Chapter 85

Egypt:desert; hot, dry summers with moderate winters

El Salvador:tropical; rainy season (May to October); dry season(November to April); tropical on coast; temperate in uplands

Equatorial Guinea:tropical; always hot, humid

Eritrea:hot, dry desert strip along Red Sea coast; cooler andwetter in the central highlands (up to 61 cm of rainfall annually);semiarid in western hills and lowlands; rainfall heaviest duringJune-September except in coastal desert

Estonia:maritime, wet, moderate winters, cool summers

Ethiopia:tropical monsoon with wide topographic-induced variation

Europa Island:tropical

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas): cold marine; strong westerly winds, cloudy, humid; rain occurs on more than half of days in year; occasional snow all year, except in January and February, but does not accumulate

Faroe Islands:mild winters, cool summers; usually overcast; foggy,windy

Fiji:tropical marine; only slight seasonal temperature variation

Finland:cold temperate; potentially subarctic, but comparativelymild because of moderating influence of the North Atlantic Current,Baltic Sea, and more than 60,000 lakes

France:generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild wintersand hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold,dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral

French Guiana:tropical; hot, humid; little seasonal temperaturevariation

French Polynesia:tropical, but moderate

French Southern and Antarctic Lands:antarctic

Gabon:tropical; always hot, humid

Gambia, The:tropical; hot, rainy season (June to November); cooler,dry season (November to May)

Gaza Strip:temperate, mild winters, dry and warm to hot summers

Georgia:warm and pleasant; Mediterranean-like on Black Sea coast

Germany:temperate and marine; cool, cloudy, wet winters andsummers; occasional warm foehn wind

Ghana:tropical; warm and comparatively dry along southeast coast;hot and humid in southwest; hot and dry in north

Gibraltar:Mediterranean with mild winters and warm summers

Glorioso Islands:tropical

Greece:temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers

Greenland:arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters

Grenada:tropical; tempered by northeast trade winds

Guadeloupe:subtropical tempered by trade winds; moderately highhumidity

Guam:tropical marine; generally warm and humid, moderated bynortheast trade winds; dry season from January to June, rainy seasonfrom July to December; little seasonal temperature variation

Guatemala:tropical; hot, humid in lowlands; cooler in highlands

Guernsey:temperate with mild winters and cool summers; about 50% ofdays are overcast

Guinea:generally hot and humid; monsoonal-type rainy season (Juneto November) with southwesterly winds; dry season (December to May)with northeasterly harmattan winds

Guinea-Bissau:tropical; generally hot and humid; monsoonal-typerainy season (June to November) with southwesterly winds; dry season(December to May) with northeasterly harmattan winds

Guyana:tropical; hot, humid, moderated by northeast trade winds;two rainy seasons (May to mid-August, mid-November to mid-January)

Haiti:tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds

Heard Island and McDonald Islands:antarctic

Holy See (Vatican City): temperate; mild, rainy winters (September to mid-May) with hot, dry summers (May to September)

Honduras:subtropical in lowlands, temperate in mountains

Hong Kong:tropical monsoon; cool and humid in winter, hot and rainyfrom spring through summer, warm and sunny in fall

Howland Island:equatorial; scant rainfall, constant wind, burningsun

Hungary:temperate; cold, cloudy, humid winters; warm summers

Iceland:temperate; moderated by North Atlantic Current; mild, windywinters; damp, cool summers

India:varies from tropical monsoon in south to temperate in north

Indian Ocean:northeast monsoon (December to April), southwestmonsoon (June to October); tropical cyclones occur during May/Juneand October/November in the northern Indian Ocean andJanuary/February in the southern Indian Ocean

Indonesia:tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands

Iran:mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast

Iraq:mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudlesssummers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkishborders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows thatmelt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding incentral and southern Iraq

Ireland:temperate maritime; modified by North Atlantic Current;mild winters, cool summers; consistently humid; overcast about halfthe time

Israel:temperate; hot and dry in southern and eastern desert areas

Italy:predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry insouth

Jamaica:tropical; hot, humid; temperate interior

Jan Mayen:arctic maritime with frequent storms and persistent fog

Japan:varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north

Jarvis Island:tropical; scant rainfall, constant wind, burning sun

Jersey:temperate; mild winters and cool summers

Johnston Atoll:tropical, but generally dry; consistent northeasttrade winds with little seasonal temperature variation

