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ANTARCTICA
@Antarctica:Geography
Location: continent mostly south of the Antarctic Circle
Geographic coordinates: 90 00 S, 0 00 E
Map references: Antarctic Region
Area: total: 14 million sq km land: 14 million sq km (280,000 sq km ice-free, 13.72 million sq km ice-covered) (est.) note: fifth-largest continent, following Asia, Africa, North America, and South America, but larger than Australia and the subcontinent of Europe
Area - comparative: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US
Land boundaries: 0 km note: see entry on International disputes
Coastline: 17,968 km
Maritime claims: none, but see the Disputes - international entry
Climate: severe low temperatures vary with latitude, elevation, and distance from the ocean; East Antarctica is colder than West Antarctica because of its higher elevation; Antarctic Peninsula has the most moderate climate; higher temperatures occur in January along the coast and average slightly below freezing
Terrain: about 98% thick continental ice sheet and 2% barren rock, with average elevations between 2,000 and 4,000 meters; mountain ranges up to 5,140 meters; ice-free coastal areas include parts of southern Victoria Land, Wilkes Land, the Antarctic Peninsula area, and parts of Ross Island on McMurdo Sound; glaciers form ice shelves along about half of the coastline, and floating ice shelves constitute 11% of the area of the continent
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Southern Ocean 0 m highest point: Vinson Massif 5,140 m
Natural resources: none presently exploited; iron ore, chromium, copper, gold, nickel, platinum and other minerals, and coal and hydrocarbons have been found in small, uncommercial quantities
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (ice 98%, barren rock 2%)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: katabatic (gravity-driven) winds blow coastward from the high interior; frequent blizzards form near the foot of the plateau; cyclonic storms form over the ocean and move clockwise along the coast; volcanism on Deception Island and isolated areas of West Antarctica; other seismic activity rare and weak
Environment - current issues: in 1998, NASA satellite data showed that the antarctic ozone hole was the largest on record, covering 27 million square kilometers; researchers in 1997 found that increased ultraviolet light coming through the hole damages the DNA of icefish, an antarctic fish lacking hemoglobin; ozone depletion earlier was shown to harm one-celled antarctic marine plants
Geography - note: the coldest, windiest, highest (on average), and driest continent; during summer, more solar radiation reaches the surface at the South Pole than is received at the Equator in an equivalent period; mostly uninhabitable
@Antarctica:People
Population: no indigenous inhabitants, but there are seasonally staffed research stations note: approximately 29 nations, all signatory to the Antarctic Treaty, send personnel to perform seasonal (summer) and year-round research on the continent and in its surrounding oceans; the population of persons doing and supporting science on the continent and its nearby islands south of 60 degrees south latitude (the region covered by the Antarctic Treaty) varies from approximately 4,000 in summer to 1,000 in winter; in addition, approximately 1,000 personnel including ship's crew and scientists doing onboard research are present in the waters of the treaty region; Summer (January) population - 3,687 total; Argentina 302, Australia 201, Belgium 13, Brazil 80, Bulgaria 16, Chile 352, China 70, Finland 11, France 100, Germany 51, India 60, Italy 106, Japan 136, South Korea 14, Netherlands 10, NZ 60, Norway 40, Peru 28, Poland 70, Russia 254, South Africa 80, Spain 43, Sweden 20, UK 192, US 1,378 (1998-99); Winter (July) population - 964 total; Argentina 165, Australia 75, Brazil 12, Chile 129, China 33, France 33, Germany 9, India 25, Japan 40, South Korea 14, NZ 10, Poland 20, Russia 102, South Africa 10, UK 39, US 248 (1998-99); year-round stations - 42 total; Argentina 6, Australia 4, Brazil 1, Chile 4, China 2, Finland 1, France 1, Germany 1, India 1, Italy 1, Japan 1, South Korea 1, NZ 1, Norway 1, Poland 1, Russia 6, South Africa 1, Spain 1, Ukraine 1, UK 2, US 3, Uruguay 1 (1998-99); Summer-only stations - 32 total; Argentina 3, Australia 4, Bulgaria 1, Chile 7, Germany 1, India 1, Japan 3, NZ 1, Peru 1, Russia 3, Sweden 2, UK 5 (1998-99); in addition, during the austral summer some nations have numerous occupied locations such as tent camps, summer-long temporary facilities, and mobile traverses in support of research (July 2000 est.)
@Antarctica:Government
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Antarctica
Data code: AY
Government type: Antarctic Treaty Summary - the Antarctic Treaty, signed on 1 December 1959 and entered into force on 23 June 1961, establishes the legal framework for the management of Antarctica. Administration is carried out through consultative member meetings - the 23rd Antarctic Treaty Consultative Meeting was in Peru in May 1999. At the end of 1999, there were 44 treaty member nations: 27 consultative and 17 acceding. Consultative (voting) members include the seven nations that claim portions of Antarctica as national territory (some claims overlap) and 20 nonclaimant nations. The US and some other nations that have made no claims have reserved the right to do so. The US does not recognize the claims of others. The year in parentheses indicates when an acceding nation was voted to full consultative (voting) status, while no date indicates the country was an original 1959 treaty signatory. Claimant nations are - Argentina, Australia, Chile, France, New Zealand, Norway, and the UK. Nonclaimant consultative nations are - Belgium, Brazil (1983), Bulgaria (1998) China (1985), Ecuador (1990), Finland (1989), Germany (1981), India (1983), Italy (1987), Japan, South Korea (1989), Netherlands (1990), Peru (1989), Poland (1977), Russia, South Africa, Spain (1988), Sweden (1988), Uruguay (1985), and the US. Acceding (nonvoting) members, with year of accession in parentheses, are - Austria (1987), Canada (1988), Colombia (1988), Cuba (1984), Czech Republic (1993), Denmark (1965), Greece (1987), Guatemala (1991), Hungary (1984), North Korea (1987), Papua New Guinea (1981), Romania (1971), Slovakia (1993), Switzerland (1990), Turkey (1995), Ukraine (1992), and Venezuela (1999). Article 1 - area to be used for peaceful purposes only; military activity, such as weapons testing, is prohibited, but military personnel and equipment may be used for scientific research or any other peaceful purpose; Article 2 - freedom of scientific investigation and cooperation shall continue; Article 3 - free exchange of information and personnel in cooperation with the UN and other international agencies; Article 4 - does not recognize, dispute, or establish territorial claims and no new claims shall be asserted while the treaty is in force; Article 5 - prohibits nuclear explosions or disposal of radioactive wastes; Article 6 - includes under the treaty all land and ice shelves south of 60 degrees 00 minutes south; Article 7 - treaty-state observers have free access, including aerial observation, to any area and may inspect all stations, installations, and equipment; advance notice of all activities and of the introduction of military personnel must be given; Article 8 - allows for jurisdiction over observers and scientists by their own states; Article 9 - frequent consultative meetings take place among member nations; Article 10 - treaty states will discourage activities by any country in Antarctica that are contrary to the treaty; Article 11 - disputes to be settled peacefully by the parties concerned or, ultimately, by the ICJ; Articles 12, 13, 14 - deal with upholding, interpreting, and amending the treaty among involved nations. Other agreements - some 200 recommendations adopted at treaty consultative meetings and ratified by governments include - Agreed Measures for the Conservation of Antarctic Fauna and Flora (1964); Convention for the Conservation of Antarctic Seals (1972); Convention on the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (1980); a mineral resources agreement was signed in 1988 but was subsequently rejected; the Protocol on Environmental Protection to the Antarctic Treaty was signed 4 October 1991 and entered into force 14 January 1998; this agreement provides for the protection of the Antarctic environment through five specific annexes on marine pollution, fauna, and flora, environmental impact assessments, waste management, and protected areas; it prohibits all activities relating to mineral resources except scientific research.
Legal system: US law, including certain criminal offenses by or against US nationals, such as murder, may apply to areas not under jurisdiction of other countries. Some US laws directly apply to Antarctica. For example, the Antarctic Conservation Act, 16 U.S.C. section 2401 et seq., provides civil and criminal penalties for the following activities, unless authorized by regulation of statute: the taking of native mammals or birds; the introduction of nonindigenous plants and animals; entry into specially protected or scientific areas; the discharge or disposal of pollutants; and the importation into the US of certain items from Antarctica. Violation of the Antarctic Conservation Act carries penalties of up to $10,000 in fines and one year in prison. The Departments of Treasury, Commerce, Transportation, and Interior share enforcement responsibilities. Public Law 95-541, the US Antarctic Conservation Act of 1978, requires expeditions from the US to Antarctica to notify, in advance, the Office of Oceans and Polar Affairs, Room 5801, Department of State, Washington, DC 20520, which reports such plans to other nations as required by the Antarctic Treaty. For more information, contact Permit Office, Office of Polar Programs, National Science Foundation, Arlington, Virginia 22230; telephone: (703) 306-1031, or see their website at www.nsf.gov.
