed Coco Solo on 11 January 1935 for Philadelphia , Pennsylvania , where she decommissioned on 26 April 1935 .   S-15 was recommissioned on 3 January 1941 at Philadelphia . Following voyages to Bermuda , she operated at Saint Thomas , United States Virgin Islands , from 31 October to 9 December 1941 ; in the Panama Canal area from January into December 1943 ; at Guantanamo Bay through May 1944 ; in the Panama Canal area from June through September ; at Trinidad for the rest of the year ; and at Guantanamo from January into March 1945 .   S-15 departed Guantanamo on 23 March 1945 and reported at New London for inactivation . She was decommissioned on 11 June 1946 at Philadelphia and was struck from the Naval Vessel Register . On 4 December that year she was sold for scrapping to the Potomac Shipwrecking Company of Maryland .

neg: USS Tucker (DD-57) USS Tucker ( Destroyer No. 57/DD -57 ) was the lead ship of her class of destroyers built for the United States Navy prior to the American entry into World War I . The ship was the first U.S. Navy vessel named for Samuel Tucker .   Tucker was laid down by the Fore River Shipbuilding Company of Quincy , Massachusetts , in November 1914 and launched in May 1915 . The ship was a little more than 315 ft in length , nearly 30 ft abeam , and had a standard displacement of 1090 LT. She was armed with four 4 in/50 caliber guns and had eight 21 inch ( 533 mm ) torpedo tubes . Tucker was powered by a pair of steam turbines that propelled her at up to 29.5 knots .   After her April 1916 commissioning , Tucker sailed in the Atlantic and the Caribbean . After the United States entered World War I in April 1917 , Tucker was part of the second U.S. destroyer squadron sent overseas . Patrolling the Irish Sea out of Queenstown , Ireland , Tucker made several rescues of passengers and crew from ships sunk by U-boats . For her part in rescuing crewmen from the Dupetit-Thouars in August 1918 , Tucker received a commendation from the Préfet Maritime . In June , Tucker was transferred to Brest , France , and spent the remainder of the war there .   Upon returning to the United State near the end of 1918 , Tucker underwent repairs at the Boston Navy Yard . After a New England recruiting tour through October 1919 , she was placed in reduced commission and then decommissioned in May 1921 . In March 1926 , Tucker was transferred to the United States Coast Guard to help enforce Prohibition as a part of the `` Rum Patrol '' . She operated under the name USCGC Tucker ( CG-23 ) until 1933 ; during her Coast Guard service , she was the first American ship to arrive at the crash site of Navy airship . After her transfer back to the Navy later in 1933 , the ship was renamed DD-57 to free the name Tucker for another destroyer . She was sold for scrap and hulked in December 1936 .

neg: Merchant Marine Reserve The Merchant Marine Reserve , founded in 1913 as the Naval Auxiliary Reserve consists of members of the United States Merchant Marine who are also members of the United States Navy . Officers in the Merchant Marine Reserve are entitled to wear the Navy Reserve Merchant Marine Insignia .   Category : United States Navy Reserve  Category : United States Merchant Marine

neg: USS Zaca (ID-3792) The first USS Zaca ( ID-3792 ) was a steel-hulled , single-screw freighter that served in the United States Navy from 1918 to 1919 .   Zaca was built under a United States Shipping Board contract and completed as SS Zaca in 1918 at Oakland , California , by the Moore Shipbuilding Company . She was acquired by the U.S. Navy for duty with the Naval Overseas Transportation Service ( NOTS ) . Designated Id . No. 3792 , she was commissioned as USS Zaca on 30 December 1918 at her builder 's yard , Lieutenant Commander James J. Carey , USNRF , in command .   Following sea trials , Zaca loaded 7,446 tons of flour at the Sperry Mills Dock , Vallejo , California , and got underway from San Francisco Bay on 12 January 1919 , bound for the United States East Coast . While in the Panama Canal Zone , the freighter took on board 41 passengers for transportation to Norfolk , Virginia , and transited the Panama Canal on 30 January 1919 . She arrived in Hampton Roads , Virginia , on 8 February 1919 .   Zaca spent a week at Norfolk replenishing and undergoing minor repairs before sailing for European waters on 15 February 1919 with her cargo of flour , which had been consigned by the United States Food Administration for the relief of the hungry people of war-torn Europe in the aftermath of World War I . After arriving at Danzig on 19 March 1919 , she discharged her cargo and sailed for the United States on 4 April 1919 .   Proceeding via Rotterdam , the Netherlands , and Plymouth , England , Zaca arrived at New York City on 29 April 1919 , unloaded her ballast , and was decommissioned on 12 May 1919 , the same day on which she was returned to the United States Shipping Board and struck from the Navy List .   As SS Zaca , the ship operated commercially under the flag of the United States Shipping Board until October 1920 , when she was burned out by a ruptured fuel oil pipe in her engine room . Her hulk was towed to New York City , where it lay until she was scrapped in January 1924 .

neg: Warrant officer A warrant officer ( WO ) is an officer in a military organisation who is designated an officer by a warrant , as distinguished from a commissioned officer who is designated an officer by a commission , and a non-commissioned officer who is designated an officer , often by virtue of seniority .   The rank was first used in the 13th century in the ( then ) English Royal Navy and is today used in most services in many countries , including the Commonwealth nations and the United States .   Outside the United States , warrant officers are included in the `` Other Ranks '' ( OR ) category , equivalent to the US `` E '' ( Enlisted ) category and rank between non-commissioned officers and commissioned officers . The warrant officers in Commonwealth navies rank between chief petty officer and sub-lieutenant , in Commonwealth air forces between flight sergeant and pilot officer , and in Commonwealth armies between staff sergeant and second-lieutenant .   Warrant officers in the United States are classified as officers and are in the `` W '' category ( NATO `` WO '' ) ; they are technical leaders and specialists . Chief warrant officers are commissioned by the President of the United States and take the same oath as regular commissioned officers . They may be technical experts with a long service as enlisted personnel , or direct entrants , notably for U.S. Army helicopter pilots .

neg: Civil Engineer Corps The Civil Engineer Corps ( CEC ) is a staff corps of the United States Navy . CEC officers are professional engineers and architects , acquisitions specialists and Seabee Combat Warfare Officers . They are responsible for executing and managing the planning , design , acquisition , construction , operation , and maintenance of the Navy 's shore facilities . The Civil Engineer Corps is under the command of the Chief of Civil Engineers and Commander , Naval Facilities Engineering Command . As of 4 November 2015 , RADM Bret J. Muilenburg relieved RADM Kate L. Gregory , and became the 44th commander of NAVFAC and Chief of Civil Engineers .   CEC ranks range from CWO2 to RADM , though the community is phasing out Chief Warrant Officer ranks in favor of Limited Duty Officers . As of January 2016 , the Active-Component of the CEC is composed of 1 RADM , 3 RDML 's , 78 CAPT 's , 166 CDR 's , 280 LCDR 's , 478 LT 's , 165 LTJG 's , and 151 ENS 's , distributed worldwide .


