Queensland

Queensland, officially the Federation of Queensland, is a country consisting of 73 districts, and a land area of 1,730,368 square kilometers. Queensland, along with Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and 13 other nations, is a member of the Commonwealth Realm, and is therefore ruled by Queen Elizabeth II. As of 2006, the population is approximately 3.9 million, however the population is rapidly growing, and the current estimates are close to 4.6 million. The capital, and the largest city of Queensland, is Brisbane. Since the Pacific War, Queensland has practiced neutrality in most conflicts in its region, and conflicts outside Oceania. Therefore, Queensland is not part of any military coalition in current global conflicts, but is an active member of numerous organizations, such as the Commonwealth of Nations, the APEC, the East Asia Summit, the World Trade Organization, the United Nations, and the Alliance of Independent Nations.

Queensland, in early 20th century, was the only colony on the island of Australia to not join the new Federation. Industrialists and workers in Queensland created a strong opposition, against joining a new nation with rival colonies such as New South Wales and Victoria. In 1901, Queensland was excluded from the creation of Australia, and in 1903, the nation of Queensland became a reality. Since then, the government has adopted the Statute of Westminster and the Queensland Act.