@Antarctica:Economy
Economy - overview: No economic activity is conducted at present, except for fishing off the coast and small-scale tourism, both based abroad. Antarctic fisheries in 1998-99 (1 July-30 June) reported landing 119,898 metric tons. Unregulated fishing landed five to six times more than the regulated fishery, and allegedly illegal fishing in antarctic waters in 1998 resulted in the seizure (by France and Australia) of at least eight fishing ships. A total of 10,013 tourists visited in the 1998-99 summer, up from the 9,604 who visited the previous year. Nearly all of them were passengers on 16 commercial (nongovernmental) ships and several yachts that made 116 trips during the summer. Most tourist trips lasted approximately two weeks.
@Antarctica:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 0 (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: domestic: NA international: NA
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 1 (American Forces Antarctic Network-McMurdo) (1999)
Televisions: several hundred at McMurdo Sound
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Antarctica:Transportation
Ports and harbors: McMurdo (77 51 S, 166 40 E), Palmer (64 43 S, 64 03 W); government use only except by permit (see Permit Office under "Legal System"); offshore anchorage
Airports: 18 note: 27 stations, operated by 16 national governments party to the Antarctic Treaty, have landing facilities for either helicopters and/or fixed-wing aircraft; commercial enterprises operate two additional air facilities; helicopter pads are available at 27 stations; runways at 15 locations are gravel, sea-ice, blue-ice, or compacted snow suitable for landing wheeled, fixed-wing aircraft; of these, 1 is greater than 3 km in length, 6 are between 2 km and 3 km in length, 3 are between 1 km and 2 km in length, 3 are less than 1 km in length, and 2 are of unknown length; snow surface skiways, limited to use by ski-equipped, fixed-wing aircraft,are available at another 15 locations; of these, 4 are greater than 3 km in length, 3 are between 2 km and 3 km in length, 2 are between 1 km and 2 km in length, 2 are less than 1 km in length, and 4 are of unknown length; airports generally subject to severe restrictions and limitations resulting from extreme seasonal and geographic conditions; airports do not meet ICAO standards; advance approval from the respective governmental or nongovernmental operating organization required for landing (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 18 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 3 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 5 (1999 est.)
Heliports: 1 (1999 est.)
@Antarctica:Military
Military - note: the Antarctic Treaty prohibits any measures of a military nature, such as the establishment of military bases and fortifications, the carrying out of military maneuvers, or the testing of any type of weapon; it permits the use of military personnel or equipment for scientific research or for any other peaceful purposes
@Antarctica:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: Antarctic Treaty defers claims (see Antarctic Treaty Summary in Government type entry); sections (some overlapping) claimed by Argentina, Australia, Chile, France (Adelie Land), New Zealand (Ross Dependency), Norway (Queen Maud Land), and UK; the US and most other nations do not recognize the territorial claims of other nations and have made no claims themselves (the US reserves the right to do so); no formal claims have been made in the sector between 90 degrees west and 150 degrees west
ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA
@Antigua and Barbuda:Introduction
Background: The islands of Antigua and Barbuda became an independent state within the British Commonwealth of Nations in 1981. Some 3,000 refugees fleeing a volcanic eruption on nearby Montserrat have settled in Antigua and Barbuda since 1995.
@Antigua and Barbuda:Geography
Location: Caribbean, islands between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, east-southeast of Puerto Rico
Geographic coordinates: 17 03 N, 61 48 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area: total: 442 sq km (Antigua 281 sq km; Barbuda 161 sq km) land: 442 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Redonda
Area - comparative: 2.5 times the size of Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 153 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: mostly low-lying limestone and coral islands, with some higher volcanic areas
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Boggy Peak 402 m
Natural resources: NEGL; pleasant climate fosters tourism
Land use: arable land: 18% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 9% forests and woodland: 11% other: 62% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: NA sq km
Natural hazards: hurricanes and tropical storms (July to October); periodic droughts
Environment - current issues: water management - a major concern because of limited natural fresh water resources - is further hampered by the clearing of trees to increase crop production, causing rainfall to run off quickly
Environment - international agreements: party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Whaling signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
@Antigua and Barbuda:People
Population: 66,422 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 28% (male 9,414; female 9,098) 15-64 years: 67% (male 22,199; female 22,341) 65 years and over: 5% (male 1,424; female 1,946) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.73% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 19.6 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 5.99 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -6.32 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.03 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.99 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 23.05 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 70.46 years male: 68.19 years female: 72.84 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.92 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality: noun: Antiguan(s), Barbudan(s) adjective: Antiguan, Barbudan
Ethnic groups: black, British, Portuguese, Lebanese, Syrian
Religions: Anglican (predominant), other Protestant, some Roman Catholic
Languages: English (official), local dialects
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over has completed five or more years of schooling total population: 89% male: 90% female: 88% (1960 est.)
@Antigua and Barbuda:Government
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Antigua and Barbuda
Data code: AC
Government type: constitutional monarchy with Westminster-style parliament
Capital: Saint John's
Administrative divisions: 6 parishes and 2 dependencies*; Barbuda*, Redonda*, Saint George, Saint John, Saint Mary, Saint Paul, Saint Peter, Saint Philip
Independence: 1 November 1981 (from UK)
National holiday: Independence Day, 1 November (1981)
Constitution: 1 November 1981
Legal system: based on English common law
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General James B. CARLISLE (since NA 1993) head of government: Prime Minister Lester Bryant BIRD (since 8 March 1994) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general chosen by the monarch on the advice of the prime minister; prime minister appointed by the governor general
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament consists of the Senate (17-member body appointed by the governor general) and the House of Representatives (17 seats; members are elected by proportional representation to serve five-year terms) elections: House of Representatives - last held 9 March 1999 (next to be held NA March 2004) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - ALP 12, UPP 4, independent 1
Judicial branch: Eastern Caribbean Supreme Court (based in Saint Lucia) (one judge of the Supreme Court is a resident of the islands and presides over the Court of Summary Jurisdiction)
Political parties and leaders: Antigua Caribbean Liberation Movement or ACLM ; Antigua Labor Party or ALP ; Barbuda People's Movement or BPM ; Progressive Labor Movement or PLM ; United National Democratic Party or UNDP ; United Progressive Party or UPP , a coalition of three opposition political parties - UNDP, ACLM, and PLM
Political pressure groups and leaders: Antigua Trades and Labor Union or ATLU ; People's Democratic Movement or PDM [Hugh MARSHALL]
International organization participation: ACP, C, Caricom, CDB, ECLAC, FAO, G-77, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat (nonsignatory user), Interpol, IOC, ITU, NAM (observer), OAS, OECS, OPANAL, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WTrO
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Lionel Alexander HURST chancery: 3216 New Mexico Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20016 telephone: (202) 362-5211 FAX: (202) 362-5225 consulate(s) general: Miami
Diplomatic representation from the US: the US does not have an embassy in Antigua and Barbuda (embassy closed 30 June 1994); the US Ambassador to Barbados is accredited to Antigua and Barbuda
Flag description: red, with an inverted isosceles triangle based on the top edge of the flag; the triangle contains three horizontal bands of black (top), light blue, and white, with a yellow rising sun in the black band
@Antigua and Barbuda:Economy
Economy - overview: Tourism continues to be the dominant activity in the economy accounting directly or indirectly for more than half of GDP. In 1999 the budding offshore financial sector was seriously hurt by financial sanctions imposed by the US and UK as a result of the loosening of its money-laundering controls. The government has made efforts to comply with international demands in order to get the sanctions lifted. The dual island nation's agricultural production is mainly directed to the domestic market; the sector is constrained by the limited water supply and labor shortages that reflect the pull of higher wages in tourism and construction. Manufacturing comprises enclave-type assembly for export with major products being bedding, handicrafts, and electronic components. Prospects for economic growth in the medium term will continue to depend on income growth in the industrialized world, especially in the US, which accounts for about one-third of all tourist arrivals.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $524 million (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 2.8% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $8,200 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 4% industry: 12.5% services: 83.5% (1996 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.6% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 30,000
Labor force - by occupation: commerce and services 82%, agriculture 11%, industry 7% (1983)
Unemployment rate: 7% (1999 est.)
Budget: revenues: $122.6 million expenditures: $141.2 million, including capital expenditures of $17.3 million (1997 est.)
Industries: tourism, construction, light manufacturing (clothing, alcohol, household appliances)
Industrial production growth rate: 6% (1997 est.)