Jordan:mostly arid desert; rainy season in west (November to April)

Juan de Nova Island:tropical

Kazakhstan:continental, cold winters and hot summers, arid andsemiarid

Kenya:varies from tropical along coast to arid in interior

Kingman Reef:tropical, but moderated by prevailing winds

Kiribati:tropical; marine, hot and humid, moderated by trade winds

Korea, North:temperate with rainfall concentrated in summer

Korea, South:temperate, with rainfall heavier in summer than winter

Kuwait:dry desert; intensely hot summers; short, cool winters

Kyrgyzstan:dry continental to polar in high Tien Shan; subtropicalin southwest (Fergana Valley); temperate in northern foothill zone

Laos:tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season(December to April)

Latvia:maritime; wet, moderate winters

Lebanon:Mediterranean; mild to cool, wet winters with hot, drysummers; Lebanon mountains experience heavy winter snows

Lesotho:temperate; cool to cold, dry winters; hot, wet summers

Liberia:tropical; hot, humid; dry winters with hot days and cool tocold nights; wet, cloudy summers with frequent heavy showers

Libya:Mediterranean along coast; dry, extreme desert interior

Liechtenstein:continental; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snowor rain; cool to moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers

Lithuania:transitional, between maritime and continental; wet,moderate winters and summers

Luxembourg:modified continental with mild winters, cool summers

Macau:subtropical; marine with cool winters, warm summers

Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of: warm, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall

Madagascar:tropical along coast, temperate inland, arid in south

Malawi:sub-tropical; rainy season (November to May); dry season(May to November)

Malaysia:tropical; annual southwest (April to October) andnortheast (October to February) monsoons

Maldives:tropical; hot, humid; dry, northeast monsoon (November toMarch); rainy, southwest monsoon (June to August)

Mali:subtropical to arid; hot and dry February to June; rainy,humid, and mild June to November; cool and dry November to February

Malta:Mediterranean with mild, rainy winters and hot, dry summers

Man, Isle of:cool summers and mild winters; temperate; overcastabout one-third of the time

Marshall Islands:wet season from May to November; hot and humid;islands border typhoon belt

Martinique:tropical; moderated by trade winds; rainy season (Juneto October); vulnerable to devastating cyclones (hurricanes) everyeight years on average; average temperature 17.3 degrees C; humid

Mauritania:desert; constantly hot, dry, dusty

Mauritius:tropical, modified by southeast trade winds; warm, drywinter (May to November); hot, wet, humid summer (November to May)

Mayotte:tropical; marine; hot, humid, rainy season duringnortheastern monsoon (November to May); dry season is cooler (May toNovember)

Mexico:varies from tropical to desert

Micronesia, Federated States of:tropical; heavy year-roundrainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southernedge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage

Midway Islands:subtropical, but moderated by prevailing easterlywinds

Moldova:moderate winters, warm summers

Monaco:Mediterranean with mild, wet winters and hot, dry summers

Mongolia:desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperatureranges)

Montserrat:tropical; little daily or seasonal temperature variation

Morocco:Mediterranean, becoming more extreme in the interior

Mozambique:tropical to subtropical

Namibia:desert; hot, dry; rainfall sparse and erratic

Nauru:tropical; monsoonal; rainy season (November to February)

Navassa Island:marine, tropical

Nepal:varies from cool summers and severe winters in north tosubtropical summers and mild winters in south

Netherlands:temperate; marine; cool summers and mild winters

Netherlands Antilles:tropical; ameliorated by northeast trade winds

New Caledonia:tropical; modified by southeast trade winds; hot,humid

New Zealand:temperate with sharp regional contrasts

Nicaragua:tropical in lowlands, cooler in highlands

Niger:desert; mostly hot, dry, dusty; tropical in extreme south

Nigeria:varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid innorth

Niue:tropical; modified by southeast trade winds

Norfolk Island:subtropical, mild, little seasonal temperaturevariation

Northern Mariana Islands:tropical marine; moderated by northeasttrade winds, little seasonal temperature variation; dry seasonDecember to June, rainy season July to October

Norway:temperate along coast, modified by North Atlantic Current;colder interior with increased precipitation and colder summerscausing glaciers to grow; rainy year-round on west coast

