Chapter 97
Geographic note: the north coast of South Georgia has several large bays, which provide good anchorage; reindeer, introduced early in this century, live on South Georgia
People ------
Population: no indigenous population; there is a small military garrison on South Georgia, and the British Antarctic Survey has a biological station on Bird Island; the South Sandwich Islands are uninhabited
Government ----------
Name of country: conventional long form: South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands conventional short form: none
Data code: SX
Type of government: dependent territory of the UK
Capital: none; Grytviken on South Georgia is the garrison town
Administrative divisions: none (dependent territory of the UK)
Independence: none (dependent territory of the UK)
National holiday: Liberation Day, 14 June (1982)
Constitution: 3 October 1985
Legal system: English common law
Executive branch: chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (of the United Kingdom since 6 February 1952), a hereditary monarch, is represented by Commissioner David Everard TATHAM (since August 1992; resident at Stanley, Falkland Islands)
Legislative branch: no elections
Judicial branch: none
Flag: the flag of the UK is used
Economy -------
Economic overview: Some fishing takes place in adjacent waters. There is a potential source of income from harvesting fin fish and krill. The islands receive income from postage stamps produced in the UK.
Budget: revenues: $291,777 expenditures: $451,000, including capital expenditures of $NA (1988 est.)
Electricity: capacity: 900 kW production: 2 million kWh consumption per capita: NA kWh (1992)
Transportation --------------
Highways: total: NA km paved: NA km unpaved: NA km
Ports: Grytviken
Airports: none
Communications --------------
Telephones: NA
Telephone system: domestic: NA international: coastal radiotelephone station at Grytviken
Radio broadcast stations: AM 0, FM 0, shortwave 0
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: 0
Televisions: NA
Defense -------
Defense note: defense is the responsibility of the UK
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@Spain -----
Map ---
Location: 40 00 N, 4 00 W -- Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, and North Atlantic Ocean, southwest of France
Flag ----
Description: three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar
Geography ---------
Location: Southwestern Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay, Mediterranean Sea, and North Atlantic Ocean, southwest of France
Geographic coordinates: 40 00 N, 4 00 W
Map references: Europe
Area: total area: 504,750 sq km land area: 499,400 sq km comparative area: slightly more than twice the size of Oregon note: includes Balearic Islands, Canary Islands, and five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of Morocco - Ceuta, Mellila, Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera
Land boundaries: total: 1,903.2 km border countries: Andorra 65 km, France 623 km, Gibraltar 1.2 km, Portugal 1,214 km note: excludes the length of the boundary between the places of sovereignty and Morocco
Coastline: 4,964 km
Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: Gibraltar question with UK; Spain controls five places of sovereignty (plazas de soberania) on and off the coast of Morocco - the coastal enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla, which Morocco contests, as well as the islands of Penon de Alhucemas, Penon de Velez de la Gomera, and Islas Chafarinas
Climate: temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate and cloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudy and cool along coast
Terrain: large, flat to dissected plateau surrounded by rugged hills; Pyrenees in north lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m highest point: Pico de Teide on Canary Islands 3,718 m
Natural resources: coal, lignite, iron ore, uranium, mercury, pyrites, fluorspar, gypsum, zinc, lead, tungsten, copper, kaolin, potash, hydropower
Land use: arable land: 31% permanent crops: 10% meadows and pastures: 21% forest and woodland: 31% other: 7%
Irrigated land: 33,600 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment: current issues: pollution of the Mediterranean Sea from raw sewage and effluents from the offshore production of oil and gas; air pollution; deforestation; desertification natural hazards: periodic droughts international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur 94, Desertification, Law of the Sea
Geographic note: strategic location along approaches to Strait of Gibraltar
People ------
Population: 39,181,114 (July 1996 est.)