Electricity - production: 90 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 84 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: cotton, fruits, vegetables, bananas, coconuts, cucumbers, mangoes, sugarcane; livestock
Exports: $38 million (1998)
Exports - commodities: petroleum products 48%, manufactures 23%, food and live animals 4%, machinery and transport equipment 17%
Exports - partners: OECS 26%, Barbados 15%, Guyana 4%, Trinidad and Tobago 2%, US 0.3%
Imports: $330 million (1998)
Imports - commodities: food and live animals, machinery and transport equipment, manufactures, chemicals, oil
Imports - partners: US 27%, UK 16%, Canada 4%, OECS 3%
Debt - external: $357 million (1998)
Economic aid - recipient: $2.3 million (1995)
Currency: 1 East Caribbean dollar (EC$) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: East Caribbean dollars (EC$) per US$1 - 2.7000 (fixed rate since 1976)
Fiscal year: 1 April - 31 March
@Antigua and Barbuda:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 20,000 (1994)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: domestic: good automatic telephone system international: 1 coaxial submarine cable; satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); tropospheric scatter to Saba (Netherlands Antilles) and Guadeloupe
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 36,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 2 (1997)
Televisions: 31,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Antigua and Barbuda:Transportation
Railways: total: 77 km narrow gauge: 64 km 0.760-m gauge; 13 km 0.610-m gauge (used almost exclusively for handling sugarcane)
Highways: total: 250 km (1996 est.) paved: NA km unpaved: NA km
Ports and harbors: Saint John's
Merchant marine: total: 607 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 3,528,944 GRT/4,590,590 DWT ships by type: bulk 17, cargo 385, chemical tanker 9, combination bulk 2, container 149, liquified gas 3, petroleum tanker 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll-on/roll-off 28 (1999 est.) note: a flag of convenience registry: Germany owns 10 ships, Slovenia 2, and Cyprus 2 (1998 est.)
Airports: 3 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 1 under 914 m: 1 (1999 est.)
@Antigua and Barbuda:Military
Military branches: Royal Antigua and Barbuda Defense Force, Royal Antigua and Barbuda Police Force (includes Coast Guard)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%
@Antigua and Barbuda:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: considered a minor transshipment point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe; more significant as a drug-money-laundering center
ARCTIC OCEAN
@Arctic Ocean:Introduction
Background: A spring 2000 decision by the International Hydrographic Organization delimited a fifth world ocean from the southern portions of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The new ocean extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south latitude which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit. The Arctic Ocean remains the smallest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Southern Ocean).
@Arctic Ocean:Geography
Location: body of water mostly north of the Arctic Circle
Geographic coordinates: 90 00 N, 0 00 E
Map references: Arctic Region
Area: total: 14.056 million sq km note: includes Baffin Bay, Barents Sea, Beaufort Sea, Chukchi Sea, East Siberian Sea, Greenland Sea, Hudson Bay, Hudson Strait, Kara Sea, Laptev Sea, Northwest Passage, and other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of the US
Coastline: 45,389 km
Climate: polar climate characterized by persistent cold and relatively narrow annual temperature ranges; winters characterized by continuous darkness, cold and stable weather conditions, and clear skies; summers characterized by continuous daylight, damp and foggy weather, and weak cyclones with rain or snow
Terrain: central surface covered by a perennial drifting polar icepack that averages about 3 meters in thickness, although pressure ridges may be three times that size; clockwise drift pattern in the Beaufort Gyral Stream, but nearly straight-line movement from the New Siberian Islands (Russia) to Denmark Strait (between Greenland and Iceland); the icepack is surrounded by open seas during the summer, but more than doubles in size during the winter and extends to the encircling landmasses; the ocean floor is about 50% continental shelf (highest percentage of any ocean) with the remainder a central basin interrupted by three submarine ridges (Alpha Cordillera, Nansen Cordillera, and Lomonosov Ridge)
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Fram Basin -4,665 m highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources: sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales)
Natural hazards: ice islands occasionally break away from northern Ellesmere Island; icebergs calved from glaciers in western Greenland and extreme northeastern Canada; permafrost in islands; virtually ice locked from October to June; ships subject to superstructure icing from October to May
Environment - current issues: endangered marine species include walruses and whales; fragile ecosystem slow to change and slow to recover from disruptions or damage; thinning polar icepack
Geography - note: major chokepoint is the southern Chukchi Sea (northern access to the Pacific Ocean via the Bering Strait); strategic location between North America and Russia; shortest marine link between the extremes of eastern and western Russia; floating research stations operated by the US and Russia; maximum snow cover in March or April about 20 to 50 centimeters over the frozen ocean; snow cover lasts about 10 months
@Arctic Ocean:Government
Data code: none; the US Government has not approved a standard for hydrographic codes - see the Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data Codes appendix
@Arctic Ocean:Economy
Economy - overview: Economic activity is limited to the exploitation of natural resources, including petroleum, natural gas, fish, and seals.
@Arctic Ocean:Transportation
Ports and harbors: Churchill (Canada), Murmansk (Russia), Prudhoe Bay (US)
Transportation - note: sparse network of air, ocean, river, and land routes; the Northwest Passage (North America) and Northern Sea Route (Eurasia) are important seasonal waterways
@Arctic Ocean:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: some maritime disputes (see littoral states); Svalbard is the focus of a maritime boundary dispute between Norway and Russia
ARGENTINA
@Argentina:Introduction
Background: Following independence from Spain in 1816, Argentina experienced periods of internal political conflict between conservatives and liberals and between civilian and military factions. After World War II, a long period of Peronist dictatorship was followed by a military junta that took power in 1976. Democracy returned in 1983, and four free elections since then have underscored Argentina's progress in democratic consolidation.
@Argentina:Geography
Location: Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Chile and Uruguay
Geographic coordinates: 34 00 S, 64 00 W
Map references: South America
Area: total: 2,766,890 sq km land: 2,736,690 sq km water: 30,200 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly less than three-tenths the size of the US
Land boundaries: total: 9,665 km border countries: Bolivia 832 km, Brazil 1,224 km, Chile 5,150 km, Paraguay 1,880 km, Uruguay 579 km
Coastline: 4,989 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: mostly temperate; arid in southeast; subantarctic in southwest
Terrain: rich plains of the Pampas in northern half, flat to rolling plateau of Patagonia in south, rugged Andes along western border
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Salinas Chicas -40 m (located on Peninsula Valdes) highest point: Cerro Aconcagua 6,960 m
Natural resources: fertile plains of the pampas, lead, zinc, tin, copper, iron ore, manganese, petroleum, uranium
Land use: arable land: 9% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 52% forests and woodland: 19% other: 19% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 17,000 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: San Miguel de Tucuman and Mendoza areas in the Andes subject to earthquakes; pamperos are violent windstorms that can strike the Pampas and northeast; heavy flooding
Environment - current issues: environmental problems (urban and rural) typical of an industrializing economy such as soil degradation, desertification, air pollution, and water pollution note: Argentina is a world leader in setting voluntary greenhouse gas targets
Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Marine Life Conservation
Geography - note: second-largest country in South America (after Brazil); strategic location relative to sea lanes between South Atlantic and South Pacific Oceans (Strait of Magellan, Beagle Channel, Drake Passage)
@Argentina:People
Population: 36,955,182 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 27% (male 5,061,588; female 4,827,582) 15-64 years: 63% (male 11,625,574; female 11,613,358) 65 years and over: 10% (male 1,582,861; female 2,244,219) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.16% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 18.59 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 7.59 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.65 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.98 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 18.31 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 75.05 years male: 71.67 years female: 78.61 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 2.47 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality: noun: Argentine(s) adjective: Argentine
Ethnic groups: white (mostly Spanish and Italian) 97%, mestizo, Amerindian, or other nonwhite groups 3%
Religions: nominally Roman Catholic 92% (less than 20% practicing), Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%
Languages: Spanish (official), English, Italian, German, French
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 96.2% male: 96.2% female: 96.2% (1995 est.)