query: Evan Goldberg is a Canadian film producer.

pos: Evan Goldberg Evan Goldberg ( born May 11 , 1982 ) is a Canadian screenwriter , film producer , and director . He has collaborated with his childhood friend Seth Rogen in several films , including Superbad ( 2007 ) ( which they first conceived as teenagers ) , Pineapple Express ( 2008 ) , This Is the End ( 2013 ) ( their directorial debut ) , and The Interview ( 2014 ) .

neg: Saskatchewan Film and Video Classification Board The Saskatchewan Film and Video Classification Board is a board of the Saskatchewan Department of Justice responsible for providing film and video classification documents to movie theatres in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan . The Board was formerly responsible for reviewing films and granting film ratings , but since 1 October 1997 these duties have been done by the British Columbia Film Classification Office on Saskatchewan 's behalf .   In 1994 , the Board briefly achieved international notoriety when it banned the BDSM-based comedy film Exit to Eden from being shown in Saskatchewan theaters . This was the first time a major Hollywood film had been banned in Canada since Pretty Baby was temporarily banned in some jurisdictions in 1978 . After a significant public outcry , the ban was lifted a few days later .   The Board is empowered by Saskatchewan 's Film and Video Classification Act .

neg: Stornoway Communications Stornoway Communications is a privately held Canadian broadcasting and production company based in Toronto , Ontario .   Stornoway owns two production arms called Stornoway Productions and Stornoway Films ; Stornoway Productions produces various in-depth documentaries while Stornoway Films produce dramas and other entertainment programs .

neg: BCE Inc. BCE Inc. , originally Bell Canada Enterprises Inc. , is a Canadian telecommunications company . It is one of Canada 's largest corporations and a publicly-traded holding company for Canada 's largest communications network . It has been the parent company in the Bell Canada corporate empire since its creation in 1983 when Bell Canada , Northern Telecom , and other related companies all became subsidiaries of BCE . In addition to its core telecommunications operations that also include Bell Mobility , Bell Aliant , Bell MTS , Northwestel , Télébec , NorthernTel , Dryden Municipal Telephone Service and the CTV Television network , BCE owns 18 % of the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey club , and ( together with BCE 's pension plan ) a 37.5 % interest in Maple Leaf Sports & Entertainment ( MLSE ) , owner of several Toronto professional sports franchises . It was ranked as Canada 's 17th largest corporations by revenue in 2014 and as the ninth-largest by capitalization in 2015 .

neg: Lightning Entertainment Lightning Entertainment is an American film distributor , sales agent , and production company based in Santa Monica , California . It was founded in 2002 by Richard Guardian , Rich Goldberg , and Marc Greenberg , focusing on sales and distribution of independent films . It began offering film production services in 2012 , which it stated were designed to help domestic films better target international markets .

neg: Lawrence Grey (producer) Lawrence Grey is a Canadian-American film and television producer .   Grey launched his production company Grey Matter Productions in 2013 . Grey Matter 's first film , Lights Out , was released by Warner Bros. and New Line Cinema on July 22 , 2016 .

neg: Enoki Films is a producer of anime based in the Enoki Building in Shinjuku , Tokyo .   Enoki Films also had a North American division , established in 1986 , headquartered in the Encino area of Los Angeles , California , United States called Enoki Films USA , Inc. . Enoki Films USA acted as a middle-man between Japanese companies and American licensees such as 4Kids Entertainment and Saban . In May 2007 it was announced that their content would also be provided as video on demand by Internet startup ReelTime.com ( worldwide except Japan ) .   As of 2002 Enoki licenses anime but sub-licenses its licenses to various distributors instead of distributing them directly . Anime News Network wrote that `` They generally only license TV shows that they hope to also license to TV broadcasters such as Cartoon Network , ABC Family and Fox Kids . ''   Some of the anime productions that were listed on Enoki 's website are under alternate names and may list characters under different names as well . In many cases , when sub-licensed to anime home video companies , the original titles and character names have been restored . Enoki 's translations of episode titles and scenarios may also be different than what may be on the official release .   If Enoki 's series ' had a separate movie or direct-to-video production , it is usually not licensed by Enoki , and the film or direct-to-video production may be licensed to a separate company than the series ( as is the case with the Slayers movies and OVAs and the Utena movie ) .   As of 2016 , Enoki Films ' North American division is now defunct , since it bought its operations to an end in 2010 .

neg: This Is the End This Is the End is a 2013 American disaster comedy film directed by Seth Rogen and Evan Goldberg and stars Rogen , James Franco , Jonah Hill , Jay Baruchel , Danny McBride , Craig Robinson , Michael Cera and Emma Watson . The story features real life actors playing fictionalized versions of themselves in the aftermath of a global biblical apocalypse . The film premiered at the Fox Village Theater on June 3 , 2013 and was released in the United States on June 14 , 2013 by Columbia Pictures , before being re-released on September 6 , 2013 . The film grossed $ 126 million on a $ 32 million budget . The film makes references to the past movies of the cast , including Spider-Man , Million Dollar Baby , Forrest Gump , Superbad , Pineapple Express , Moneyball , Your Highness , The Green Hornet , 127 Hours and the Harry Potter film series .

neg: Nieca Goldberg Nieca Goldberg ( born October 21 , 1957 ) is an American medical doctor , a practicing cardiologist , a senior executive in the health care industry , an associate professor in medicine , an author , and a weekly radio show host . The American College of Cardiology , describes Goldberg as a `` clinical innovator '' and `` a nationally recognized pioneer in women 's heart health . ''

neg: Merit Motion Pictures Merit Motion Pictures is a documentary film and television production company based in Winnipeg , Manitoba , Canada . It was founded by Merit Jensen Carr in 1988 .

neg: Evanov Communications Evanov Communications , formerly Evanov Radio Group , is a Canadian radio broadcasting company . It is also the sole owner of Dufferin Communications Inc. , 80 % owner of HFX Media and Ottawa Media Inc. . The group of Evanov companies owns and operates a number of radio stations in Ontario , Quebec , Manitoba and Nova Scotia , including eight on the FM band with the `` Jewel '' branding and the ` Lite and Refreshing '' slogan .

neg: Forestry in Canada The Canadian forestry industry is a major contributor to the Canadian economy . With 42 percent of the land acreage of Canada covered by forests , the country contains 10 percent of the world 's forested land , made up mostly of spruce , poplar and pine . Forests and forestry in Canada are managed by Natural Resources Canada and the Canadian Forest Service , in cooperation with several organizations which represent government officials , policy experts and numerous other stakeholders . Extensive deforestation by European settlers during the 18th and 19th centuries has been halted by more modern policies , and today less than 1 percent of Canada 's forests are affected by logging each year . Despite the low amount of land that is logged , Canada is the world 's second-largest exporter of forestry goods , and the industry contributes significantly to Canada 's surplus global balance of trade . Economic concerns related to forestry include greenhouse gas emissions , biotechnology , biological diversity and infestations of pests , such as the mountain pine beetle .

