France is a country in Western Europe, bordered by the Bay of Biscay (North Atlantic Ocean) in the west, the English Channel in the northwest, and the North Sea in the north. It is the world's fifth-largest economy and the world's fifth-most populous country. France shares borders with Belgium and Luxembourg in the northeast, Germany, Switzerland, and Italy in the east, the Mediterranean Sea in the south, and the countries of Spain, Andorra, and Monaco in the north. France map region and the United Kingdom share maritime borders as well.