@Argentina:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Argentine Republic conventional short form: Argentina local long form: Republica Argentina local short form: Argentina
Data code: AR
Government type: republic
Capital: Buenos Aires
Administrative divisions: 23 provinces (provincias, singular - provincia), and 1 federal district* (distrito federal); Buenos Aires; Catamarca; Chaco; Chubut; Cordoba; Corrientes; Distrito Federal*; Entre Rios; Formosa; Jujuy; La Pampa; La Rioja; Mendoza; Misiones; Neuquen; Rio Negro; Salta; San Juan; San Luis; Santa Cruz; Santa Fe; Santiago del Estero; Tierra del Fuego, Antartica e Islas del Atlantico Sur; Tucuman note: the US does not recognize any claims to Antarctica
Independence: 9 July 1816 (from Spain)
National holiday: Revolution Day, 25 May (1810)
Constitution: 1 May 1853; revised August 1994
Legal system: mixture of US and West European legal systems; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999); Vice President Carlos Alberto ALVAREZ (since 10 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government head of government: President Fernando DE LA RUA (since 10 December 1999); Vice President Carlos Alberto ALVAREZ (since 10 December 1999); note - the president is both the chief of state and head of government cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the president elections: president and vice president elected on the same ticket by popular vote for four-year terms; election last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2003) election results: Fernando DE LA RUA elected president; percent of vote - 48.5%
Legislative branch: bicameral National Congress or Congreso Nacional consists of the Senate (72 seats; formerly, three members appointed by each of the provincial legislatures; presently transitioning to one-third of the members being elected every two years to six-year terms) and the Chamber of Deputies (257 seats; one-half of the members elected every two years to four-year terms) elections: Senate - transition phase will begin in 2001 elections when all seats will be fully contested; winners will randomly draw to determine whether they will serve a two-year, four-year, or full six-year term, beginning a rotating cycle renovating a third of the body every two years; Chamber of Deputies - last held 24 October 1999 (next to be held NA October 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA; seats by bloc or party - Peronist 40, UCR 20, Frepaso 1, other 11; Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by bloc or party - NA; seats by bloc or party - Alliance 124 (UCR 85, Frepaso 36, others 3), Peronist 101, AR 12, other 20
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Corte Suprema), the nine Supreme Court judges are appointed by the president with approval of the Senate
Political parties and leaders: Action for the Republic or AR [Domingo CAVALLO]; Alliance (UCR, Frepaso and others) ; Front for a Country in Solidarity or Frepaso (a four-party coalition) [Carlos ALVAREZ]; Justicialist Party or PJ (Peronist umbrella political organization); Radical Civic Union or UCR [Raul ALFONSIN]; several provincial parties
Political pressure groups and leaders: Argentine Association of Pharmaceutical Labs (CILFA); Argentine Industrial Union (manufacturers' association); Argentine Rural Society (large landowners' association); Armed Forces; business organizations; General Confederation of Labor or CGT (Peronist-leaning umbrella labor organization); Peronist-dominated labor movement; Roman Catholic Church; students
International organization participation: AfDB, Australia Group, BCIE, CCC, ECLAC, FAO, G- 6, G-11, G-15, G-19, G-24, G-77, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, LAES, LAIA, Mercosur, MINURSO, MIPONUH, MTCR, NSG, OAS, OPANAL, OPCW, PCA, RG, UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIKOM, UNITAR, UNMIBH, UNMIK, UNMOP, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WCL, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Guillermo GONZALEZ Enrique chancery: 1600 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: (202) 238-6400 FAX: (202) 238-6471 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New York
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant) embassy: 4300 Colombia, 1425 Buenos Aires mailing address: international mail: use street address; APO address: Unit 4334, APO AA 34034 telephone: (1) 777-4533, 4534 FAX: (1) 777-0197
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of light blue (top), white, and light blue; centered in the white band is a radiant yellow sun with a human face known as the Sun of May
@Argentina:Economy
Economy - overview: Argentina benefits from rich natural resources, a highly literate population, an export-oriented agricultural sector, and a diversified industrial base. However, when President Carlos MENEM took office in 1989, the country had piled up huge external debts, inflation had reached 200% per month, and output was plummeting. To combat the economic crisis, the government embarked on a path of trade liberalization, deregulation, and privatization. In 1991, it implemented radical monetary reforms which pegged the peso to the US dollar and limited the growth in the monetary base by law to the growth in reserves. Inflation fell sharply in subsequent years. In 1995, the Mexican peso crisis produced capital flight, the loss of banking system deposits, and a severe, but short-lived, recession; a series of reforms to bolster the domestic banking system followed. Real GDP growth recovered strongly, reaching 8% in 1997. In 1998, international financial turmoil caused by Russia's problems and increasing investor anxiety over Brazil produced the highest domestic interest rates in more than three years, halving the growth rate of the economy. Conditions worsened in 1999 with GDP falling by 3%. President Fernando DE LA RUA, who took office in December 1999, sponsored tax increases and spending cuts to reduce the deficit, which had ballooned to 2.5% of GDP in 1999. The new government also arranged a new $7.4 billion stand-by facility with the IMF for contingency purposes - almost three times the size of the previous arrangement. Key challenges facing the new government include reforming the country's rigid labor code and addressing the precarious financial situation of several highly indebted provinces.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $367 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: -3% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $10,000 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 7% industry: 29% services: 64% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: 36% (1998 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): -2% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 15 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA%
Unemployment rate: 14% (December 1999)
Budget: revenues: $44 billion expenditures: $48 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA billion (2000 est.)
Industries: food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel
Industrial production growth rate: -7% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 75.237 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 42.71% hydro: 47.55% nuclear: 9.47% other: 0.27% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 75.57 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 250 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 5.85 billion kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock
Exports: $23 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: edible oils, fuels and energy, cereals, feed, motor vehicles
Exports - partners: Brazil 24%, EU 21%, US 11% (1999 est.)
Imports: $25 billion (c.i.f., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and equipment, motor vehicles, chemicals, metal manufactures, plastics
Imports - partners: EU 28%, US 22%, Brazil 21% (1999 est.)
Debt - external: $149 billion (1999 est.)
Economic aid - recipient: $2.833 billion (1995)
Currency: 1 peso = 100 centavos
Exchange rates: peso is pegged to the US dollar at an exchange rate of 1 peso = $1
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Argentina:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 7.5 million (1997)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 1.8 million (1997)
Telephone system: 12,000 public telephones; extensive modern system but many families do not have telephones; despite extensive use of microwave radio relay, the telephone system frequently fails during rainstorms, even in Buenos Aires domestic: microwave radio relay and a domestic satellite system with 40 earth stations serve the trunk network international: satellite earth stations - 3 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean); two international gateways near Buenos Aires; Atlantis II submarine cable (1999)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998)
Radios: 24.3 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 42 (plus 444 repeaters) (1997)
Televisions: 7.95 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 47 (1999)
@Argentina:Transportation
Railways: total: 38,326 km (160 km electrified) broad gauge: 24,481 km 1.676-m gauge (134 km electrified) standard gauge: 2,765 km 1.435-m gauge (26 km electrified) narrow gauge: 11,080 km 1.000-m gauge (1999)
Highways: total: 215,434 km paved: 63,553 km (including 734 km of expressways) unpaved: 151,881 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: 10,950 km navigable
Pipelines: crude oil 4,090 km; petroleum products 2,900 km; natural gas 9,918 km
Ports and harbors: Bahia Blanca, Buenos Aires, Comodoro Rivadavia, Concepcion del Uruguay, La Plata, Mar del Plata, Necochea, Rio Gallegos, Rosario, Santa Fe, Ushuaia
Merchant marine: total: 26 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 218,540 GRT/333,413 DWT ships by type: cargo 9, petroleum tanker 11, rail car carrier 1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off 1, short-sea passenger 2 (1999 est.)
Airports: 1,359 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 142 over 3,047 m: 5 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 60 914 to 1,523 m: 44 under 914 m: 7 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 1,217 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 63 914 to 1,523 m: 614 under 914 m: 536 (1999 est.)
@Argentina:Military
Military branches: Argentine Army, Navy of the Argentine Republic (includes Naval Aviation, Marines, and Coast Guard), Argentine Air Force, National Gendarmerie, National Aeronautical Police Force
Military manpower - military age: 20 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 9,287,499 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 7,530,476 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 341,544 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $4.3 billion (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.3% (FY99)
@Argentina:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: claims UK-administered Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas); claims UK-administered South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands; territorial claim in Antarctica
Illicit drugs: increasing use as a transshipment country for cocaine headed for Europe and the US; increasing use as a money-laundering center; domestic consumption of drugs has skyrocketed
ARMENIA
@Armenia:Introduction
Background: An Orthodox Christian country, Armenia was incorporated into Russia in 1828 and the USSR in 1920. Armenian leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Azerbaijan over Nagorno-Karabakh, a primarily Armenian-populated exclave, assigned to Soviet Azerbaijan in the 1920s by Moscow. Armenia and Azerbaijan began fighting over the exclave in 1988; the struggle escalated after both countries attained independence from the Soviet Union in 1991. By May 1994, when a cease-fire took hold, Armenian forces held not only Nagorno-Karabakh but also a significant portion of Azerbaijan proper. The economies of both sides have been hurt by their inability to make substantial progress toward a peaceful resolution.