Oman:dry desert; hot, humid along coast; hot, dry interior; strongsouthwest summer monsoon (May to September) in far south

Pacific Ocean:planetary air pressure systems and resultant windpatterns exhibit remarkable uniformity in the south and east; tradewinds and westerly winds are well-developed patterns, modified byseasonal fluctuations; tropical cyclones (hurricanes) may form southof Mexico from June to October and affect Mexico and CentralAmerica; continental influences cause climatic uniformity to be muchless pronounced in the eastern and western regions at the samelatitude in the North Pacific Ocean; the western Pacific ismonsoonal - a rainy season occurs during the summer months, whenmoisture-laden winds blow from the ocean over the land, and a dryseason during the winter months, when dry winds blow from the Asianlandmass back to the ocean; tropical cyclones (typhoons) may strikesoutheast and east Asia from May to December

Pakistan:mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic innorth

Palau:wet season May to November; hot and humid

Palmyra Atoll:equatorial, hot, and very rainy

Panama:tropical maritime; hot, humid, cloudy; prolonged rainyseason (May to January), short dry season (January to May)

Papua New Guinea:tropical; northwest monsoon (December to March),southeast monsoon (May to October); slight seasonal temperaturevariation

Paracel Islands:tropical

Paraguay:subtropical to temperate; substantial rainfall in theeastern portions, becoming semiarid in the far west

Peru:varies from tropical in east to dry desert in west; temperateto frigid in Andes

Philippines:tropical marine; northeast monsoon (November to April);southwest monsoon (May to October)

Pitcairn Islands:tropical, hot, humid; modified by southeast tradewinds; rainy season (November to March)

Poland:temperate with cold, cloudy, moderately severe winters withfrequent precipitation; mild summers with frequent showers andthundershowers

Portugal:maritime temperate; cool and rainy in north, warmer anddrier in south

Puerto Rico:tropical marine, mild; little seasonal temperaturevariation

Qatar:desert; hot, dry; humid and sultry in summer

Reunion:tropical, but temperature moderates with elevation; cooland dry from May to November, hot and rainy from November to April

Romania:temperate; cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow and fog;sunny summers with frequent showers and thunderstorms

Russia:ranges from steppes in the south through humid continentalin much of European Russia; subarctic in Siberia to tundra climatein the polar north; winters vary from cool along Black Sea coast tofrigid in Siberia; summers vary from warm in the steppes to coolalong Arctic coast

Rwanda:temperate; two rainy seasons (February to April, November toJanuary); mild in mountains with frost and snow possible

Saint Helena:Saint Helena - tropical; marine; mild, tempered bytrade winds; Tristan da Cunha - temperate; marine, mild, tempered bytrade winds (tends to be cooler than Saint Helena)

Saint Kitts and Nevis:tropical tempered by constant sea breezes;little seasonal temperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

Saint Lucia:tropical, moderated by northeast trade winds; dryseason from January to April, rainy season from May to August

Saint Pierre and Miquelon:cold and wet, with much mist and fog;spring and autumn are windy

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines:tropical; little seasonaltemperature variation; rainy season (May to November)

Samoa:tropical; rainy season (October to March), dry season (May toOctober)

San Marino:Mediterranean; mild to cool winters; warm, sunny summers

Sao Tome and Principe:tropical; hot, humid; one rainy season(October to May)

Saudi Arabia:harsh, dry desert with great extremes of temperature

Senegal:tropical; hot, humid; rainy season (May to November) hasstrong southeast winds; dry season (December to April) dominated byhot, dry, harmattan wind

Seychelles:tropical marine; humid; cooler season during southeastmonsoon (late May to September); warmer season during northwestmonsoon (March to May)

Sierra Leone:tropical; hot, humid; summer rainy season (May toDecember); winter dry season (December to April)

Singapore:tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons- Northeastern monsoon from December to March and Southwesternmonsoon from June to September; inter-monsoon - frequent afternoonand early evening thunderstorms

Slovakia:temperate; cool summers; cold, cloudy, humid winters

Slovenia:Mediterranean climate on the coast, continental climatewith mild to hot summers and cold winters in the plateaus andvalleys to the east

Solomon Islands:tropical monsoon; few extremes of temperature andweather

Somalia:principally desert; December to February - northeastmonsoon, moderate temperatures in north and very hot in south; Mayto October - southwest monsoon, torrid in the north and hot in thesouth, irregular rainfall, hot and humid periods (tangambili)between monsoons