neg: Evaň Evaň is a village and municipality ( obec ) in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic .   The municipality covers an area of 7.54 km2 , and has a population of 280 ( as at 31 December 2007 ) .   Evaň lies approximately 19 km south of Litoměřice , 32 km south of Ústí nad Labem , and 44 km north-west of Prague .

neg: Great Canadian Theatre Company The Great Canadian Theatre Company , known for short as GCTC , is a professional theatre company based in Ottawa , Ontario , Canada . It was established in 1975 by a group of professors and graduate students at Carleton University . Riding a wave of cultural nationalism , founders Robin Matthews , Larry McDonald , Bill Law , Greg Reid and Lois Shannon envisioned a theatre company that would produce only Canadian plays , especially those with social and political relevance . Driven by a dream to place Canadian stories and Canadian history front and centre in our country 's universities and theatres , the company launched its first production in August 1975 .   The group has its origins in a season of Canadian theatre produced by the Sock 'n' Buskin Theatre Company at Carleton University . From Carleton , the company moved to a converted firehall in Ottawa South ( presently the Ottawa South Community Centre ) and then , in 1982 , to the Gladstone Theatre on Gladstone Avenue . In September 2007 the company moved into a larger venue called the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre   The Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre , which includes a 262-seat mainstage theatre , a flexible black box studio theatre , and two spacious lobbies , has allowed GCTC to expand its community-based activities . More than 35,000 people visit the Irving Greenberg Theatre Centre every year to see productions by GCTC and other live performing arts companies , for concerts such as the Acoustic Waves music series , to visit the Lorraine Fritzi Yale Art Gallery , rent the facility , or to enjoy local homemade fare at the Viva Loca Café .   The September 2007 issue of ( Cult ) ure Magazine described the GCTC as `` Ottawa 's pre-eminent promoter of Canadian theatrical content . ''   Among playwrights whose works have been performed by the company are :  Jean-Marc Dalpé  David French  Linda Griffiths  Wendy Lill  Ann-Marie MacDonald  Arthur Milner  Morris Panych  Judith Thompson  Michel Tremblay  George F. Walker

neg: Elizabeth Nickson Elizabeth Nickson is a Canadian writer and journalist . In the late 1980s and early 1990s , she was European bureau chief of Life magazine .   In 2002 , Elizabeth Nickson 's column at the National Post was terminated due to a case of plagiarism .   Canada 's National Post has dismissed a columnist due to concerns over plagiarism . The news broke in an Editor 's Note the paper ran on Friday :   `` In freelancer Elizabeth Nickson 's column in the National Post of May 31 , 2002 , the following words should have been attributed to Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online :   `` Kim Basinger is ` allergic ' to the sun and requires an assistant to carry an umbrella to protect her on the off chance she might be exposed to dangerous solar radiation . Sylvester Stallone once refused to continue with an interview until his hotel room was painted a more ` likable ' peach . Mike Myers almost quit the filming of Wayne 's World because he did n't have any margarine for his bagel . Sean Penn made an assistant swim the dangerous and polluted currents of New York 's East River just to bring him a cigarette . Jennifer Lopez is just one of the many stars who does not permit her employees to look her in the eyes . ''   These sentences , as they appeared in Ms. Nickson 's column published two and a half years ago , were slightly revised from Mr. Goldberg 's original article that appeared a year earlier in 2001 . The National Post regrets the omission of the attribution to Mr. Goldberg and the National Review .   While Ms. Nickson indicated that her failure to attribute the passage was inadvertent , the Post has decided to discontinue her weekly freelance column . ''

neg: Pierre David Pierre David ( born May 17 , 1944 ) is a Canadian film producer and film financier .   David is best known for executive-producing iconic films directed by David Cronenberg , such as Scanners , Videodrome , and The Brood . He is also credited as `` production executive '' on the Academy Award-winning film Platoon , directed by Oliver Stone . He has since produced dozens of independent films , mainly in the thriller genre , and is still actively producing .

neg: Salter Street Films Salter Street Films was a Canadian television and film production company based in Halifax , Nova Scotia .

neg: Heinz Goldberg Heinz Goldberg ( 1891 -- 1969 ) was a German screenwriter . He also directed two silent films . Following the Nazi Party 's rise to power in 1933 , the Jewish Goldberg went into exile in several countries including Austria and the Soviet Union before settling in Britain . He returned to Germany in the 1950s .

neg: Ben Addelman Ben Addelman is a Canadian filmmaker . He is known for directing four documentaries : Discordia , Bombay Calling , Nollywood Babylon , and Kivalina vs. Exxon . Besides directing , he is known for work as a cinematographer , screenwriter and sound designer .

neg: Ivan Reitman Ivan Reitman , OC ( born October 27 , 1946 ) is a Canadian film producer and director , best known for his comedy work , especially in the 1980s and 1990s . He is the owner of The Montecito Picture Company , founded in 2000 .

neg: Erased (2012 film) Erased ( released as The Expatriate outside of the US ) is a 2012 Canadian-Belgian thriller film directed by Philipp Stölzl , starring Aaron Eckhart and Olga Kurylenko . The story centers on Ben Logan ( Aaron Eckhart ) an ex-CIA agent and Amy ( Liana Liberato ) , his estranged daughter who are forced on the run when his employers erase all records of his existence , and mark them both for termination as part of a wide-reaching international conspiracy . It was released in the US on 17 May 2013 , following its acquisition by RaDiUS-TWC , the multiplatform distribution label of The Weinstein Company . It was retitled Erased for the US market .


query: Bulgaria saw conflicts with its neighbours and joined Germany.

pos: Bulgaria Bulgaria ( -LSB- bʌlˈɡɛəriə , _ bʊl - -RSB- България , tr . ) , officially the Republic of Bulgaria ( -LSB- Република България , links = no -RSB- , tr . , -LSB- rɛˈpublikɐ bɐɫˈɡarijɐ -RSB- ) , is a country in southeastern Europe . It is bordered by Romania to the north , Serbia and Macedonia to the west , Greece and Turkey to the south , and the Black Sea to the east . With a territory of 110994 km2 , Bulgaria is Europe 's 16th-largest country .   Organised prehistoric cultures began developing on current Bulgarian lands during the Neolithic period . Its ancient history saw the presence of the Thracians , Greeks , Persians , Celts , Romans , Goths , Alans and Huns . The emergence of a unified Bulgarian state dates back to the establishment of the First Bulgarian Empire in 681 AD , which dominated most of the Balkans and functioned as a cultural hub for Slavs during the Middle Ages . With the downfall of the Second Bulgarian Empire in 1396 , its territories came under Ottoman rule for nearly five centuries . The Russo-Turkish War of 1877 -- 78 led to the formation of the Third Bulgarian State . The following years saw several conflicts with its neighbours , which prompted Bulgaria to align with Germany in both world wars . In 1946 it became a one-party socialist state as part of the Soviet-led Eastern Bloc . In December 1989 the ruling Communist Party allowed multi-party elections , which subsequently led to Bulgaria 's transition into a democracy and a market-based economy .   Bulgaria 's population of 7.2 million people is predominantly urbanised and mainly concentrated in the administrative centres of its 28 provinces . Most commercial and cultural activities are centred on the capital and largest city , Sofia . The strongest sectors of the economy are heavy industry , power engineering , and agriculture , all of which rely on local natural resources .   The country 's current political structure dates to the adoption of a democratic constitution in 1991 . Bulgaria is a unitary parliamentary republic with a high degree of political , administrative , and economic centralisation . It is a member of the European Union , NATO , and the Council of Europe ; a founding state of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe ( OSCE ) ; and has taken a seat at the UN Security Council three times .