Age structure: 0-14 years: 16% (male 3,237,942; female 3,055,881) 15-64 years: 68% (male 13,380,956; female 13,352,582) 65 years and over: 16% (male 2,566,728; female 3,587,025) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 0.16% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 10.04 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 8.86 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: 0.44 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.07 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.72 male(s)/female all ages: 0.96 male(s)/female (1996 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 6.3 deaths/1,000 live births (1996 est.)
Life expectancy at birth: total population: 78.26 years male: 74.95 years female: 81.81 years (1996 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.26 children born/woman (1996 est.)
Nationality: noun: Spaniard(s) adjective: Spanish
Ethnic divisions: composite of Mediterranean and Nordic types
Religions: Roman Catholic 99%, other sects 1%
Languages: Castilian Spanish, Catalan 17%, Galician 7%, Basque 2%
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1986 est.) total population: 96% male: 98% female: 94%
Government ----------
Name of country: conventional long form: Kingdom of Spain conventional short form: Spain local short form: Espana
Data code: SP
Type of government: parliamentary monarchy
Capital: Madrid
Administrative divisions: 17 autonomous communities (comunidades autonomas, singular - comunidad autonoma); Andalucia, Aragon, Asturias, Canarias, Cantabria, Castilla-La Mancha, Castilla y Leon, Cataluna, Communidad Valencia, Extremadura, Galicia, Islas Baleares, La Rioja, Madrid, Murcia, Navarra, Pais Vasco note: there are five places of sovereignty on and off the coast of Morocco (Ceuta, Mellila, Islas Chafarinas, Penon de Alhucemas, and Penon de Velez de la Gomera) with administrative status unknown
Independence: 1492 (expulsion of the Moors and unification)
National holiday: National Day, 12 October
Constitution: 6 December 1978, effective 29 December 1978
Legal system: civil law system, with regional applications; does not accept compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal
Executive branch: chief of state: King JUAN CARLOS I (since 22 November 1975) is a hereditary monarch head of government: Prime Minister Jose Maria AZNAR (since 5 May 1996) was proposed by the king and voted into office by the National Assembly on 4 May 1996; AZNAR's Popular Party defeated Felipe GONZALEZ Marques's Socialist Workers Party in the 3 March 1996 legislative election; Deputy Prime Minister (vacant) cabinet: Council of Ministers was designated by the prime minister Council of State: is the supreme consultative organ of the government
Legislative branch: bicameral The General Courts or National Assembly (Las Cortes Generales) Senate (Senado): elections last held 3 March 1996 (next to be held by March 2000); results - percent of vote by party NA; seats - (256 total) PP 132, PSOE 96, CiU 11, PNV 6, IU 2, others 9 Congress of Deputies (Congreso de los Diputados): elections last held 3 March 1996 (next to be held by March 2000); results - PP 38.9%, PSOE 37.5%, IU 10.7%, CiU 4.6%; seats - (350 total) PSOE 141, PP 156, IU 21, CiU 16, other 16
Judicial branch: Supreme Court (Tribunal Supremo)
Political parties and leaders: principal national parties from right to left: Popular Party (PP), Jose Maria AZNAR Lopez; Spanish Socialist Workers Party (PSOE), Felipe GONZALEZ Marquez, secretary general; Spanish Communist Party (PCE), Julio ANGUITA Gonzalez; United Left (IU - a coalition of parties including the PCE, a branch of the PSOE, and other small parties), Julio ANGUITA Gonzalez chief regional parties: Convergence and Union (CiU), Jordi PUJOL, secretary general (a coalition of the Democratic Convergence of Catalonia (CDC), Pere ESTEVE, and the Democratic Union of Catalonia (UDC), Josep Antoni DURAN LLEIDA); Basque Nationalist Party (PNV), Xabier ARZALLUS Antia and Jose Antonio ARDANZA; Basque United People (HB or Herri Batasuna, ETA's political wing), Juan Cruz IDIGORAS; Canarian Coalition (CC), a coalition of five parties