@Armenia:Geography
Location: Southwestern Asia, east of Turkey
Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 45 00 E
Map references: Commonwealth of Independent States
Area: total: 29,800 sq km land: 28,400 sq km water: 1,400 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland
Land boundaries: total: 1,254 km border countries: Azerbaijan-proper 566 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 221 km, Georgia 164 km, Iran 35 km, Turkey 268 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: highland continental, hot summers, cold winters
Terrain: Armenian Highland with mountains; little forest land; fast flowing rivers; good soil in Aras River valley
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Debed River 400 m highest point: Aragats Lerr 4,095 m
Natural resources: small deposits of gold, copper, molybdenum, zinc, alumina
Land use: arable land: 17% permanent crops: 3% permanent pastures: 24% forests and woodland: 15% other: 41% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 2,870 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: occasionally severe earthquakes; droughts
Environment - current issues: soil pollution from toxic chemicals such as DDT; energy blockade, the result of conflict with Azerbaijan, has led to deforestation when citizens scavenged for firewood; pollution of Hrazdan (Razdan) and Aras Rivers; the draining of Sevana Lich (Lake Sevan), a result of its use as a source for hydropower, threatens drinking water supplies; restart of Metsamor nuclear power plant without adequate (IAEA-recommended) safety and backup systems
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants
Geography - note: landlocked
@Armenia:People
Population: 3,344,336 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 24% (male 415,297; female 400,590) 15-64 years: 66% (male 1,084,588; female 1,131,387) 65 years and over: 10% (male 129,890; female 182,584) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: -0.28% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 10.97 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 9.53 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: -4.23 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 41.48 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 66.4 years male: 61.98 years female: 71.04 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.47 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality: noun: Armenian(s) adjective: Armenian
Ethnic groups: Armenian 93%, Azeri 3%, Russian 2%, other (mostly Yezidi Kurds) 2% (1989) note: as of the end of 1993, virtually all Azeris had emigrated from
Religions: Armenian Orthodox 94%
Languages: Armenian 96%, Russian 2%, other 2%
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 98% (1989 est.)
@Armenia:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Armenia conventional short form: Armenia local long form: Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun local short form: Hayastan former: Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic; Armenian Republic
Data code: AM
Government type: republic
Capital: Yerevan
Administrative divisions: 10 provinces (marzer, singular - marz) and 1 city* (k'aghak'ner, singular - k'aghak'); Aragatsotn, Ararat, Armavir, Geghark'unik', Kotayk', Lorri, Shirak, Syunik', Tavush, Vayots' Dzor, Yerevan*
Independence: 28 May 1918-2 December 1920 (First Armenian Republic); 23 September 1991 (from Soviet Union)
National holiday: Referendum Day, 21 September
Constitution: adopted by nationwide referendum 5 July 1995
Legal system: based on civil law system
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: President Robert KOCHARIAN (since 30 March 1998) head of government: Prime Minister Aram SARKISYAN (since 3 November 1999) cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the prime minister elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; special election last held 30 March 1998 (next to be held NA March 2003); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Robert KOCHARIAN elected president; percent of vote - Robert KOCHARIAN 59%, Karen DEMIRCHYAN 41%
Legislative branch: unicameral National Assembly (Parliament) or Azgayin Zhoghov (131 seats; members serve four-year terms) elections: last held 30 May 1999 (next to be held in the spring of 2003) election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - unity bloc 61 (Republican Party 41, People's Party of Armenia 20), Stability Group (independent Armenian deputies who have formed a bloc) 21, ACP 10, independents 10, ARF (Dashnak) 8, Law and Unity Party 7, NDU 6, Law-Governed Party 6, unfilled 2; note - seats by party change frequently
Judicial branch: Supreme Court; Constitutional Court
Political parties and leaders: Armenian Communist Party or ACP ; Armenian National Movement or ANM [Vano SIRADEGIAN, chairman]; Armenian Revolutionary Federation ("Dashnak" Party) or ARF ; Christian Democratic Union or CDU ; Democratic Liberal Party [Ramkavar AZATAKAN, chairman]; Free Armenian's Mission [Ruben MNATSANIAN, chairman]; Law and Unity Party ; Law-Governed Party ; Mission Party ; National Democratic Union or NDU [Vazgen MANUKIAN]; National State Party ; People's Party of Armenia ; Republican Party ; Shamiram Women's Movement or SWM ; Social Democratic (Hnchakian) Party ; Stability Group [Vartan AYVAZIAN, chairman]; Union of National Self-Determination or NSDU International organization participation: BSEC, CCC, CE (guest), CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (observer), OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO (applicant)
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Arman KIRAKOSIAN chancery: 2225 R Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: (202) 319-1976 FAX: (202) 319-2982 consulate(s) general: Los Angeles
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Michael LEMMON embassy: 18 General Bagramian Avenue, Yerevan mailing address: American Embassy Yerevan, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7020 telephone: (2) 151-551 FAX: (2) 151-550
Flag description: three equal horizontal bands of red (top), blue, and orange
@Armenia:Economy
Economy - overview: Under the old Soviet central planning system, Armenia had developed a modern industrial sector, supplying machine tools, textiles, and other manufactured goods to sister republics in exchange for raw materials and energy. Since the implosion of the USSR in December 1991, Armenia has switched to small-scale agriculture away from the large agroindustrial complexes of the Soviet era. The agricultural sector has long-term needs for more investment and updated technology. The privatization of industry has been at a slower pace, but has been given renewed emphasis by the current administration. Armenia is a food importer, and its mineral deposits (gold, bauxite) are small. The ongoing conflict with Azerbaijan over the ethnic Armenian-dominated region of Nagorno-Karabakh and the breakup of the centrally directed economic system of the former Soviet Union contributed to a severe economic decline in the early 1990s. By 1994, however, the Armenian Government had launched an ambitious IMF-sponsored economic program that has resulted in positive growth rates in 1995-99. Armenia also managed to slash inflation and to privatize most small- and medium-sized enterprises. The chronic energy shortages Armenia suffered in recent years have been largely offset by the energy supplied by one of its nuclear power plants at Metsamor. Continued Russian financial difficulties have hurt the trade sector especially, but have been offset by international aid, domestic restructuring, and foreign direct investment.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $9.9 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 5% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $2,900 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 40% industry: 25% services: 35% (1999 est.)
Population below poverty line: 45% (1999 est.)
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2.5% (1999)
Labor force: 1.5 million (1999)
Labor force - by occupation: agriculture 55%, services 25%, manufacturing, mining, and construction 20% (1999 est.)
Unemployment rate: 20% (1998 est.) note: official rate is 9.3% for 1998
Budget: revenues: $360 million expenditures: $566 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)
Industries: metal-cutting machine tools, forging-pressing machines, electric motors, tires, knitted wear, hosiery, shoes, silk fabric, washing machines, chemicals, trucks, watches, instruments, microelectronics
Industrial production growth rate: -2% (1998)
Electricity - production: 5.764 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 48.92% hydro: 26.44% nuclear: 24.64% other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 5.361 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: fruit (especially grapes), vegetables; livestock
Exports: $240 million (1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: diamonds, scrap metal, machinery and equipment, cognac, copper ore
Exports - partners: Belgium, Russia, Iran, Turkmenistan, US, Georgia (1998)
Imports: $782 million (1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: natural gas, petroleum, tobacco products, foodstuffs, diamonds
Imports - partners: Russia, US, UK, Iran, Turkey, Belgium (1998)
Debt - external: $862.7 million (1999)
Economic aid - recipient: $245.5 million (1995)
Currency: 1 dram = 100 luma
Exchange rates: dram per US$1 - 527.02 (January 2000), 535.06 (1999), 504.92 (1998), 490.85 (1997), 414.04 (1996), 405.91 (1995)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Armenia:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 583,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: NA
Telephone system: system inadequate; now 90% privately owned and undergoing modernization and expansion domestic: the majority of subscribers and the most modern equipment are in Yerevan (this includes paging and mobile cellular service) international: Yerevan is connected to the Trans-Asia-Europe fiber-optic cable through Iran; additional international service is available by microwave radio relay and landline connections to the other countries of the Commonwealth of Independent States and through the Moscow international switch and by satellite to the rest of the world; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat
Radio broadcast stations: AM 9, FM 6, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 850,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 4 (1998)
Televisions: 825,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 1 (1999)
@Armenia:Transportation
Railways: total: 825 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines broad gauge: 825 km 1.520-m gauge (825 km electrified) (1995)
Highways: total: 15,998 km paved: 15,998 km (including 7,567 km of expressways) unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.)
Waterways: NA km
Pipelines: natural gas 900 km (1991)
Ports and harbors: none
Airports: 11 (1996 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 5 over 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 2 (1996 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 6 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 1 (1996 est.)
@Armenia:Military
Military branches: Army, Air Force and Air Defense Aviation, Air Defense Force, Security Forces (internal and border troops)
Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 896,646 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 708,940 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 33,391 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $75 million (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 4% (FY99)
@Armenia:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government; traditional demands regarding former Armenian lands in Turkey have subsided
Illicit drugs: illicit cultivator of cannabis mostly for domestic consumption; increasingly used as a transshipment point for illicit drugs - mostly opium and hashish - to Western Europe and the US via Iran, Central Asia, and Russia
ARUBA
@Aruba:Introduction
Background: Formerly one of the Netherlands Antilles, Aruba became an autonomous part of the Netherlands in 1986.