neg: German People's Union The German People 's Union ( Deutsche Volksunion , DVU , also Liste D ) was a right-wing political party in Germany . It was founded by publisher Gerhard Frey as an informal association in 1971 and established as a party in 1987 . Financially , it was largely dependent on Frey . In 2011 , it merged with the National Democratic Party of Germany ( NPD ) .   The party never reached the five-percent minimum in federal elections that is generally necessary to enter the Bundestag . The DVU won seats in several state parliaments .   In 2004 , the DVU entered a non-competition agreement with the far-right NPD for the state elections in Brandenburg and Saxony . Both parties passed the five-percent threshold in their respective states . The DVU reached 6.1 percent in the Brandenburg state elections , and the NPD won 9.2 percent in the Saxony state elections . After this relatively successful election , the parties formed an electoral alliance for the 2005 federal elections . The joint NPD-DVU slate , which ran under the NPD 's ballot line , won 1.6 percent of the total votes nationally .   In 2009 , party founder Frey did not run for reelection as chairman and was replaced by Matthias Faust . In 2010 , a referendum of party members approved a merger of the DVU and the NPD . Several state sections of the DVU objected to the merger and achieved a preliminary injunction from the Landgericht Munich based on irregularities during the referendum . On May 26 , 2012 , these objections were withdrawn and the DVU was declared defunct . Several branches and individuals objected to the perceived links between the NPD and Nazism , and instead joined with the smaller party the Republicans , who were considered more moderate . This was especially true in North Rhine Westphalia and Bavaria , where the Republicans were traditionally strongest . Some other individuals formed a new party called Die Rechte ( meaning `` the Right '' ) .

neg: Burgfriedenspolitik Burgfriedenspolitik ( -LSB- ˈbʊʁkfʁiːdn̩s.poliˌtiːk -RSB- ) -- literally `` castle peace politics '' but more accurately a political policy of `` party truce '' -- is a German term used for the political truce the Social Democratic Party of Germany and the other political parties agreed to during World War I . The trade unions refrained from striking , the SPD voted for war credits in the Reichstag and the parties agreed not to criticize the government and its war . There were several reasons for the Burgfrieden politics : the Social Democrats believed it was their patriotic duty to support the government in war ; they were afraid of government repression should they protest against the war ; they feared living under an autocratic Russian Czar more than the German constitutional monarchy and its Kaiser ; and they hoped to achieve political reforms after the war , including the abrogation of the inequitable three-class voting system , by cooperating with the government .   The only member of parliament of any party to vote against war credits in the second session was Karl Liebknecht . In the third session on 20 March 1915 , Otto Rühle joined him . Over the course of the war the number of SPD politicians opposed to the war steadily increased . Their resistance against the Burgfrieden politics led to the expulsion of Liebknecht , Rosa Luxemburg , Clara Zetkin , and others from the SPD . These went on to found the Spartacist League , the Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany ( USPD ) , and the Communist Party of Germany ( KPD ) .   The only trade union to refuse the Burgfrieden was the Free Association of German Trade Unions ( FVdG ) , which would later become the Free Workers ' Union of Germany ( FAUD ) .

neg: Saarland The Saarland ( German : das Saarland , -LSB- das ˈzaːɐ̯lant -RSB- ; la Sarre -LSB- la saʁ -RSB- ) is one of the sixteen states ( or Bundesländer ) of the Federal Republic of Germany . With its capital at Saarbrücken , it has an area of 2,570 km ² and its population ( as of 30 April 2012 ) is approximately 1,012,000 . In terms of both area and population size -- apart from the city-states of Berlin , Bremen and Hamburg -- it is Germany 's smallest state . The wealth of its coal deposits and their large-scale industrial exploitation , coupled with its location on the border between France and Germany , have given the Saarland a unique history in modern times .   Prior to its creation as the Territory of the Saar Basin by the League of Nations after World War I , the Saarland ( or simply `` the Saar '' , as it is frequently referred to ) did not exist as a unified entity . Until then , some parts of it had been Prussian while others belonged to Bavaria . The inhabitants voted to rejoin Germany in a referendum held in 1935 .   From 1947 to 1956 the Saarland was a French-occupied territory ( the `` Saar Protectorate '' ) separate from the rest of Germany . Between 1950 and 1956 , Saarland was a member of the Council of Europe . In 1955 , in another referendum , the inhabitants were offered independence , but voted instead for the territory to become a state of West Germany .   From 1920 to 1935 , and again from 1947 to 1959 , the inhabitants of the Saarland used money ( Saar franc ) and postage stamps issued specially for the territory .

neg: Brotherhood and unity Brotherhood and unity was a popular slogan of the Communist Party of Yugoslavia that was coined during the Yugoslav People 's Liberation War ( 1941 -- 45 ) , and which evolved into a guiding principle of Yugoslavia 's post-war inter-ethnic policy . In Slovenia , the slogan `` Brotherhood and Peace '' ( bratstvo i mir ) was used in the beginning .   After the invasion of Yugoslavia by Axis forces in April 1941 , the occupying powers and their helpers sought to systematically incite hatred among the many national , ethnic and religious groups of Yugoslavia . The Yugoslav Communist Party successfully publicized the brotherhood and unity of Yugoslavia 's nations ( narodi ) and national minorities ( nacionalne manjine , later renamed to narodnosti ) in their struggle against the fascist enemy and domestic collaborators . The decision of the second session of AVNOJ on the federalization of Yugoslavia in 1943 was regarded as the recognition of this Brotherhood and Unity principle .   After the war , the slogan designated the official policy of inter-ethnic relations in the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia , as embodied in its federal constitutions of 1963 and of 1974 . The policy prescribed that Yugoslavia 's nations ( Serbs , Macedonians , Croats , Slovenes , Montenegrins , Muslims ) and national minorities ( Albanians , Hungarians , Romanians , Bulgarians , Jews , Italians , and others ) are equal groups that coexist peacefully in the federation , promoting their similarities and interdependence in order to overcome national conflicts and hatred . Every individual was entitled to the expression of their own culture , while the ethnic groups had an oath to one another to maintain peaceful relations . Citizens were also encouraged and allowed to declare their nationality as Yugoslav , which usually polled at 10 % . The policy also led to the adoption of national quota systems in all public institutions , including economic organizations , in which national groups were represented by their republic 's or province 's national composition .   Throughout Yugoslavia many factories , schools , public venues , folklore ensembles and sporting teams used to be named `` Brotherhood and unity '' , as well as the Ljubljana-Zagreb-Beograd-Skopje highway ( Highway `` Brotherhood and Unity '' ) . The country had a decoration called the Order of the Brotherhood and Unity .   Several prominent persons from former Yugoslavia were convicted for activities deemed to threaten the brotherhood and unity , such as acts of chauvinist propaganda , separatism and irredentism . Among the convicts were the former presidents of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( Alija Izetbegović ) and Croatia ( Franjo Tuđman and Stjepan Mesić ) , Croatian army general of Albanian descent Rahim Ademi and many others . One Kosovo Albanian , Adem Demaçi , was imprisoned for almost 30 years for allegations of espionage and irredentism .

