Background Nauru's phosphate deposits began to be mined early in the 20th century by a German-British consortium; the island was occupied by Australian forces in World War I. Nauru achieved independence in 1968 and joined the UN in 1999. Nauru is the world's smallest independent republic.

NOTE: The information regarding Nauru on this page is re-published from the 2002 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Nauru Introduction 2002 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Nauru Introduction 2002 should be addressed to the CIA.