@Aruba:Geography
Location: Caribbean, island in the Caribbean Sea, north of Venezuela
Geographic coordinates: 12 30 N, 69 58 W
Map references: Central America and the Caribbean
Area: total: 193 sq km land: 193 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly larger than Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 68.5 km
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: tropical marine; little seasonal temperature variation
Terrain: flat with a few hills; scant vegetation
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Caribbean Sea 0 m highest point: Mount Jamanota 188 m
Natural resources: NEGL; white sandy beaches
Land use: arable land: 7% aloe plantations included (0.01%) permanent crops: NA% permanent pastures: NA% forests and woodland: NA% other: 93% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 0.01 sq km
Natural hazards: lies outside the Caribbean hurricane belt
Environment - current issues: NA
@Aruba:People
Population: 69,539 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 22% (male 7,770; female 7,194) 15-64 years: 69% (male 22,944; female 24,810) 65 years and over: 9% (male 2,831; female 3,990) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.7% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 13.1 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 6.13 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.92 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.71 male(s)/female total population: 0.93 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 6.51 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.37 years male: 75 years female: 81.9 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality: noun: Aruban(s) adjective: Aruban
Ethnic groups: mixed white/Caribbean Amerindian 80%
Religions: Roman Catholic 82%, Protestant 8%, Hindu, Muslim, Confucian, Jewish
Languages: Dutch (official), Papiamento (a Spanish, Portuguese, Dutch, English dialect), English (widely spoken), Spanish
Literacy: definition: NA total population: 97% male: NA% female: NA%
@Aruba:Government
Country name: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Aruba
Data code: AA
Dependency status: part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; full autonomy in internal affairs obtained in 1986 upon separation from the Netherlands Antilles
Government type: parliamentary democracy
Capital: Oranjestad
Administrative divisions: none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
Independence: none (part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands; in 1990, Aruba requested and received from the Netherlands cancellation of the agreement to automatically give independence to the island in 1996)
National holiday: Flag Day, 18 March
Constitution: 1 January 1986
Legal system: based on Dutch civil law system, with some English common law influence
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen BEATRIX Wilhelmina Armgard of the Netherlands (since 30 April 1980), represented by Governor General Olindo KOOLMAN (since 1 January 1992) head of government: Prime Minister Jan (Henny) H. EMAN (since 29 July 1994) and Deputy Prime Minister Dr. Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ (since NA) cabinet: Council of Ministers (elected by the Staten) elections: the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed for a six-year term by the monarch; prime minister and deputy prime minister elected by the Staten for four-year terms; election last held 12 July 1997 (next to be held by December 2001) election results: Jan (Henny) H. EMAN elected prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA; Dr. Lili BEKE-MARTINEZ elected deputy prime minister; percent of legislative vote - NA
Legislative branch: unicameral Legislature or Staten (21 seats; members elected by direct popular vote to serve four-year terms) elections: last held 12 December 1997 (next to be held by NA December 2001) election results: percent of vote by party - AVP 43%, MEP 39%, OLA 9% PPA 4%, ADN 2%, PARA 1%, MAS 0.5%; seats by party - AVP 10, MEP 9, OLA 2
Judicial branch: Joint High Court of Justice (judges are appointed by the monarch)
Political parties and leaders: Aruban Democratic Party or PDA [Leo BERLINSKI]; Aruban Liberal Party or OLA ; Aruban Patriotic Party or PPA ; Aruban People's Party or AVP ; Aruba Solidarity Movement or MAS ; Democratic Action '86 or AD '86 ; Electoral Movement Party or MEP ; Electoral People's Movement or MEP ; For a Restructured Aruba Now or PARA ; National Democratic Action or ADN ; New Patriotic Party or PPN
International organization participation: Caricom (observer), ECLAC (associate), Interpol, IOC, UNESCO (associate), WCL, WToO (associate)
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (represented by the Kingdom of the Netherlands)
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Consul General James L. WILLIAMS embassy: J. B. Gorsiraweg #1, Curacao mailing address: P. O. Box 158, Willemstad, Curacao telephone: (9) 461-3066 FAX: (9) 461-6489
Flag description: blue, with two narrow, horizontal, yellow stripes across the lower portion and a red, four-pointed star outlined in white in the upper hoist-side corner
@Aruba:Economy
Economy - overview: Tourism is the mainstay of the Aruban economy, although offshore banking and oil refining and storage are also important. The rapid growth of the tourism sector over the last decade has resulted in a substantial expansion of other activities. Construction has boomed, with hotel capacity five times the 1985 level. In addition, the reopening of the country's oil refinery in 1993, a major source of employment and foreign exchange earnings, has further spurred growth. Aruba's small labor force and less than 1% unemployment rate have led to a large number of unfilled job vacancies, despite sharp rises in wage rates in recent years.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $1.6 billion (1998 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 3% (1998)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $22,800 (1998 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: NA% industry: NA% services: NA%
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: NA% highest 10%: NA%
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 2% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 41,501 (1997 est.)
Labor force - by occupation: most employment is in wholesale and retail trade and repair, followed by hotels and restaurants (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 0.6% (1996 est.)
Budget: revenues: $NA expenditures: $541 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (2000 est.)
Industries: tourism, transshipment facilities, oil refining
Industrial production growth rate: NA%
Electricity - production: 475 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 100% hydro: 0% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 442 million kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: aloes; livestock; fish
Exports: $1.17 billion (including oil reexports)(1998)
Exports - commodities: transport equipment, live animals and animal products, art and collectibles, machinery and electrical equipment
Exports - partners: US 53.2%, Colombia 14.9%, Netherlands 8.8% (1998)
Imports: $1.52 billion (1998)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, crude oil for refining and reexport; foodstuffs
Imports - partners: US 55.5%, Netherlands 12.3%, Japan 3.5% (1998)
Debt - external: $285 million (1996)
Economic aid - recipient: $26 million (1995); note - the Netherlands provided a $127 million aid package to Aruba and Suriname in 1996
Currency: 1 Aruban florin (Af.) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Aruban florins (Af.) per US$1 - 1.7900 (fixed rate since 1986)
Fiscal year: calendar year
@Aruba:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 27,000 (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 1,718 (1995)
Telephone system: domestic: more than adequate international: 1 submarine cable to Sint Maarten (Netherlands Antilles); extensive interisland microwave radio relay links
Radio broadcast stations: AM 4, FM 6, shortwave 0 (1998)
Radios: 50,000 (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 1 (1997)
Televisions: 20,000 (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): NA
@Aruba:Transportation
Railways: 0 km
Highways: total: 800 km paved: 513 km unpaved: 287 km note: most coastal roads are paved, while unpaved roads serve large tracts of the interior (1995 est.)
Ports and harbors: Barcadera, Oranjestad, Sint Nicolaas
Airports: 2 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 1 (1999 est.)
@Aruba:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of the Kingdom of the Netherlands
@Aruba:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
Illicit drugs: drug-money-laundering center and transit point for narcotics bound for the US and Europe
ASHMORE AND CARTIER ISLANDS
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Geography
Location: Southeastern Asia, islands in the Indian Ocean, northwest of Australia
Geographic coordinates: 12 14 S, 123 05 E
Map references: Southeast Asia
Area: total: 5 sq km land: 5 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ashmore Reef (West, Middle, and East Islets) and Cartier Island
Area - comparative: about eight times the size of The Mall in Washington, DC
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 74.1 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 12 nm continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 3 nm
Climate: tropical
Terrain: low with sand and coral
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location 3 m
Natural resources: fish
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: 0% other: 100% (all grass and sand)
Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1993)
Natural hazards: surrounded by shoals and reefs that can pose maritime hazards
Environment - current issues: NA
Geography - note: Ashmore Reef National Nature Reserve established in August 1983
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:People
Population: no indigenous inhabitants note: there are only seasonal caretakers (July 2000 est.)
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands conventional short form: Ashmore and Cartier Islands
Data code: AT
Dependency status: territory of Australia; administered from Canberra by the Australian Department of the Environment, Sport, and Territories
Legal system: relevant laws of the Northern Territory of Australia
Diplomatic representation in the US: none (territory of Australia)
Diplomatic representation from the US: none (territory of Australia)
Flag description: the flag of Australia is used
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Economy
Economy - overview: no economic activity
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Transportation
Ports and harbors: none; offshore anchorage only
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Military
Military - note: defense is the responsibility of Australia; periodic visits by the Royal Australian Navy and Royal Australian Air Force
@Ashmore and Cartier Islands:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: none
ATLANTIC OCEAN
@Atlantic Ocean:Introduction
Background: A spring 2000 decision by the International Hydrographic Organization delimited a fifth world ocean from the southern portions of the Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, and Pacific Ocean. The new ocean extends from the coast of Antarctica north to 60 degrees south latitude which coincides with the Antarctic Treaty Limit. The Atlantic Ocean remains the second-largest of the world's five oceans (after the Pacific Ocean, but larger than the Indian Ocean, Southern Ocean, and Arctic Ocean).