neg: Belene labour camp The Belene labour camp , also referred to as Belene concentration camp , was part of the network of forced labour camps in Communist Bulgaria . It was located on the Belene Island , between two branches of the Danube river . At the height of Valko Chervenkov 's repressions in 1952 , the camp had 2,323 inmates - 2,248 men and 75 women .   The Belene Prison is still operating as a penitentiary in the western part of the island , while the eastern part is a managed natural reserve .   This camp operated officially from 1949 to 1959 , though a break in deportations to Belene occurred from 1954 to 1956 . Between 1985 and 1989 Turks in Bulgaria who resisted the policy of changing Turkish names and surnames to Bulgarian ones , ( see Assimilation Campaign in Bulgaria ) were imprisoned in the prison on Belene . During those years , the Turkish Radio and Television Corporation broadcast a series named `` Belene Adası '' ( Belene Island ) on the policies of the Bulgarian government against Bulgarian Turks .   From 1949 onward , Evangelical Christian pastors in particular were targeted as `` enemies of the State '' and sent to Belene . In 1949 , the infamous `` Pastors ' Trial '' was conducted , trying 13 Protestant pastors as `` spies '' . The men received sentences of varying lengths . Haralan Popov , who survived and later founded the mission `` Door of Hope International '' to bring Bibles behind the Iron Curtain , published his autobiography under the Bulgarian title `` The Bulgarian Golgotha '' . It was later released in English as `` Tortured for His Faith '' .   The camp and some its survivors were the subject of a documentary film by German TV program ZDF Vorwärts aber nie vergessen . Ballade über bulgarische Helden ( `` Moving on , but Never Forgetting . A Ballad of Bulgarian Heroes '' authored by Ilija Trojanow .

neg: Chinese people in Bulgaria Chinese people ( китайци , kitaytsi ; see Cathay ) in Bulgaria form a small part of the Overseas Chinese community . According to estimates by members of the community , the Chinese in Bulgaria number around 5,000 , although Bulgarian researchers put the figure at around 10,000 .   Chinese are among the most recent immigrants to Bulgaria , the vast majority of them arriving after the democratic changes in 1989 , and particularly from 1992 on ; prior to 1989 , only a dozen Chinese lived in Bulgaria . Most Chinese in Bulgaria are economic immigrants and small-scale investors in particular . The bulk of the Chinese live in the capital Sofia , particularly in the municipality of Nadezhda and its neighbourhoods of Nadezhda , Tolstoy and Svoboda . Although there is no discernible Chinatown , it is thought that one might develop in the following years . Most of the Chinese were urban dwellers in China , a large number coming from the provinces of Zhejiang and Fujian , with fewer from Sichuan , Shandong , Jilin , Beijing and Hong Kong . According to the media , 2,0003,000 Chinese immigrate to Bulgaria every year . However , with the financial turmoil in the EU and Bulgaria , this figure has greatly decreased .   The most typical and indeed most visible occupation of the Bulgarian Chinese is the management of Chinese restaurants , although they are also known as shopkeepers ( with a permanent presence in Sofia 's large and frequented bazaar Iliyantsi ) , engaging in both retail and wholesale trade . Some have also been involved in agriculture , for example producing and selling Chinese cabbage . Traditional Chinese medicine and Chinese art are also very popular . As many Chinese come from Southern China , they speak a variety of dialects ( such as Min ) in addition to Mandarin Chinese . Among the main factors attracting Chinese to Bulgaria is the lower competition enabling more economic opportunities for the immigrants , the availability of more personal space and the lack of a one-child policy . The Chinese in Bulgaria come from a variety of religious and cultural backgrounds ; the majority are atheist , but there are also Buddhists , Confucians , Taoists , Christians , Jehovah 's Witnesses , etc. .   The Chinese New Year is celebrated among family circles . A magazine called Kitay ( `` China '' ) is issued by the community in Bulgarian . The People 's Republic of China has had diplomatic relations with Bulgaria since 3 October 1949 : Bulgaria was the second country in the world to recognize the PRC and has not recognized the Republic of China ( Taiwan ) . The PRC has an embassy in Sofia , which used to be located in the Yablanski House .

neg: Mediterranean Agreements (1887) The Mediterranean Agreements ( German Mittelmeerentente ; French Entente de la Méditerranée ) were a series of treaties signed in 1887 by the United Kingdom with the Italy on 12 February ( through the mediation of Germany ) , with Austria-Hungary on March 24 and with Spain on May 4 . Further notes were exchanged between Britain , Italy and Austria-Hungary on 12 December .   On the face of it the treaties recognised the status quo in the Mediterranean Sea . In fact , one of the objectives was to halt the expansion of the Russian Empire in the Balkans and her wish to control the straits of the Bosphorus and Dardanelles . From that perspective it also assured the survival of the Ottoman Empire . It also protected Italian interests against France . Thus it united forces hostile to Russia in the Balkans and to France in North Africa .   From the point of view of the German chancellor Otto von Bismarck , the benefit of these agreements to which Germany was not a party , was in bringing Britain closer to the Triple Alliance of Germany , Italy and Austria-Hungary . This advantage proved short-lived since Britain achieved a rapprochement with Russia . The Alliance was dissolved in 1896 when Wilhelm II , German Emperor alienated Great Britain with his `` Kruger telegram '' .   The treaty potentially conflicted with the Reinsurance Treaty of 1888 , between Germany and Russia . In the secret protocol to the Reinsurance Treaty , Bismarck lent support to Russia 's expansion efforts . Thus the Mediterranean Agreement , while not a de jure contradiction of the Reinsurance Treaty was at least contrary to its spirit .