Other political or pressure groups: on the extreme left, the Basque Fatherland and Liberty (ETA) and the First of October Antifascist Resistance Group (GRAPO) use terrorism to oppose the government; free labor unions (authorized in April 1977); Workers Confederation (CC.OO); the Socialist General Union of Workers (UGT), and the smaller independent Workers Syndical Union (USO); business and landowning interests; the Catholic Church; Opus Dei; university students
International organization participation: AfDB, AG (observer), AsDB, Australia Group, BIS, CCC, CE, CERN, EBRD, ECE, ECLAC, EIB, ESA, EU, FAO, G- 8, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MTCR, NACC, NAM (guest), NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OSCE, PCA, UN, UNCRO, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNPREDEP, UNPROFOR, UNU, UPU, WCL, WEU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US: chief of mission: Ambassador Jaime De OJEDA Eiseley chancery: 2375 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20037 telephone: [1] (202) 452-0100, 728-2340 FAX: [1] (202) 833-5670 consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, San Francisco, and San Juan (Puerto Rico)
US diplomatic representation: chief of mission: Ambassador Richard N. GARDNER embassy: Serrano 75, 28006 Madrid mailing address: APO AE 09642 telephone: [34] (1) 577-4000, 577-2301 FAX: [34] (1) 577-5735 consulate(s) general: Barcelona
Flag: three horizontal bands of red (top), yellow (double width), and red with the national coat of arms on the hoist side of the yellow band; the coat of arms includes the royal seal framed by the Pillars of Hercules, which are the two promontories (Gibraltar and Ceuta) on either side of the eastern end of the Strait of Gibraltar
Economy -------
Economic overview: Spain, with a mixed capitalist economy and a per capita GDP two-thirds that of the four leading economies of Western Europe, has shared with these countries the recession of the early 1990s, the gradual upturn of 1994-95, and the ongoing controversies over the timing and terms of European economic union. Reduction of the budget deficit - at 5.9% of GDP in 1995 - to meet the Maastricht monetary convergence criterion of 3% by 1997 remains the primary goal of Spanish economic policy, but political pressures had kept the Socialist government from implementing the full range of reforms necessary to meet this goal. Spain's official unemployment rate of 23% is the highest in the EU, and the troubled Socialists had been reluctant to cut social spending. Parliament rejected the administration's proposed 1996 budget because of political wrangling - not because of great differences with the substance of the spending plan - forcing the government to continue spending at 1995 levels and use piecemeal decrees to raise consumption taxes to a level consistent with inflation. The conservative opposition Popular Party, now in power after ending 13 years of Socialist rule in the spring of 1996, has promised to cut government spending, loosen regulations on financial markets, and lower taxes to spur job creation. The conservatives have stated support for Spain's role in the EU but also have cautioned against harming Spain's economy by moving too quickly to meet the criteria for monetary union.
GDP: purchasing power parity - $565 billion (1995 est.)
GDP real growth rate: 3% (1995 est.)
GDP per capita: $14,300 (1995 est.)
GDP composition by sector: agriculture: 3.6% industry: 33.6% services: 62.8% (1995 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 4.3% (1995)
Labor force: 11.837 million by occupation: services 59%, industry 21%, agriculture 11%, construction 9% (1993 est.)
Unemployment rate: 22.8% (yearend 1995)
Budget: revenues: $96.8 billion expenditures: $122.5 billion, including capital expenditures of $5.7 billion (1994 est.)
Industries: textiles and apparel (including footwear), food and beverages, metals and metal manufactures, chemicals, shipbuilding, automobiles, machine tools, tourism
Industrial production growth rate: 7% (1995 est.)