South Africa:mostly semiarid; subtropical along east coast; sunnydays, cool nights

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands:variable, with mostlywesterly winds throughout the year interspersed with periods ofcalm; nearly all precipitation falls as snow

Southern Ocean:sea temperatures vary from about 10 degrees Celsiusto -2 degrees Celsius; cyclonic storms travel eastward around thecontinent and frequently are intense because of the temperaturecontrast between ice and open ocean; the ocean area from aboutlatitude 40 south to the Antarctic Circle has the strongest averagewinds found anywhere on Earth; in winter the ocean freezes outwardto 65 degrees south latitude in the Pacific sector and 55 degreessouth latitude in the Atlantic sector, lowering surface temperatureswell below 0 degrees Celsius; at some coastal points intensepersistent drainage winds from the interior keep the shorelineice-free throughout the winter

Spain:temperate; clear, hot summers in interior, more moderate andcloudy along coast; cloudy, cold winters in interior, partly cloudyand cool along coast

Spratly Islands:tropical

Sri Lanka:tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March);southwest monsoon (June to October)

Sudan:tropical in south; arid desert in north; rainy season (Aprilto October)

Suriname:tropical; moderated by trade winds

Svalbard:arctic, tempered by warm North Atlantic Current; coolsummers, cold winters; North Atlantic Current flows along west andnorth coasts of Spitsbergen, keeping water open and navigable mostof the year

Swaziland:varies from tropical to near temperate

Sweden:temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool,partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north

Switzerland:temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy,rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers withoccasional showers

Syria:mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) andmild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weatherwith snow or sleet periodically hitting Damascus

Tajikistan:midlatitude continental, hot summers, mild winters;semiarid to polar in Pamir Mountains

Tanzania:varies from tropical along coast to temperate in highlands

Thailand:tropical; rainy, warm, cloudy southwest monsoon (mid-Mayto September); dry, cool northeast monsoon (November to mid-March);southern isthmus always hot and humid

Togo:tropical; hot, humid in south; semiarid in north

Tokelau:tropical; moderated by trade winds (April to November)

Tonga:tropical; modified by trade winds; warm season (December toMay), cool season (May to December)

Trinidad and Tobago:tropical; rainy season (June to December)

Tromelin Island:tropical

Tunisia:temperate in north with mild, rainy winters and hot, drysummers; desert in south

Turkey:temperate; hot, dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsherin interior

Turkmenistan:subtropical desert

Turks and Caicos Islands:tropical; marine; moderated by tradewinds; sunny and relatively dry

Tuvalu:tropical; moderated by easterly trade winds (March toNovember); westerly gales and heavy rain (November to March)

Uganda:tropical; generally rainy with two dry seasons (December toFebruary, June to August); semiarid in northeast

Ukraine:temperate continental; Mediterranean only on the southernCrimean coast; precipitation disproportionately distributed, highestin west and north, lesser in east and southeast; winters vary fromcool along the Black Sea to cold farther inland; summers are warmacross the greater part of the country, hot in the south

United Arab Emirates:desert; cooler in eastern mountains

United Kingdom:temperate; moderated by prevailing southwest windsover the North Atlantic Current; more than one-half of the days areovercast

United States:mostly temperate, but tropical in Hawaii and Florida,arctic in Alaska, semiarid in the great plains west of theMississippi River, and arid in the Great Basin of the southwest; lowwinter temperatures in the northwest are ameliorated occasionally inJanuary and February by warm chinook winds from the eastern slopesof the Rocky Mountains

Uruguay:warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown

Uzbekistan:mostly midlatitude desert, long, hot summers, mildwinters; semiarid grassland in east

Vanuatu:tropical; moderated by southeast trade winds

Venezuela:tropical; hot, humid; more moderate in highlands

Vietnam:tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainyseason (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-Octoberto mid-March)

Virgin Islands:subtropical, tempered by easterly trade winds,relatively low humidity, little seasonal temperature variation;rainy season May to November

Wake Island:tropical

Wallis and Futuna:tropical; hot, rainy season (November to April);cool, dry season (May to October); rains 2,500-3,000 mm per year(80% humidity); average temperature 26.6 degrees C

West Bank:temperate, temperature and precipitation vary withaltitude, warm to hot summers, cool to mild winters