neg: Fürstenbund The ( Deutsche ) Fürstenbund ( -LSB- ( ˈdɔʏtʃə ) ˈfʏʁstn̩bʊnt -RSB- , '' -LSB- German -RSB- League of Princes '' ) was an alliance of mostly Protestant princes in the Holy Roman Empire formed in 1785 under the leadership of Frederick II of Prussia . The alliance , which initially comprised the three major northern states of Brandenburg/Prussia , Hanover and Saxony , was set up officially to safeguard the constitutional integrity and territorial status quo of the Empire , but more immediately to oppose the long-cherished ambition of Joseph II to add Bavaria to the Habsburg domains .   Soon after he became sole ruler of the Habsburg lands at the death of his mother Maria Theresa in 1780 , Joseph II revived an old ambition and entered into negotiations with Elector Karl Theodor of the Palatinate and Bavaria with the aim of trading Bavaria for the Austrian Netherlands . Had the plan been brought to fruition , the Habsburgs would have augmented their core domains with a large contiguous German-speaking territory while at the same time getting rid of far-away provinces that has proven to be difficult and costly to defend whenever Austria had been at war with France and/or Prussia . For Karl Theodor , his interest in the projected deal was mostly a matter of prestige as he envisioned himself as the ruler , possibly with the title of king , of a reconstructed Duchy of Burgundy composed of the Southern Netherlands plus his existing possessions in the Lower and Upper Rhine region , such as the Palatinate of the Rhine and the duchy of Berg-Jülich .   The rumored deal proved unpalatable both to the ambitious Frederick II , who saw himself as the foremost German monarch , and to the Electors of Hanover and Saxony who were disturbed by the far-reaching political and strategic implications of the projected territorial swap . Once they publicly declared their opposition though the creation of a Deutsche Fürstenbund , the rulers of lesser Protestant states , including Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel , Saxe-Gotha , Saxe-Weimar , Mecklenburg , Baden and Brandenburg-Ansbach , soon joined them . The Archbishop-Elector of Mainz , Archchancellor of the Empire , eventually gave his support , not least because it was known that Karl Theodor and Joseph II also mulled over the possible secularization of the Archbishopric of Salzburg , inconveniently wedged between Bavaria and Austria .   Joseph II was taken aback by the suddenness and strength of the opposition to his plan and after some minor sabre-rattling suspended his project . Having attained its true objective , the Fürstenbund gradually disintegrated and disappeared altogether after the outbreak of the French Revolution in 1789 and the death of Joseph II the year after .

neg: Macedonia naming dispute The Macedonia naming dispute is a political dispute regarding the use of the name Macedonia between the southeastern European countries of Greece and the Republic of Macedonia , formerly a federal unit of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia . Pertinent to its background is an early 20th century multifaceted dispute and armed conflict that formed part of the background to the Balkan Wars . The specific naming dispute , although an existing issue in Yugoslav -- Greek relations since World War II , was reignited after the breakup of Yugoslavia and the newly gained independence of the former Socialist Republic of Macedonia in 1991 . Since then , it has been an ongoing issue in bilateral and international relations .   Citing historical and territorial concerns resulting from the ambiguity between the Republic of Macedonia , the adjacent Greek region of Macedonia and the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon which falls mostly within Greek Macedonia , Greece opposes the use of the name `` Macedonia '' by the Republic of Macedonia without a geographical qualifier such as `` Northern Macedonia '' for use by all and for all purposes . As millions of ethnic Greeks identify themselves as Macedonians , unrelated to the Slavic people who are associated with the Republic of Macedonia , Greece further objects to the use of the term `` Macedonian '' for the neighboring country 's largest ethnic group and its language . The Republic of Macedonia is accused of appropriating symbols and figures that are historically considered part of Greek culture such as the Vergina Sun and Alexander the Great , and of promoting the irredentist concept of a United Macedonia , which involves territorial claims on Greece , Bulgaria , Albania , and Serbia .   The dispute has escalated to the highest level of international mediation , involving numerous attempts to achieve a resolution . In 1995 , the two countries formalised bilateral relations and committed to start negotiations on the naming issue , under the auspices of the United Nations . Until a solution is found , the provisional reference `` the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia '' ( sometimes unofficially abbreviated as FYROM ) is used by international organisations and states which do not recognise translations of the constitutional name Republic of Macedonia ( Република Македонија , Republika Makedonija ) . UN members , and the UN as a whole , have agreed to accept any final agreement on a new name resulting from negotiations between the two countries . The parties are represented by Ambassadors Vasko Naumovski and Adamantios Vassilakis , under the mediation of Matthew Nimetz .

neg: Germanies Germanies may refer to :  Germany while it was divided into multiple states ; notable possibilities include :  West Germany ( FRG ) and East Germany ( GDR ) , the division of Germany from 1949 -- 1990 .  Allied Occupation Zones in Germany , the division of Germany after World War II from 1945 -- 1949 .  Kleindeutschland and Großdeutschland ( `` Little Germany '' and `` Big Germany '' ) , two competing ideas for unifying German-speaking lands in the 19th century .  German Confederation , the loose organization of independent German-speaking states after the Napoleonic wars from 1815 -- 1866 .  List of states in the Holy Roman Empire , the many Germanic states of the Holy Roman Empire from 1200 -- 1800 .  Germania ( guild ) ( plural : Germanies , `` Brotherhoods '' ) , artisan guilds in the Kingdom of Valencia .  Revolt of the Brotherhoods ( Revolta de les Germanies ) , a revolt in Valencia from 1519 -- 1523 .

neg: German–Soviet Axis talks In October and November 1940 , German -- Soviet Axis talks occurred concerning the Soviet Union 's potential entry as a fourth Axis Power in World War II . The negotiations , which occurred during the era of the Molotov -- Ribbentrop Pact and the German-Soviet Commercial Agreement , included a two-day Berlin conference between Soviet Foreign Minister Vyacheslav Molotov , Adolf Hitler and German Foreign Minister Joachim von Ribbentrop , followed by both countries trading written proposed agreements . After two days of negotiations from 12 to 14 November 1940 , Germany presented the Soviets with a draft written Axis pact agreement defining the world spheres of influence of the four proposed Axis powers ( Japan , Germany , Soviet Union , Italy ) . Hitler , Ribbentrop and Molotov tried to set German and Soviet spheres of influence ; Hitler encouraged Molotov to look south to Iran and eventually India while preserving German access to Finland 's resources , and to remove Soviet influence in the Balkans . Molotov remained firm , seeking to remove German troops from Finland and gain a warm water port in the Balkans . Soviet foreign policy calculations were predicated by the idea that the war would be a long - term struggle and therefore German claims that Britain would be defeated swiftly were treated with scepticism . In addition Stalin sought to remain influential in Bulgaria and Yugoslavia . These factors resulted in Molotov taking a firm line . According to a Columbia University academical source , on 25 November 1940 , the Soviets presented a Stalin-drafted written counterproposal where they would accept the four power pact , but it included Soviet rights to Bulgaria and a world sphere of influence centered on the area around modern Iraq and Iran . Germany did not respond , leaving the negotiations unresolved . Regarding the counterproposal , Hitler remarked to his top military chiefs that Stalin `` demands more and more '' , `` he 's a cold-blooded blackmailer '' and that `` a German victory has become unbearable for Russia '' so that `` she must be brought to her knees as soon as possible . '' Germany ended the Molotov-Ribbentrop Pact in June 1941 by invading the Soviet Union .