Electricity: capacity: 43,800,000 kW production: 148 billion kWh consumption per capita: 3,545 kWh (1993)
Agriculture: grain, vegetables, olives, wine grapes, sugar beets, citrus; beef, pork, poultry, dairy products; fish catch of 1.4 million metric tons is among top 20 nations
Illicit drugs: key European gateway country for Latin American cocaine and North African hashish entering the European market; transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin
Exports: $85 billion (f.o.b., 1995) commodities: cars and trucks, semifinished manufactured goods, foodstuffs, machinery partners: EU 68.7%, US 4.9%, other developed countries 7.9% (1994)
Imports: $110 billion (c.i.f., 1995) commodities: machinery, transport equipment, fuels, semifinished goods, foodstuffs, consumer goods, chemicals partners: EU 60.9%, US 7.3%, other developed countries 11.5%, Middle East 6.2% (1994)
External debt: $90 billion (1993 est.)
Economic aid: donor: ODA, $1.213 billion (1993)
Currency: 1 peseta (Pta) = 100 centimos
Exchange rates: pesetas (Ptas) per US$1 - 123.19 (January 1996), 124.69 (1995), 133.96 (1994), 127.26 (1993), 102.38 (1992), 103.91 (1991)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Transportation --------------
Railways: total: 14,343 km broad gauge: 12,139 km 1.668-m gauge (6,510 km electrified; 2,295 km double track) standard gauge: 488 km 1.435-m gauge (488 km electrified) narrow gauge: 1,716 km (privately owned: 1,669 km 1.000-m gauge, 489 km electrified; 28 km 0.914-m gauge, 28 km electrified; government owned: 19 km 1.000-m gauge, all electrified)
Highways: total: 331,961 km paved: 328,641 km (including 2,700 km of expressways) unpaved: 3,320 km (1991 est.)
Waterways: 1,045 km, but of minor economic importance
Pipelines: crude oil 265 km; petroleum products 1,794 km; natural gas 1,666 km
Ports: Aviles, Barcelona, Bilbao, Cadiz, Cartagena, Castellon de la Plana, Ceuta, Huelva, La Coruna, Las Palmas (Canary Islands), Malaga, Melilla, Pasajes, Puerto de Gijon, Santa Cruz de Tenerife (Canary Islands), Santander, Tarragona, Valencia, Vigo
Merchant marine: total: 147 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 874,688 GRT/1,391,421 DWT ships by type: bulk 9, cargo 36, chemical tanker 11, combination ore/oil 1, container 8, liquefied gas tanker 4, oil tanker 25, passenger 2, refrigerated cargo 12, roll-on/roll-off cargo 32, short-sea passenger 6, specialized tanker 1 (1995 est.)
Airports: total: 96 with paved runways over 3 047 m: 15 with paved runways 2 438 to 3 047 m: 11 with paved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 15 with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 13 with paved runways under 914 m: 28 with unpaved runways 1 524 to 2 437 m: 2 with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 12 (1995 est.)
Heliports: 2 (1995 est.)
Communications --------------
Telephones: 12.6 million (1990 est.)
Telephone system: generally adequate, modern facilities domestic: NA international: 22 coaxial submarine cables; satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (1 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), NA Eutelsat, NA Inmarsat, and NA Marecs; tropospheric scatter to adjacent countries
Radio broadcast stations: AM 190, FM 406 (repeaters 134), shortwave 0
Radios: 12 million (1992 est.)
Television broadcast stations: 100 (repeaters 1,297)
Televisions: 15.7 million (1992 est.)