Western Sahara:hot, dry desert; rain is rare; cold offshore aircurrents produce fog and heavy dew

World:two large areas of polar climates separated by two rathernarrow temperate zones from a wide equatorial band of tropical tosubtropical climates

Yemen:mostly desert; hot and humid along west coast; temperate inwestern mountains affected by seasonal monsoon; extraordinarily hot,dry, harsh desert in east

Yugoslavia:in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot,humid summers with well distributed rainfall); central portion,continental and Mediterranean climate; to the south, Adriaticclimate along the coast, hot, dry summers and autumns and relativelycold winters with heavy snowfall inland

Zambia:tropical; modified by altitude; rainy season (October toApril)

Zimbabwe:tropical; moderated by altitude; rainy season (November toMarch)

Taiwan:tropical; marine; rainy season during southwest monsoon(June to August); cloudiness is persistent and extensive all year

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@Coastline

Afghanistan:0 km (landlocked)

Albania:362 km

Algeria:998 km

American Samoa:116 km

Andorra:0 km (landlocked)

Angola:1,600 km

Anguilla:61 km

Antarctica:17,968 km

Antigua and Barbuda:153 km

Arctic Ocean:45,389 km

Argentina:4,989 km

Armenia:0 km (landlocked)

Aruba:68.5 km

Ashmore and Cartier Islands:74.1 km

Atlantic Ocean:111,866 km

Australia:25,760 km

Austria:0 km (landlocked)

Azerbaijan:0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the CaspianSea (800 km, est.)

Bahamas, The:3,542 km

Bahrain:161 km

Baker Island:4.8 km

Bangladesh:580 km

Barbados:97 km

Bassas da India:35.2 km

Belarus:0 km (landlocked)

Belgium:66 km

Belize:386 km

Benin:121 km

Bermuda:103 km

Bhutan:0 km (landlocked)

Bolivia:0 km (landlocked)

Bosnia and Herzegovina:20 km

Botswana:0 km (landlocked)

Bouvet Island:29.6 km

Brazil:7,491 km

British Indian Ocean Territory:698 km

British Virgin Islands:80 km

Brunei:161 km

Bulgaria:354 km

Burkina Faso:0 km (landlocked)

Burma:1,930 km

Burundi:0 km (landlocked)

Cambodia:443 km

Cameroon:402 km

Canada:243,791 km

Cape Verde:965 km

Cayman Islands:160 km

Central African Republic:0 km (landlocked)

Chad:0 km (landlocked)

Chile:6,435 km

China:14,500 km

Christmas Island:138.9 km

Clipperton Island:11.1 km

Cocos (Keeling) Islands:2.6 km

Colombia:3,208 km (Caribbean Sea 1,760 km, North Pacific Ocean1,448 km)

Comoros:340 km

Congo, Democratic Republic of the:37 km

Congo, Republic of the:169 km

Cook Islands:120 km

Coral Sea Islands:3,095 km

Costa Rica:1,290 km

Cote d'Ivoire:515 km

Croatia:5,835 km (mainland 1,777 km, islands 4,058 km)

Cuba:3,735 km

Cyprus:648 km

Czech Republic:0 km (landlocked)

Denmark:7,314 km

Djibouti:314 km

Dominica:148 km

Dominican Republic:1,288 km

Ecuador:2,237 km

Egypt:2,450 km

El Salvador:307 km

Equatorial Guinea:296 km

Eritrea:2,234 km total; mainland on Red Sea 1,151 km, islands inRed Sea 1,083 km

Estonia:3,794 km

Ethiopia:0 km (landlocked)

Europa Island:22.2 km

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas):1,288 km

Faroe Islands:1,117 km

Fiji:1,129 km

Finland:1,126 km (excludes islands and coastal indentations)

France:3,427 km

French Guiana:378 km

French Polynesia:2,525 km

French Southern and Antarctic Lands:1,232 km

Gabon:885 km

Gambia, The:80 km

Gaza Strip:40 km

Georgia:310 km

Germany:2,389 km

Ghana:539 km

Gibraltar:12 km

Glorioso Islands:35.2 km

Greece:13,676 km

Greenland:44,087 km

Grenada:121 km

Guadeloupe:306 km

Guam:125.5 km

Guatemala:400 km

Guernsey:50 km

Guinea:320 km

Guinea-Bissau:350 km

Guyana:459 km

Haiti:1,771 km

Heard Island and McDonald Islands:101.9 km

Holy See (Vatican City):0 km (landlocked)

