Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a sovereign city-state and microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, on the Mediterranean Sea. It is a semi-enclave bordered by France to the north, east and west. The principality is home to nearly 39,000 residents as of the 2020s, of whom about 9,500 are Monégasque nationals. It is recognised as one of the wealthiest and most expensive places in the world. The official language of Monaco is French. Monégasque, English and Italian are also spoken and understood by many residents.
The Public Force are the military force of Monaco. However, the country has a very limited military capability and depends almost entirely upon its larger neighbour, France, for defence. In total, there are over 250 people employed as military personnel in some form. There is no conscription in Monaco.
The Principality of Monaco is a sovereign and independent state, linked closely to France by the Treaty of July 1918, which was formally noted in Article 436 of the Treaty of Versailles of 1919. The foreign policy of Monaco is one illustration of this accord: France has agreed to defend the independence and sovereignty of Monaco, while the Monegasque Government has agreed to exercise its sovereign rights in conformity with French interests, whilst at the same time maintaining complete independence. Since then, the relations between the sovereign states of France and Monaco have been further defined in the Treaty of 1945 and the Agreement of 1963.
Albert II is Prince of Monaco, reigning since 2005.
The Prime Minister of Monaco, literally the Minister of State, is the head of government of Monaco, appointed by and subordinate to the Prince of Monaco.
The Constitution of Monaco, first adopted in 1911 after the Monégasque Revolution and heavily revised by Prince Rainier III on 17 December 1962, outlines three branches of government, including several administrative offices and a number of councils, who share advisory and legislative power with the prince.
The sovereign prince is the monarch and head of state of the Principality of Monaco. All reigning princes and princesses have taken the name of the House of Grimaldi. When Prince Rainier III died in 2005, he was Europe's longest reigning monarch. The Grimaldi family, which has ruled Monaco for eight centuries, is Europe's longest-ruling royal family.
A customs union is the principal area of robust formal agreement between the Principality of Andorra and the European Union (EU). Andorra borders two EU member states: France and Spain.
The Conseil du Roi, also known as the Royal Council, is a general term for the administrative and governmental apparatus around the King of France during the Ancien Régime designed to prepare his decisions and to advise him. It should not be confused with the role and title of a "Conseil du Roi", a type of public prosecutor in the French legal system at the same period.
The Monegasque Supreme Court is the highest court of law in the city-state of Monaco for judicial appeals, administrative matters as well as ensuring the constitution of Monaco is upheld. It consists of three full judges and two assistant judges, appointed by the Prince of Monaco at the recommendation of the National Council of Monaco, the Crown Council, the Council of State, the Court of First Instance and the Court of Appeal. This is done in the ratio of one judge per institution. The Supreme Court was established in 1962 following the new constitution to guarantee fundamental liberties.
Same-sex unions have been recognised in the microstate of Monaco since 27 June 2020. On 4 December 2019, the National Council passed a bill establishing cohabitation agreements, offering both same-sex and opposite-sex couples limited rights and benefits in the areas of inheritance and property. The law took effect on 27 June.
Franco-Monegasque relations are the special relationship between the French Republic and the Principality of Monaco.
Stéphane Valeri is a Monegasque politician and businessman. He served as the president of the National Council, which is the most powerful elected position in Monaco, between 22 February 2018 and 23 October 2022. He is the former Minister for Social Affairs and Health in Monaco. He served three terms as a National Councillor, and then as its president, but resigned halfway through the second term so that he could serve as a Government Minister.
Paul Masseron is a French civil servant (prefect) who became a minister of the principality of Monaco.
Maïmouna Sourang Ndir is a Senegalese politician who served in various government ministry positions as well as being Senegal's ambassador to France from 2009 to 2012.
The COVID-19 pandemic in Monaco was a part of the ongoing worldwide pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2. The virus was confirmed to have reached Monaco on 29 February 2020. As of 8 February 2021, the infection rate is 1 case per 19 inhabitants and the death rate is 1 in 1,613. As of February 2022, a total of 9,053 people were affected by COVID-19 since the beginning of the pandemic. As of 4 December 2022, a total of 71,027 vaccine doses have been administered.
The High Council of Judges and Prosecutors is a collegial body invested with a preponderant role within the framework of the administration of justice of the Principality of Monaco. The High Council of Judges and Prosecutors was instituted by the law n° 1364 of November 16, 2009 relating to the statute of the magistracy. In November 2018, the new members of the High Judicial Council have been introduced in their new functions, under the chairmanship of Laurent Anselmi, Director of Judicial Services.
The Treaty of Stupinigi was signed on November 8 and 10 1817, in Stupinigi between Honoré V, Prince of Monaco, and Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia.
Holy See–Monaco relations are bilateral relations between the Principality of Monaco and the Holy See. The principal Monégasque official is Ambassador Claude Giordan, who officially started at his position in November 2015. The Holy See is represented by its Apostolic Nuncio, Archbishop Antonio Arcari, who assumed office on May 25, 2019. The Embassy of Monaco to the Holy See is located in Rome, on Largo Spinelli. The Apostolic Nunciature to Monaco is non-residing as the nuncio currently resides in Rome.
Monaco Info is a Monegasque television channel focused on proximity and created under the name Monaco à la Une, in 1995. Official communications organ of the Monegasque State, it follows the transformation in October 1993 of Télé Monte-Carlo (TMC) into a French thematic channel.