Defense -------
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, Civil Guard, National Police, Coastal Civil Guard
Manpower availability: males age 15-49: 10,360,209 males fit for military service: 8,370,197 males reach military age (20) annually: 341,670 (1996 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $6.3 billion, 1.4% of GDP (1995)
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@Spratly Islands ---------------
Map ---
Location: 8 38 N, 111 55 E -- Southeastern Asia, group of reefs in the South China Sea, about two-thirds of the way from southern Vietnam to the southern Philippines
Geography ---------
Location: Southeastern Asia, group of reefs in the South China Sea, about two-thirds of the way from southern Vietnam to the southern Philippines
Geographic coordinates: 8 38 N, 111 55 E
Map references: Southeast Asia
Area: total area: NA sq km but less than 5 sq km land area: less than 5 sq km comparative area: NA note: includes 100 or so islets, coral reefs, and sea mounts scattered over the South China Sea
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 926 km
Maritime claims: NA
International disputes: all of the Spratly Islands are claimed by China, Taiwan, and Vietnam; parts of them are claimed by Malaysia and the Philippines; in 1984, Brunei established an exclusive economic zone, which encompasses Louisa Reef, but has not publicly claimed the island
Climate: tropical
Terrain: flat lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Southwest Cay 4 m
Natural resources: fish, guano, undetermined oil and natural gas potential
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% meadows and pastures: 0% forest and woodland: 0% other: 100%
Irrigated land: 0 sq km
Environment: current issues: NA natural hazards: typhoons; serious maritime hazard because of numerous reefs and shoals international agreements: NA
Geographic note: strategically located near several primary shipping lanes in the central South China Sea; includes numerous small islands, atolls, shoals, and coral reefs
People ------
Population: no indigenous inhabitants; note - there are scattered garrisons
Government ----------
Name of country: conventional long form: none conventional short form: Spratly Islands
Data code: PG
Economy -------
Economic overview: Economic activity is limited to commercial fishing. The proximity to nearby oil- and gas-producing sedimentary basins suggests the potential for oil and gas deposits, but the region is largely unexplored, and there are no reliable estimates of potential reserves; commercial exploitation has yet to be developed.
Industries: none
Transportation --------------
Ports: none
Airports: total: 4 with paved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 1 with paved runways under 914 m: 2 with unpaved runways 914 to 1 523 m: 1 (1995 est.)
Communications --------------
Telephone system: domestic: NA international: NA
Radio broadcast stations: AM NA, FM NA, shortwave NA
Radios: NA
Television broadcast stations: NA
Televisions: NA
Defense -------
Defense note: about 50 small islands or reefs are occupied by China, Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam
======================================================================
@Sri Lanka ---------
Map ---
Location: 7 00 N, 81 00 E -- Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Flag ----
Description: yellow with two panels; the smaller hoist-side panel has two equal vertical bands of green (hoist side) and orange; the other panel is a large dark red rectangle with a yellow lion holding a sword, and there is a yellow bo leaf in each corner; the yellow field appears as a border that goes around the entire flag and extends between the two panels
Geography ---------
Location: Southern Asia, island in the Indian Ocean, south of India
Geographic coordinates: 7 00 N, 81 00 E
Map references: Asia
Area: total area: 65,610 sq km land area: 64,740 sq km comparative area: slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries: 0 km
Coastline: 1,340 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
International disputes: none
Climate: tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon (June to October)
Terrain: mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Pidurutalagala 2,524 m
Natural resources: limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay
Land use: arable land: 16% permanent crops: 17% meadows and pastures: 7% forest and woodland: 37% other: 23%
Irrigated land: 5,600 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment: current issues: deforestation; soil erosion; wildlife populations threatened by poaching; coastal degradation from mining activities and increased pollution; freshwater resources being polluted by industrial wastes and sewage runoff natural hazards: occasional cyclones and tornadoes international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands, Whaling; signed, but not ratified - Marine Life Conservation
Geographic note: strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes
People ------
Population: 18,553,074 (July 1996 est.) note: since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil separatists in the mid-1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have fled the island; as of late 1992, nearly 115,000 were housed in refugee camps in south India, another 95,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and more than 200,000 Tamils have sought political asylum in the West
Age structure: 0-14 years: 28% (male 2,673,943; female 2,559,569) 15-64 years: 66% (male 6,023,759; female 6,171,964) 65 years and over: 6% (male 553,940; female 569,899) (July 1996 est.)
Population growth rate: 1.13% (1996 est.)
Birth rate: 17.89 births/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Death rate: 5.8 deaths/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Net migration rate: -0.78 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1996 est.)
Sex ratio: at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.98 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.97 male(s)/female all ages: 1 male(s)/female (1996 est.)