Honduras:820 km

Hong Kong:733 km

Howland Island:6.4 km

Hungary:0 km (landlocked)

Iceland:4,988 km

India:7,000 km

Indian Ocean:66,526 km

Indonesia:54,716 km

Iran:2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km)

Iraq:58 km

Ireland:1,448 km

Israel:273 km

Italy:7,600 km

Jamaica:1,022 km

Jan Mayen:124.1 km

Japan:29,751 km

Jarvis Island:8 km

Jersey:70 km

Johnston Atoll:10 km

Jordan:26 km

Juan de Nova Island:24.1 km

Kazakhstan:0 km (landlocked); note - Kazakhstan borders the AralSea, now split into two bodies of water (1,070 km), and the CaspianSea (1,894 km)

Kenya:536 km

Kingman Reef:3 km

Kiribati:1,143 km

Korea, North:2,495 km

Korea, South:2,413 km

Kuwait:499 km

Kyrgyzstan:0 km (landlocked)

Laos:0 km (landlocked)

Latvia:531 km

Lebanon:225 km

Lesotho:0 km (landlocked)

Liberia:579 km

Libya:1,770 km

Liechtenstein:0 km (landlocked)

Lithuania:99 km

Luxembourg:0 km (landlocked)

Macau:40 km

Macedonia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of:0 km (landlocked)

Madagascar:4,828 km

Malawi:0 km (landlocked)

Malaysia:4,675 km (Peninsular Malaysia 2,068 km, East Malaysia2,607 km)

Maldives:644 km

Mali:0 km (landlocked)

Malta:196.8 km (does not include 56.01 km for the island of Gozo)

Man, Isle of:160 km

Marshall Islands:370.4 km

Martinique:350 km

Mauritania:754 km

Mauritius:177 km

Mayotte:185.2 km

Mexico:9,330 km

Micronesia, Federated States of:6,112 km

Midway Islands:15 km

Moldova:0 km (landlocked)

Monaco:4.1 km

Mongolia:0 km (landlocked)

Montserrat:40 km

Morocco:1,835 km

Mozambique:2,470 km

Namibia:1,572 km

Nauru:30 km

Navassa Island:8 km

Nepal:0 km (landlocked)

Netherlands:451 km

Netherlands Antilles:364 km

New Caledonia:2,254 km

New Zealand:15,134 km

Nicaragua:910 km

Niger:0 km (landlocked)

Nigeria:853 km

Niue:64 km

Norfolk Island:32 km

Northern Mariana Islands:1,482 km

Norway:21,925 km (includes mainland 3,419 km, large islands 2,413km, long fjords, numerous small islands, and minor indentations16,093 km)

Oman:2,092 km

Pacific Ocean:135,663 km

Pakistan:1,046 km

Palau:1,519 km

Palmyra Atoll:14.5 km

Panama:2,490 km

Papua New Guinea:5,152 km

Paracel Islands:518 km

Paraguay:0 km (landlocked)

Peru:2,414 km

Philippines:36,289 km

Pitcairn Islands:51 km

Poland:491 km

Portugal:1,793 km

Puerto Rico:501 km

Qatar:563 km

Reunion:207 km

Romania:225 km

Russia:37,653 km

Rwanda:0 km (landlocked)

Saint Helena:60 km

Saint Kitts and Nevis:135 km

Saint Lucia:158 km

Saint Pierre and Miquelon:120 km

Saint Vincent and the Grenadines:84 km

Samoa:403 km

San Marino:0 km (landlocked)

Sao Tome and Principe:209 km

Saudi Arabia:2,640 km

Senegal:531 km

Seychelles:491 km

Sierra Leone:402 km

Singapore:193 km

Slovakia:0 km (landlocked)

Slovenia:46.6 km

Solomon Islands:5,313 km

Somalia:3,025 km

South Africa:2,798 km

South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands:NA km

Southern Ocean:17,968 km

Spain:4,964 km

Spratly Islands:926 km

Sri Lanka:1,340 km

Sudan:853 km

Suriname:386 km

Svalbard:3,587 km

Swaziland:0 km (landlocked)

Sweden:3,218 km

Switzerland:0 km (landlocked)

