The area is 7,7 million sq km, population is 17,3 million people (98% white, mostly British origin, and Aborigines – 228,000). The capital is Canberra (population 310,000), other cities are Sydney (conurbation 3,6 million), Melbourne, Brisbane, Perth, Adelaide, Newcastle, Wollongong, Gold Coast, Hobart. The currency is Australian dollar = 100 cents. The official language is English, the other languages are Aboriginal. The head of state is British monarch represented by Governor General.

Australia is the Earth's smallest continent, situated in the Southern Hemisphere between the Pacific and the Indian Ocean. Its nearest neighbor in the north is New Guinea from which Australia is separated by Torres Strait. The oval shape of Australia is broken by the Gulf of Carpentaria in the north and by the Great Australian Bight in the south. In the east there is the Great Barrier Reef, which is the biggest coral reef on the Earth. The nearest islands are Tasmania, King Island, Flinders Island in the Bass Strait, Kangaroo Island in the Gulf of St. Vincent, Melville Island in the north and Groote Eylandt in the Gulf of Carpentaria. The surface of Australia is mostly flat, only 5% of the whole continent is higher than 600 m. The Great Western Plateau occupies nearly half of the continent. In central Australia there are three deserts – the Great Sandy Desert, the Gibson Desert and the Great Victoria Desert. The second part is the Central-Eastern Lowland – a flat area covered by tropic forests and savanna with creeks and rivers, which flow into lakes such as Lake Eyre, Lake Torrens and Lake Gairdner (they become dry in the dry seasons). The eastern part of the Central-Eastern Lowland is made up of lowland with the biggest river system (the Murray and the Darling rivers) in Australia. The third basic area are the Australian Cordilleras, which are along the eastern coast of Australia (and continue into Tasmania). Their northern part is the Great Dividing Range. The New England Range and the Blue Mountains continue to the Australian Alps with the highest Australia's peak Mt. Kosciusco (2230 m high). Australia has some animals not to be seen in the rest of the world – kangaroo, koala, dingo, Tasmanian devil etc.).

Australia is an independent sovereign nation within the Commonwealth, retaining the British monarch as head of state and represented by a governor general. The constitution came into effect on January 1, 1901. The executive, comprising of the Prime Minister and Cabinet, is drawn from the Federal Parliament, which consists of an elected Senate and a House of Representatives. The states and territories of Australia and their capitals are: New South Wales (Sydney), Victoria (Melbourne), Queensland (Brisbane), South Australia (Adelaide), Western Australia (Perth), Tasmania (Hobart), Northern Territory (Darwin), Australia Capital Territory (Canberra).

Australia belongs to the highly developed countries of the world. Besides the developed industries and agriculture (sheep, wool, wheat), Australia is well known for the mineral deposits - coal, iron ore, bauxite (the first in the world), other metals, uranium etc. The food industry is one of the best in the world. Australia exports its products to Japan, USA, Britain etc.

The area is 270,000 sq km, the population is 3,4 million people (87% European, mostly British, and 12% Polynesian, mostly Maori). The capital is Wellington (pop. 150,000, conurbation 325,000). Other towns: Auckland, Christchurch, Manukau, Dunedin. The currency is New Zealand dollar = 100 cents. The official language is English, the other is Maori. The head of state is British monarch represented by Governor General.

New Zealand (called Aotearoa in the Maori language) is in the Southern Hemisphere, in the SW Pacific Ocean, SE of Australia. The main islands, the North and the South; are separated by narrow Cook Strait. The other, both populated and unpopulated - Stewart Island and so on – lie around the coast. Although there are several lowland areas around the New Zealand coast, the country is mainly rolling and hilly. The highest peak of the South Island is Mt. Cook (3764 m), its opposite in the North Island is volcano Ruapehu (2795 m). The rivers are short and torrential, the largest lake is Taupo (in the North Island).

New Zealand is an independent member of the Commonwealth. The British monarch is represented by a Governor General. The political system is democratic. The parliament has one chamber – The House of Representatives. New Zealand was the first country to give the voting rights to women. The head of the government is the Prime Minister.

New Zealand belongs among the highly developed countries of the world. The farming (sheep, cattle) produces meat, wool, butter and cheese. The mineral resources are good and the industry is adequate.