@Atlantic Ocean:Geography
Location: body of water between Africa, Europe, the Southern Ocean, and the Western Hemisphere
Geographic coordinates: 0 00 N, 25 00 W
Map references: World
Area: total: 76.762 million sq km note: includes Baltic Sea, Black Sea, Caribbean Sea, Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, part of the Drake Passage, Gulf of Mexico, Mediterranean Sea, North Sea, Norwegian Sea, almost all of the Scotia Sea, and other tributary water bodies
Area - comparative: slightly less than 6.5 times the size of the US
Coastline: 111,866 km
Climate: tropical cyclones (hurricanes) develop off the coast of Africa near Cape Verde and move westward into the Caribbean Sea; hurricanes can occur from May to December, but are most frequent from August to November
Terrain: surface usually covered with sea ice in Labrador Sea, Denmark Strait, and Baltic Sea from October to June; clockwise warm-water gyre (broad, circular system of currents) in the northern Atlantic, counterclockwise warm-water gyre in the southern Atlantic; the ocean floor is dominated by the Mid-Atlantic Ridge, a rugged north-south centerline for the entire Atlantic basin
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Milwaukee Deep in the Puerto Rico Trench -8,605 m highest point: sea level 0 m
Natural resources: oil and gas fields, fish, marine mammals (seals and whales), sand and gravel aggregates, placer deposits, polymetallic nodules, precious stones
Natural hazards: icebergs common in Davis Strait, Denmark Strait, and the northwestern Atlantic Ocean from February to August and have been spotted as far south as Bermuda and the Madeira Islands; ships subject to superstructure icing in extreme northern Atlantic from October to May; persistent fog can be a maritime hazard from May to September; hurricanes (May to December)
Environment - current issues: endangered marine species include the manatee, seals, sea lions, turtles, and whales; drift net fishing is hastening the decline of fish stocks and contributing to international disputes; municipal sludge pollution off eastern US, southern Brazil, and eastern Argentina; oil pollution in Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, Lake Maracaibo, Mediterranean Sea, and North Sea; industrial waste and municipal sewage pollution in Baltic Sea, North Sea, and Mediterranean Sea
Geography - note: major chokepoints include the Dardanelles, Strait of Gibraltar, access to the Panama and Suez Canals; strategic straits include the Strait of Dover, Straits of Florida, Mona Passage, The Sound (Oresund), and Windward Passage; the Equator divides the Atlantic Ocean into the North Atlantic Ocean and South Atlantic Ocean
@Atlantic Ocean:Government
Data code: none; the US Government has not approved a standard for hydrographic codes - see the Cross-Reference List of Hydrographic Data Codes appendix
@Atlantic Ocean:Economy
Economy - overview: The Atlantic Ocean provides some of the world's most heavily trafficked sea routes, between and within the Eastern and Western Hemispheres. Other economic activity includes the exploitation of natural resources, e.g., fishing, the dredging of aragonite sands (The Bahamas), and production of crude oil and natural gas (Caribbean Sea, Gulf of Mexico, and North Sea).
@Atlantic Ocean:Transportation
Ports and harbors: Alexandria (Egypt), Algiers (Algeria), Antwerp (Belgium), Barcelona (Spain), Buenos Aires (Argentina), Casablanca (Morocco), Colon (Panama), Copenhagen (Denmark), Dakar (Senegal), Gdansk (Poland), Hamburg (Germany), Helsinki (Finland), Las Palmas (Canary Islands, Spain), Le Havre (France), Lisbon (Portugal), London (UK), Marseille (France), Montevideo (Uruguay), Montreal (Canada), Naples (Italy), New Orleans (US), New York (US), Oran (Algeria), Oslo (Norway), Peiraiefs or Piraeus (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Saint Petersburg (Russia), Stockholm (Sweden)
Transportation - note: Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two important waterways
@Atlantic Ocean:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: some maritime disputes (see littoral states)
AUSTRALIA
@Australia:Introduction
Background: Australia became a commonwealth of the British Empire in 1901. It was able to take advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef. A referendum to change Australia's status, from a commonwealth headed by the British monarch to an independent republic, was defeated in 1999.
@Australia:Geography
Location: Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean
Geographic coordinates: 27 00 S, 133 00 E
Map references: Oceania
Area: total: 7,686,850 sq km land: 7,617,930 sq km water: 68,920 sq km note: includes Lord Howe Island and Macquarie Island
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than the US
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 25,760 km
Maritime claims: contiguous zone: 24 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
Climate: generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
Terrain: mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m highest point: Mount Kosciuszko 2,229 m
Natural resources: bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum
Land use: arable land: 6% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 54% forests and woodland: 19% other: 21% (1993 est.)
Irrigated land: 21,070 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: cyclones along the coast; severe droughts
Environment - current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources
Environment - international agreements: party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification
Geography - note: world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as "the Doctor" occurs along the west coast in the summer
@Australia:People
Population: 19,169,083 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 21% (male 2,052,095; female 1,954,543) 15-64 years: 67% (male 6,458,083; female 6,322,475) 65 years and over: 12% (male 1,040,950; female 1,340,937) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.02% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 13.08 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 7.12 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 4.26 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.78 male(s)/female total population: 0.99 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 5.04 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 79.75 years male: 76.9 years female: 82.74 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.79 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality: noun: Australian(s) adjective: Australian
Ethnic groups: Caucasian 92%, Asian 7%, aboriginal and other 1%
Religions: Anglican 26.1%, Roman Catholic 26%, other Christian 24.3%, non-Christian 11%
Languages: English, native languages
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 100% male: 100% female: 100% (1980 est.)
@Australia:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia conventional short form: Australia
Data code: AS
Government type: democratic, federal-state system recognizing the British monarch as sovereign
Capital: Canberra
Administrative divisions: 6 states and 2 territories*; Australian Capital Territory*, New South Wales, Northern Territory*, Queensland, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria, Western Australia
Dependent areas: Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island
Independence: 1 January 1901 (federation of UK colonies)
National holiday: Australia Day, 26 January (1788)
Constitution: 9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901
Legal system: based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal and compulsory
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952), represented by Governor General Sir William DEANE (since 16 February 1996) head of government: Prime Minister John Winston HOWARD (since 11 March 1996); Deputy Prime Minister John ANDERSON (since NA) cabinet: Cabinet selected from among the members of Federal Parliament by the governor general on the advice of the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor general appointed by the monarch; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition is usually appointed prime minister by the governor general for a three-year term note: government coalition - Liberal Party and National Party
Legislative branch: bicameral Federal Parliament consists of the Senate (76 seats - 12 from each of the six states and two from each of the two territories; one-half of the members elected every three years by popular vote to serve six-year terms) and the House of Representatives (148 seats; members elected by popular vote on the basis of proportional representation to serve three-year terms; no state can have fewer than five representatives) elections: Senate - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001); House of Representatives - last held 3 October 1998 (next to be held by October 2001) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 35, Australian Labor Party 29, Australian Democratic Party 9, Green Party 1, One Nation Party 1, independent 1; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - Liberal Party-National Party coalition 80, Australian Labor Party 67, independent 1
Judicial branch: High Court, the Chief Justice and six other justices are appointed by the governor general
Political parties and leaders: Australian Democratic Party ; Australian Labor Party ; Green Party ; Liberal Party ; National Party ; One Nation Party
Political pressure groups and leaders: Australian Democratic Labor Party (anti-Communist Labor Party splinter group); Peace and Nuclear Disarmament Action (Nuclear Disarmament Party splinter group)
International organization participation: ANZUS, APEC, AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, C, CCC, CP, EBRD, ESCAP, FAO, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OECD, OPCW, PCA, Sparteca, SPC, SPF, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNFICYP, UNHCR, UNITAR, UNTAET, UNTSO, UNU, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Michael THAWLEY chancery: 1601 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20036 telephone: (202) 797-3000 FAX: (202) 797-3168 consulate(s) general: Atlanta, Honolulu, Los Angeles, New York, and San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Genta Hawkins HOLMES embassy: Moonah Place, Yarralumla, Canberra, Australian Capital Territory 2600 mailing address: APO AP 96549 telephone: (6) 6214-5600 FAX: (6) 6214-5970 consulate(s) general: Melbourne, Perth, and Sydney
Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four, larger, seven-pointed stars
@Australia:Economy
Economy - overview: Australia has a prosperous Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP at the level of the four dominant West European economies. Rich in natural resources, Australia is a major exporter of agricultural products, minerals, metals, and fossil fuels. Commodities account for 57% of the value of total exports, so that a downturn in world commodity prices can have a big impact on the economy. The government is pushing for increased exports of manufactured goods, but competition in international markets continues to be severe. While Australia has suffered from the low growth and high unemployment characterizing the OECD countries in the early 1990s and during the recent financial problems in East Asia, the economy has expanded at a solid 4% annual growth pace in the last five years. Canberra's emphasis on reforms is a key factor behind the economy's resilience to the regional crisis and its stronger than expected growth rate. Growth in 2000 will depend on key international commodity prices, the extent of recovery in nearby Asian economies, and the strength of US and European markets.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $416.2 billion (1999 est.)