Syria:193 km

Tajikistan:0 km (landlocked)

Tanzania:1,424 km

Thailand:3,219 km

Togo:56 km

Tokelau:101 km

Tonga:419 km

Trinidad and Tobago:362 km

Tromelin Island:3.7 km

Tunisia:1,148 km

Turkey:7,200 km

Turkmenistan:0 km; note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea(1,768 km)

Turks and Caicos Islands:389 km

Tuvalu:24 km

Uganda:0 km (landlocked)

Ukraine:2,782 km

United Arab Emirates:1,318 km

United Kingdom:12,429 km

United States:19,924 km

Uruguay:660 km

Uzbekistan:0 km; note - Uzbekistan includes the southern portion ofthe Aral Sea with a 420 km shoreline

Vanuatu:2,528 km

Venezuela:2,800 km

Vietnam:3,444 km (excludes islands)

Virgin Islands:188 km

Wake Island:19.3 km

Wallis and Futuna:129 km

West Bank:0 km (landlocked)

Western Sahara:1,110 km

World:356,000 km

Yemen:1,906 km

Yugoslavia:199 km

Zambia:0 km (landlocked)

Zimbabwe:0 km (landlocked)

Taiwan:1,566.3 km

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@Communications - note

Bouvet Island: automatic meteorological station

Coral Sea Islands: there are automatic weather stations on many of the isles and reefs relaying data to the mainland

Europa Island:1 meteorological station

Glorioso Islands:1 meteorological station

Juan de Nova Island:1 meteorological station

Saint Helena:Gough Island has a meteorological station

Tromelin Island:important meteorological station

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@Constitution

Afghanistan:none

Albania:a new constitution was adopted by popular referendum on 28November 1998; note - the opposition Democratic Party boycotted thevote

Algeria:19 November 1976, effective 22 November 1976; revised 3November 1988, 23 February 1989, and 28 November 1996; note -referendum approving the revisions of 28 November 1996 was signedinto law 7 December 1996

American Samoa:ratified 1966, in effect 1967

Andorra:Andorra's first written constitution was drafted in 1991;approved by referendum 14 March 1993; came into force 4 May 1993

Angola:11 November 1975; revised 7 January 1978, 11 August 1980, 6March 1991, and 26 August 1992

Anguilla:Anguilla Constitutional Order 1 April 1982; amended 1990

Antigua and Barbuda:1 November 1981

Argentina:1 May 1853; revised August 1994

Armenia:adopted by nationwide referendum 5 July 1995

Aruba:1 January 1986

Australia:9 July 1900, effective 1 January 1901

Austria:1920; revised 1929 (reinstated 1 May 1945)

Azerbaijan:adopted 12 November 1995

Bahamas, The:10 July 1973

Bahrain:adopted late December 2000 (new constitution calls for apartially elected legislature, a constitutional monarchy, and anindependent judiciary)

Bangladesh:4 November 1972, effective 16 December 1972, suspendedfollowing coup of 24 March 1982, restored 10 November 1986, amendedmany times

Barbados:30 November 1966

Belarus:30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers andbecame effective 27 November 1996

Belgium:7 February 1831, last revised 14 July 1993; parliamentapproved a constitutional package creating a federal state

Belize:21 September 1981

Benin:December 1990

Bermuda:8 June 1968, amended 1989

Bhutan:no written constitution or bill of rights; note - Bhutanuses 1953 Royal decree for the Constitution of the NationalAssembly; on 7 July 1998, a Royal edict was ratified giving theNational Assembly additional powers

Bolivia:2 February 1967; revised in August 1994

Bosnia and Herzegovina:the Dayton Agreement, signed 14 December1995, included a new constitution now in force

Botswana:March 1965, effective 30 September 1966

Brazil:5 October 1988

British Virgin Islands:1 June 1977

Brunei:29 September 1959 (some provisions suspended under a Stateof Emergency since December 1962, others since independence on 1January 1984)

Bulgaria:adopted 12 July 1991

Burkina Faso:2 June 1991 approved by referendum; 11 June 1991formally adopted

Burma:3 January 1974 (suspended since 18 September 1988); nationalconvention started on 9 January 1993 to draft a new constitution;progress has since been stalled

Burundi:13 March 1992; provided for establishment of a pluralpolitical system; supplanted on 6 June 1998 by a TransitionalConstitution which enlarged the National Assembly and created twovice presidents

