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Italy: World
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Italy is home to more World Heritage sites than any other nation in the world. [[1]] These sites are properties forming part of the cultural and natural heritage which the World Heritage Committee considers as having outstanding universal value.
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Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the regional states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in 1946 and economic revival followed. Italy was a charter member of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been at the forefront of European economic and political unification, joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999.
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According to GDP calculations, as measured by purchasing power parity (PPP), Italy is ranked as the 8th largest economy in the world in 2006, behind the United States, Japan, Germany, China, India, UK, and France, and the fourth largest in Europe. According to the OECD, in 2004 Italy was the world's sixth-largest exporter of manufactured goods. This capitalistic economy remains divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less developed agricultural south. Italy's economy has deceptive strength because it is supported by a substantial “underground” economy that functions outside government controls.
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It seems that many Euros take the greatest delight in belittling Italy. The Azzurri were only begrudgingly accepted as World Cup Champs. The English media looked at Italy's poor start and virtually branded them as a laughing stock. "How could a team like this win the World Cup?" was a common cry. Did anyone notice that NOT one of the 5 teams in the the UK made the Euro 2008 Championships?
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The U.S. Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC) does not operate in Italy. However, in March 2003, OPIC signed a Memorandum of Understanding with SIMEST (Societa Italiana per le Imprese all'Estero), its Italian counterpart, to expand cooperation in a number of areas, particularly on projects in third countries. Italy, through its Export Credit Agency, SACE, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the World Bank’s Multilateral Investment Guarantee Agency (MIGA).
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Located near the picturesque San Diego Bay nestled in the heart of Little Italy, San Diego’s Italian cultural village. San Diego’s historic Little Italy is one of a handful of Italian American business districts remaining in North America. San Diego’s Little Italy is unique and growing more successful combining contemporary development with old world charm.
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