Europe is one of the seven continents of Earth which, in this case, is more a cultural and political distinction than a physiographic one, leading to various perspectives about Europe's borders. Physically and geologically, Europe is a subcontinent or large peninsula, forming the westernmost part of Eurasia and west of Asia.

Europe is bounded to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the west by the Atlantic Ocean, to the south by the Mediterranean Sea, and–according to the traditional geographic definition–to the southeast by the waterways adjoining the Mediterranean to and including the Black Sea, and the Caucasus Mountains (in Caucasia). Europe's eastern frontier is vague, but has traditionally been given as the divide of the Ural Mountains and the Caspian Sea to the southeast. The Urals are considered by most to be a geographical and tectonic landmark separating Asia from Europe.

Europe is the world's second-smallest continent in terms of area, covering about 10,390,000 square kilometres (4,010,000 sq mi) or 2.0% of the Earth's surface. The only continent smaller is Australia. In terms of population, it is the third-largest continent (Asia and Africa are larger) with a population of more than 710,000,000, or about 11% of the world's population.

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BBC News | Europe | World Edition

Police battle climate protesters
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:34:58 -0000
Police push back protesters trying to break through a perimeter fence at the UN climate summit venue in Copenhagen.
Nato seeks Russian helicopter aid
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 15:54:11 -0000
Nato's secretary general asks Russia to provide helicopters for the Afghan war on his first official trip to Moscow.
Swiss minaret ban goes to court
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 18:13:46 -0000
An appeal against a decision by Swiss voters to ban minarets is submitted to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.

NYT > Europe

Russia’s Market Reform Architect Dies
By ANDREW E. KRAMER Wed, 16 Dec 2009 15:00:03 -0000
Yegor T. Gaidar, 53, oversaw the transition from Communism to capitalism as the first finance minister of post-Soviet Russia.
British Court Upholds Ruling on Jewishness
By SARAH LYALL Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:53:45 -0000
Britain’s Supreme Court found that a Jewish school was guilty of racial discrimination for denying entry to a boy whose mother was a Jew by conversion and not by birth.
Medical Plight of France’s Elvis Holds His Country Spellbound
By MAÏA de la BAUME Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:49:17 -0000
Johnny Hallyday, a beloved and aging French rock star known as the French Elvis, was brought out of a coma on Tuesday, but it is unlikely that France’s news media will look away anytime soon.

L.A. Times - Europe

EU drops Microsoft browser charges
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:05:00 -0800
BRUSSELS -- The European Union has dropped long-standing antitrust charges against Microsoft Corp. after the company agreed to give users of the Windows operating system a choice of up to 12 other Web browsers.
Roman Polanski extradition delayed until next year, Swiss officials say
Wed, 16 Dec 2009 08:04:30 -0800
Polanski was arrested in Zurich three months ago -- but it remains unclear exactly when the extradition process will begin.
Singer Hallyday is out of coma
Tue, 15 Dec 2009 21:54:00 -0800
Doctors at Cedars-Sinai awoke the 'French Elvis,' who had been in a medically induced coma, on Monday. Musician Johnny Hallyday, known as the "French Elvis," has emerged from a medically induced coma he had been in since last week, according to the rocker's press relations office.

UN News Centre - Europe

Cyprus: UN peacekeeping mission extended for another six months
Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500
The Security Council today renewed for another six months the 45-year-old United Nations peacekeeping mission in Cyprus, citing "a rare opportunity to make decisive progress in a timely fashion" to reunify the Mediterranean island after a history of fighting between the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot communities.
UN official welcomes European Union approval of Internet copyright treaties
Mon, 14 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500
The head of the United Nations agency tasked with safeguarding intellectual property rights today welcomed the European Union's ratification of the so-called Internet Treaties.
UN agency calls on European Union to reinforce refugees' rights
Fri, 11 Dec 2009 00:00:00 -0500
The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) today welcomed a new European Union (EU) asylum programme, but urged the body of nations to ensure the rights of refugees are protected.

NYT > Europe

Russia’s Market Reform Architect Dies
By ANDREW E. KRAMER Wed, 16 Dec 2009 15:00:03 -0000
Yegor T. Gaidar, 53, oversaw the transition from Communism to capitalism as the first finance minister of post-Soviet Russia.
British Court Upholds Ruling on Jewishness
By SARAH LYALL Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:53:45 -0000
Britain’s Supreme Court found that a Jewish school was guilty of racial discrimination for denying entry to a boy whose mother was a Jew by conversion and not by birth.
Medical Plight of France’s Elvis Holds His Country Spellbound
By MAÏA de la BAUME Wed, 16 Dec 2009 16:49:17 -0000
Johnny Hallyday, a beloved and aging French rock star known as the French Elvis, was brought out of a coma on Tuesday, but it is unlikely that France’s news media will look away anytime soon.
Climate Talks Near Deal to Save Forests
By ELISABETH ROSENTHAL Wed, 16 Dec 2009 12:52:24 -0000
Negotiators were closing in on a sweeping deal that would compensate countries for preserving forests and other natural landscapes.
Reporter’s Notebook: In Copenhagen, ‘To Be Elaborated’ Is a Stalemate
By ANDREW C. REVKIN and JOHN M. BRODER Wed, 16 Dec 2009 17:24:11 -0000
The top United Nations climate official said the many disputes at the climate conference reflected the challenge of finding common ground among 193 countries.
Abkhazia Is Recognized — by Nauru
By ELLEN BARRY Wed, 16 Dec 2009 07:28:54 -0000
Facing depletion of its main resource, phosphates, Nauru is only the fourth nation to recognize the region, which separated from Georgia.

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