GDP - real growth rate: 4.3% (1999 est.)
GDP - per capita: purchasing power parity - $22,200 (1999 est.)
GDP - composition by sector: agriculture: 3% industry: 26% services: 71% (1998 est.)
Population below poverty line: NA%
Household income or consumption by percentage share: lowest 10%: 2.5% highest 10%: 24.8% (1989)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 1.8% (1999 est.)
Labor force: 8.9 million (December 1999)
Labor force - by occupation: services 73%, industry 22%, agriculture 5% (1997 est.)
Unemployment rate: 7.5% (1999)
Budget: revenues: $90.73 billion expenditures: $89.04 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA (FY98/99 est.)
Industries: mining, industrial and transportation equipment, food processing, chemicals, steel
Industrial production growth rate: 1.5% (1999 est.)
Electricity - production: 186.387 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - production by source: fossil fuel: 89.85% hydro: 8.35% nuclear: 0% other: 1.8% (1998)
Electricity - consumption: 173.34 billion kWh (1998)
Electricity - exports: 0 kWh (1998)
Electricity - imports: 0 kWh (1998)
Agriculture - products: wheat, barley, sugarcane, fruits; cattle, sheep, poultry
Exports: $58 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Exports - commodities: coal, gold, meat, wool, alumina, iron ore, wheat, machinery and transport equipment
Exports - partners: Japan 20%, EU 14%, ASEAN 11%, US 10%, South Korea, NZ, Taiwan, Hong Kong, China (1998)
Imports: $67 billion (f.o.b., 1999 est.)
Imports - commodities: machinery and transport equipment, computers and office machines, telecommunication equipment and parts; crude oil and petroleum products
Imports - partners: EU 24%, US 22%, Japan 14%, ASEAN 12% (1998)
Debt - external: $222 billion (1999)
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $1.43 billion (FY97/98)
Currency: 1 Australian dollar ($A) = 100 cents
Exchange rates: Australian dollars ($A) per US$1 - 1.52068 (January 2000), 1.5497 (1999), 1.5888 (1998), 1.3439 (1997), 1.2773 (1996), 1.3486 (1995)
Fiscal year: 1 July - 30 June
@Australia:Communications
Telephones - main lines in use: 92 million (1995)
Telephones - mobile cellular: 5.29 million (1998)
Telephone system: excellent domestic and international service domestic: domestic satellite system international: submarine cables to New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and Indonesia; satellite earth stations - 10 Intelsat (4 Indian Ocean and 6 Pacific Ocean), 2 Inmarsat (Indian and Pacific Ocean regions)
Radio broadcast stations: AM 262, FM 345, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios: 25.5 million (1997)
Television broadcast stations: 104 (1997)
Televisions: 10.15 million (1997)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 709 (1999)
@Australia:Transportation
Railways: total: 33,819 km (2,540 km electrified) broad gauge: 3,719 km 1.600-m gauge standard gauge: 15,422 km 1.435-m gauge narrow gauge: 14,506 km 1.067-m gauge dual gauge: 172 km NA gauges (1999)
Highways: total: 913,000 km paved: 353,331 km (including 13,630 km of expressways) unpaved: 559,669 km (1996 est.)
Waterways: 8,368 km; mainly by small, shallow-draft craft
Pipelines: crude oil 2,500 km; petroleum products 500 km; natural gas 5,600 km
Ports and harbors: Adelaide, Brisbane, Cairns, Darwin, Devonport (Tasmania), Fremantle, Geelong, Hobart (Tasmania), Launceston (Tasmania), Mackay, Melbourne, Sydney, Townsville
Merchant marine: total: 57 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,657,194 GRT/2,206,574 DWT ships by type: bulk 28, cargo 4, chemical tanker 4, container 1, liquified gas 4, passenger 2, petroleum tanker 8, roll-on/roll-off 6 (1999 est.)
Airports: 408 (1999 est.)
Airports - with paved runways: total: 265 over 3,047 m: 11 2,438 to 3,047 m: 11 1,524 to 2,437 m: 115 914 to 1,523 m: 120 under 914 m: 8 (1999 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 143 1,524 to 2,437 m: 18 914 to 1,523 m: 113 under 914 m: 12 (1999 est.)
@Australia:Military
Military branches: Australian Army, Royal Australian Navy, Royal Australian Air Force
Military manpower - military age: 17 years of age
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 4,963,948 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 4,282,821 (2000 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 135,434 (2000 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $6.9 billion (FY98/99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 1.9% (FY98/99)
@Australia:Transnational Issues
Disputes - international: territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian Antarctic Territory)
Illicit drugs: Tasmania is one of the world's major suppliers of licit opiate products; government maintains strict controls over areas of opium poppy cultivation and output of poppy straw concentrate
AUSTRIA
@Austria:Introduction
Background: Once the center of power for the large Austro-Hungarian Empire, Austria was reduced to a small republic after its defeat in World War I. Following annexation by Nazi Germany in 1938 and subsequent occupation by the victorious Allies, Austria's 1955 State Treaty declared the country "permanently neutral" as a condition of Soviet military withdrawal. Neutrality, once ingrained as part of the Austrian cultural identity, has been called into question since the Soviet collapse and Austria's increasingly prominent role in European affairs. A prosperous country, Austria joined the European Union in 1995 and the euro monetary system in 1999.
@Austria:Geography
Location: Central Europe, north of Italy and Slovenia
Geographic coordinates: 47 20 N, 13 20 E
Map references: Europe
Area: total: 83,858 sq km land: 82,738 sq km water: 1,120 sq km
Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maine
Land boundaries: total: 2,562 km border countries: Czech Republic 362 km, Germany 784 km, Hungary 366 km, Italy 430 km, Liechtenstein 35 km, Slovakia 91 km, Slovenia 330 km, Switzerland 164 km
Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
Maritime claims: none (landlocked)
Climate: temperate; continental, cloudy; cold winters with frequent rain in lowlands and snow in mountains; cool summers with occasional showers
Terrain: in the west and south mostly mountains (Alps); along the eastern and northern margins mostly flat or gently sloping
Elevation extremes: lowest point: Neusiedler See 115 m highest point: Grossglockner 3,798 m
Natural resources: iron ore, oil, timber, magnesite, lead, coal, lignite, copper, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 17% permanent crops: 1% permanent pastures: 23% forests and woodland: 39% other: 20% (1996 est.)
Irrigated land: 40 sq km (1993 est.)
Natural hazards: NA
Environment - current issues: some forest degradation caused by air and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of agricultural chemicals; air pollution results from emissions by coal- and oil-fired power stations and industrial plants and from trucks transiting Austria between northern and southern Europe
Environment - international agreements: party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol
Geography - note: landlocked; strategic location at the crossroads of central Europe with many easily traversable Alpine passes and valleys; major river is the Danube; population is concentrated on eastern lowlands because of steep slopes, poor soils, and low temperatures elsewhere
@Austria:People
Population: 8,131,111 (July 2000 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 17% (male 697,283; female 663,459) 15-64 years: 68% (male 2,787,555; female 2,731,446) 65 years and over: 15% (male 474,067; female 777,301) (2000 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.25% (2000 est.)
Birth rate: 9.9 births/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Death rate: 9.91 deaths/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Net migration rate: 2.46 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2000 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.02 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.61 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2000 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 4.5 deaths/1,000 live births (2000 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 77.68 years male: 74.52 years female: 80.99 years (2000 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.39 children born/woman (2000 est.)
Nationality: noun: Austrian(s) adjective: Austrian
Ethnic groups: German 98%, Croatian, Slovene, other (includes Hungarians, Czechs, Slovaks, Roma)
Religions: Roman Catholic 78%, Protestant 5%, Muslim and other 17%
Languages: German
Literacy: definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 98% male: NA% female: NA%
@Austria:Government
Country name: conventional long form: Republic of Austria conventional short form: Austria local long form: Republik Oesterreich local short form: Oesterreich |
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