neg: Military history of Bulgaria during World War II The military history of Bulgaria during World War II encompasses an initial period of neutrality until 1 March 1941 , a period of alliance with the Axis Powers until 9 September 1944 ( on 8 September , the Red Army entered Bulgaria ) and a period of alignment with the Allies in the final year of the war . Bulgaria functioned as a constitutional monarchy during most of World War II . Tsar Boris III ( reigned 1918 -- 1943 ) ruled with a Prime Minister and a Parliament .

neg: Republikflucht `` Republikflucht '' ( `` desertion from the republic '' ) and `` Republikflüchtling ( e ) '' ( `` deserters from the republic '' ) were the terms used by authorities in the German Democratic Republic ( GDR -- East Germany ) to describe the process of and the person ( s ) leaving the GDR for a life in West Germany or any other Western ( non-Warsaw Pact ) country ( Eastern Bloc emigration and defection ) .   The term applies both to the mass desertion of millions who could leave the GDR rather easily before the Berlin Wall was erected on 13 August 1961 , as well as those few thousands who made a dangerous attempt to cross over the Iron Curtain ( e.g. the Berlin Wall , the Inner German border , or the western border of another country of the Eastern Bloc ) , or who managed to obtain temporary exit visas and subsequently did not return , from 1961 to 1989 .   Some estimates put the number of those who left the Soviet sector of Berlin , the Soviet occupation zone , and the GDR between 1945 and 1961 between 3 and 3.5 million . Close to one million of those who left were refugees and expellees from World War II and the post-war era initially stranded in the Soviet zone or East Berlin .   The numbers leaving the GDR following the construction of the Wall dropped sharply to several hundred a year as an attempt to flee the GDR via its fortified borders involved considerable personal risk of injury or death ( see : List of deaths at the Berlin Wall ) . Several hundred Republikflüchtlinge were shot ; about 75,000 were caught and imprisoned .   A propaganda booklet published by the Socialist Unity Party of Germany ( SED ) in 1955 for the use of party agitators outlined the seriousness of ` flight from the republic ' :   Article 213 of the GDR Penal Code of 1979 also made it quite clear that crossing the border without first obtaining government authorization would not be taken lightly :   The former East German party leader Erich Honecker was charged in 1993 for ordering soldiers to kill people trying to escape . The trial was postponed due to his bad health , and he died in 1994 . Former Stasi chief Erich Mielke was also put on trial for the same charge . In November 1994 , however , the presiding judge closed the proceedings , ruling that the defendant was not mentally fit to stand trial .   Refugees from the Soviet sector of Berlin , the Soviet zone , or East Germany could apply to be accepted as Vertriebene ( expellees ) of the sub-group of Soviet Zone Refugees ( Sowjetzonenflüchtlinge ) under the Federal Expellee Law ( BVFG § 3 ) , and thus receive support from the West German government . They must have fled before 1 July 1990 in order to rescue themselves from an emergency created by the political conditions imposed by the regime there , especially a danger for one 's health , life , personal freedom , or freedom of conscience ( BVFG § 3 ) . The law did not apply for former supporters of the eastern political system of considerable influence , perpetrators against legality and humanity during the Nazi rule or afterwards within East Berlin or East Germany , and finally not for those who had fought against the democracy in West Germany or West Berlin ( BVFG § 3 ( 2 ) ) .

neg: Bulgaria–Netherlands relations Bulgarian-Dutch relations are foreign relations between Bulgaria and the Netherlands . Bulgaria has an embassy in The Hague . The Netherlands has an embassy in Sofia . Both countries are full members of NATO and of the European Union .

neg: Strezimirovci Strezimirovci ( Serbian and Стрезимировци also Strezimirovtsi , Strezimirovtzi ) is a divided village in easternmost Serbia and westernmost Bulgaria . The Bulgarian half of the village is part of Tran Municipality , Pernik Province , whereas the Serbian part belongs to Surdulica municipality , Pčinja District . The village has a border checkpoint and its residents on either side of the border are mostly Bulgarian ; however , its division has caused its population to decrease more than tenfold . It lies in the geographic region of Znepolje ( Znepole ) , at , in a valley along the Jerma ( or Erma ) River , 830 metres above mean sea level .   The village was first mentioned in Ottoman registers of 1451 as Stryazimirovtsi and in 1453 as İstrazumirofca . Its name is derived from the personal name Strezimir . From the Liberation of Bulgaria in 1878 until the post-World War I Treaty of Neuilly-sur-Seine of 1919 , Strezimirovci was located in Bulgaria and was administratively part of the Tran district of Sofia Province . As Bulgaria participated in the war on the side of the Central Powers , it was obliged to cede a Bulgarian-populated area of 1,545 km ² to Serbia , a region afterwards known in Bulgaria as the `` Western Outlands '' . The new border did not take the location of extant communities , property , roads and rivers into account , it was drawn so as to give Serbia a strategic importance in future wars . Strezimirovci was among 25 villages more or less divided into two by the new Serbian-Bulgarian border . Reputedly , four locals even tricked the international commission sent to mark the border by moving the temporary border stones overnight in order to include more of the village in Bulgaria .   As a consequence of this bisection , the village 's population has declined significantly on either side of the border . For example , the Serbian part had a population of 485 in 1948 ; by 2002 , it had decreased to 53 , of whom 47 Bulgarians ( 88.67 % ) , 4 Yugoslavs ( 7.54 % ) and 2 Serbs ( 3.77 % ) . The Bulgarian part of Strezimirovci is only inhabited by 25 people as of June 2008 .

neg: Inner German border The inner German border ( innerdeutsche Grenze or deutsch-deutsche Grenze ; initially also Zonengrenze ) was the border between the German Democratic Republic ( GDR , East Germany ) and the Federal Republic of Germany ( FRG , West Germany ) from 1949 to 1990 . Not including the similar and physically separate Berlin Wall , the border was 1393 km long and ran from the Baltic Sea to Czechoslovakia .   It was formally established on 1 July 1945 as the boundary between the Western and Soviet occupation zones of former Nazi Germany . On the eastern side , it was made one of the world 's most heavily fortified frontiers , defined by a continuous line of high metal fences and walls , barbed wire , alarms , anti-vehicle ditches , watchtowers , automatic booby traps and minefields . It was patrolled by 50,000 armed East German guards who faced tens of thousands of West German , British and US guards and soldiers . In the hinterlands behind the border were more than a million North Atlantic Treaty Organisation ( NATO ) and Warsaw Pact troops .   The border was a physical manifestation of Winston Churchill 's metaphorical Iron Curtain that separated the Soviet and Western blocs during the Cold War . It marked the boundary between two ideological systems -- capitalism and communism . Built by East Germany in phases from 1952 to the late 1980s , the fortifications were constructed to stop the large-scale emigration of East German citizens to the West , about 1,000 of whom are said to have died trying to cross it during its 45-year existence . It caused widespread economic and social disruption on both sides ; East Germans living in the region suffered especially draconian restrictions .   The better-known Berlin Wall was a physically separate , less elaborate , and much shorter border barrier surrounding West Berlin , more than 155 km to the east of the inner German border ( Berlin having been similarly divided by the four powers after World War II , despite the entire city being in the Soviet zone , thus creating an exclave of West Germany surrounded by East Germany ) . On 9 November 1989 , the East German government announced the opening of the Berlin Wall and the inner German border . Over the following days , millions of East Germans poured into the West to visit . Hundreds of thousands moved permanently to the West in the following months as more crossings were opened , and ties between long-divided communities were re-established as border controls became little more than a cursory formality . The inner German border was not completely abandoned until 1 July 1990 , exactly 45 years to the day since its establishment , and only three months before German reunification formally ended Germany 's division .   Little remains of the inner German border 's fortifications . Its route has been declared part of a `` European Green Belt '' linking national parks and nature reserves along the course of the old Iron Curtain from the Arctic Circle to the Black Sea . Museums and memorials along the old border commemorate the division and reunification of Germany and , in some places , preserve elements of the fortifications .

