Serbia is mostly mountainous,being ringed by the Dinaric Alps on the west, the Sar Mountains and the North Albanian Alps (Prokletije) on the south, and the Balkan and Carpathian mountains on the east. Many peaks in these ranges surpass 6,000 feet (1,800 m) in elevation. The highest relief in Serbia is in the south, where the intermontane Kosovo and Metohija basins contain the province of Kosovo. In central Serbia are the hills of the Sumadija ("forested area"), and in the north are the low-lying plains of Vojvodina, where the Danube River is joined by two of its major tributaries, the Sava and Tisa rivers. The Danube enters Vojvodina from Hungary and flows southeastward to form eventually the border between Yugoslavia and Romania. Mountainous central and southern Serbia are drained by the Morava River and its tributaries; the Morava flows northward to join the Danube east of Belgrade.
The climate of Serbia is on the whole continental, with cold, dry winters and warm, humid summers. In Vojvodina July temperatures average 70F (21C), and temperatures in January average about 32 F (0 C). Precipitation in Serbia ranges from 22 to 75 inches (560 to 1,900 mm), depending on elevation and exposure.
Approximately one-quarter of the Serb people live outside the Serbian republic. Within Serbia proper, excluding Vojvodina and Kosovo, Serbs account for more than four-fifths of the population. In Vojvodina, slightly more than half the people are Serbs, but a large minority population of Hungarians and a smaller group of Croats also reside there. Albanians account for more than three-quarters of the population of Kosovo. The high birth rate of the Albanians and their rising nationalism have conflicted with the Serbs' desire to retain Kosovo as a part of Serbia.
Serbia proper and Vojvodina are the most developed regions of Serbia, whereas Kosovo is one of the poorest regions in Europe. The fertile plains of Vojvodina supply much of the nation's grain and sugar beets, while the hilly central areas of Serbia specialize in dairy, fruit, and livestock. But mining and manufacturing are actually the largest contributors to the economy of Serbia. The republic's industries produce metal products, automobiles and trucks textiles, and foodstuffs. Coal reserves and deposits of lead and zinc are located in Kosovo, iron and copper deposits are found in central Serbia, and oil reserves arelocated in Vojvodina. Most of the republic's railroad network is in Serbia proper and Vojvodina; an important line links Belgrade with the Adriatic Sea at Bar, in Montenegro.
Under the constitution of 1990, Serbia has a directly elected president and a 250-member national assembly. The constitution grants both Kosovo and Vojvodina the status of autonomous provinces, with elected provincial assemblies. Because it has more than 90 percent of the population of Yugoslavia, Serbia elects the vast majority of deputies to the Yugoslav federal assembly.