neg: Minister of Intra-German Relations The Federal Minister of Intra-German Relations ( Bundesminister für innerdeutsche Beziehungen ) was a federal cabinet minister of the Federal Republic of Germany ( West Germany ) . The office was created under the title of Federal Minister of All-German Affairs ( Bundesminister für gesamtdeutsche Fragen ) in 1949 , being also in charge of the German lands east of the Oder -- Neisse line which had been put under Polish or Soviet administration . In 1951 , the first Minister of All-German Affairs Jakob Kaiser openly raised claim to even greater territories including Austria , parts of Switzerland , the Saar area and Alsace-Lorraine .   The ministry was renamed in 1969 because `` All German '' might have evoked irredentist associations . The change of the name was supported by left and right wing politicians .   The ministry was abolished in 1991 when a new government was established after the federal election of December 1990 , some months after German reunification , having supported the transition .   Since West Germany maintained an exclusive mandate for all of Germany , and the legal pretense that the authorities of the German Democratic Republic ( East Germany ) or Soviet occupation zone ( SBZ ) should not be recognized , it could not handle relations with East Germany through the Federal Foreign Office , since this would acknowledge that the GDR was a separate country . Hence , a separate ministry for relations within Germany had to be created . Since this ministry had very limited competence and virtually no political power , it soon became a post used by chancellors to block rivals without publicly offending them . One of the main tasks of the ministry was the publication of information material about the situation in the East , to keep the idea of German unity alive and to inform the public about actions of the East German government .   When German reunification became a possibility after the fall of the Berlin Wall and the opening of the inner German border on 9 November 1989 , the ministry was completely disempowered by Chancellor Helmut Kohl ; all intra-German affairs were now handled by the Ministry of the Interior under Wolfgang Schäuble . Formally , the ministry continued to exist until 1991 in order to facilitate transition .

neg: Kissingen Dictation The Kissingen Dictation ( in German : Kissinger Diktat ) is a diplomatic file created in Bad Kissingen by the German Chancellor Otto von Bismarck during the summer of 1877 . It contains the principles of his foreign policy .   Bismarck feared coalitions of the other European powers against the newly created German Empire of 1871 ( `` nightmare of coalitions '' or French `` cauchemar des coalitions '' ) with its vulneralble geographical position in the middle of Europe . The unification of Germany had been achieved in a war against France in 1870/71 . France had lost Alsace and a part of Lorraine at the end and Bismarck feared a French revenge . In the Kissingen Dictation , which Otto von Bismarck dictatet to his son Herbert in connection with the Great Eastern Crisis ( 1875 -- 78 ) on 15 June 1877 in Bad Kissingen , he designed the ideal image `` of a political political situation in which all powers except France require us ; and are deterred of coalitions against us by their relations to each other as far as possible '' .   The document describes a defensive policy to avoid a war in central Europe and so to secure the position of Germany . To prevent alliances against Germany Bismarck wanted to use the conflicts of interest between the other European powers in the periphery or outside of Europe . A supporting or at least neutral position of Germany in these conflicts should be necessary for all of them .   The Kissingen dictation conceived the program of his diplomacy , realized in Bismarck 's system of alliances with the Dual Alliance between Germany and Austria , the Triple Alliance between Germany , Austria and Italy , and the Reinsurance Treaty between Germany and Russia .

neg: Union of Bulgarian National Legions The Union of Bulgarian National Legions ( Съюз на Българските Национални Легиони , tr . Săjuz na Bălgarskite Nacionalni Legioni ) was a right extremist organization in Bulgaria that was formed in 1933 .   Also known as the Legionnaires ' Association , the movement was founded and led by Hristo Lukov , a Bulgarian army lieutenant general ( not to be confused with Major General Hristo Tsonev Lukov , a native of Gabrovo , who was the commander of the 13th Infantry division during World War I ) who during World War I held the rank of major and was the commander of an artillery battalion . Initially identifying as an extreme monarchist group , it later sought unsuccessfully to work with the National Social Movement before finally emerging as a harassed opposition party that was largely supportive of Nazism . In its early days it was known as the Union of Young National Legions and was nominally led by a three-man group that included student leader Ivan Dochev .   The movement was initially small , although it did gain some support from Nazi Germany and experienced some growth during the Second World War as a result . The movement floundered after the assassination of its leader by a Communist insurgency group on February 13 , 1943 , and it did not survive the war . However Dochev and a number of other leading members would re-emerge in the anti-communist exile group , the Bulgarian National Front .

neg: History of Austria The history of Austria covers the history of Austria and its predecessor states , from the early Stone Age to the present state . The name Ostarrîchi ( Austria ) has been in use since 996 AD when it was a margravate of the Duchy of Bavaria and from 1156 an independent duchy ( later archduchy ) of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation ( Heiliges Römisches Reich 962 -- 1806 ) .   Austria was dominated by the House of Habsburg ( Haus Österreich ) from 1273 to 1806 , when the Holy Roman Empire came to an end . Austria then became the Austrian Empire , a part of the German Confederation until the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 , which Austria lost and was subsequently excluded from German affairs . In 1867 Austria formed with Hungary as a dual monarchy the Austro-Hungarian Empire ( 1867 -- 1918 ) . When this empire collapsed after the end of World War I in 1918 , Austria was reduced to the main German speaking areas of the empire ( its current frontiers ) , and adopted the name The Republic of German-Austria , with hope of joining the new German Weimar Republic . However the union and name were forbidden by the Allies at the Treaty of Versailles . This led to the creation of the First Austrian Republic ( 1918-1933 ) .   Following the First Republic , Austrofascism tried to keep Austria independent from the German Reich . Engelbert Dollfuss accepted that Austrians were Germans but wanted Austria to remain independent from a Protestant Germany . In 1938 Austrian-born Adolf Hitler annexed Austria to the German Reich with the Anschluss , which was supported by a large majority of the Austrian people . After the Second World War Austria again became an independent republic as the Second Republic in 1955 and joined the European Union in 1995 .