Cambodia:promulgated 21 September 1993

Cameroon:20 May 1972 approved by referendum; 2 June 1972 formallyadopted; revised January 1996

Canada:17 April 1982 (Constitution Act); originally, the machineryof the government was set up in the British North America Act of1867; charter of rights and unwritten customs

Cape Verde:new constitution came into force 25 September 1992;underwent a major revision on 23 November 1995, substantiallyincreasing the powers of the president

Cayman Islands:1959, revised 1972 and 1992

Central African Republic: passed by referendum 29 December 1994; adopted 7 January 1995

Chad:passed by referendum 31 March 1995

Chile:11 September 1980, effective 11 March 1981, amended 30 July1989, 1993, and 1997

China:most recent promulgation 4 December 1982

Christmas Island:Christmas Island Act of 1958

Cocos (Keeling) Islands:Cocos (Keeling) Islands Act of 1955

Colombia:5 July 1991

Comoros:20 October 1996

Congo, Democratic Republic of the: 24 June 1967, amended August 1974, revised 15 February 1978, amended April 1990; transitional constitution promulgated in April 1994; in November 1998, a draft constitution was approved by former President Laurent KABILA but it has not been ratified by a national referendum

Congo, Republic of the: Draft constitution approved by transitional parliament in September 2000

Cook Islands:4 August 1965

Costa Rica:7 November 1949

Cote d'Ivoire:3 November 1960; has been amended numerous times,last time 27 July 1998

Croatia:adopted on 22 December 1990

Cuba:24 February 1976, amended July 1992

Cyprus:16 August 1960; negotiations to create the basis for a newor revised constitution to govern the island and to better relationsbetween Greek and Turkish Cypriots have been held intermittently; in1975 Turkish Cypriots created their own constitution and governingbodies within the "Turkish Federated State of Cyprus," which wasrenamed the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" in 1983; a newconstitution for the Turkish Cypriot area passed by referendum on 5May 1985

Czech Republic:ratified 16 December 1992; effective 1 January 1993

Denmark:1849 was the original constitution; there was a majoroverhaul 5 June 1953, allowing for a unicameral legislature and afemale chief of state

Djibouti:multiparty constitution approved by referendum 4 September1992

Dominica:3 November 1978

Dominican Republic:28 November 1966

Ecuador:10 August 1998

Egypt:11 September 1971

El Salvador:23 December 1983

Equatorial Guinea:approved by national referendum 17 November 1991;amended January 1995

Eritrea:the transitional constitution, decreed on 19 May 1993, wasreplaced by a new constitution adopted on 23 May 1997, but not yetimplemented

Estonia:adopted 28 June 1992

Ethiopia:ratified December 1994; effective 22 August 1995

Falkland Islands (Islas Malvinas): 3 October 1985; amended 1997 and 1998

Faroe Islands:5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)

Fiji:10 October 1970 (suspended 1 October 1987); a new constitutionwas proposed on 23 September 1988 and promulgated on 25 July 1990;amended 25 July 1997 to allow nonethnic Fijians greater say ingovernment and to make multiparty government mandatory; entered intoforce 28 July 1998; note - the May 1999 election was the first testof the amended constitution and introduced open voting - notracially prescribed - for the first time at the national level

Finland:17 July 1919

France:28 September 1958, amended concerning election of presidentin 1962, amended to comply with provisions of EC Maastricht Treatyin 1992; amended to tighten immigration laws 1993

French Guiana:28 September 1958 (French Constitution)

French Polynesia:28 September 1958 (French Constitution)

Gabon:adopted 14 March 1991

Gambia, The:24 April 1970; suspended July 1994; rewritten andapproved by national referendum 8 August 1996; reestablished inJanuary 1997

Georgia:adopted 17 October 1995

Germany:23 May 1949, known as Basic Law; became constitution of theunited German people 3 October 1990

Ghana:new constitution approved 28 April 1992

Gibraltar:30 May 1969

Greece:11 June 1975; amended March 1986

Greenland:5 June 1953 (Danish constitution)

Grenada:19 December 1973

Guadeloupe:28 September 1958 (French Constitution)

Guam:Organic Act of 1 August 1950

Guatemala:31 May 1985, effective 14 January 1986; note - suspended25 May 1993 by former President SERRANO; reinstated 5 June 1993following ouster of president; amended November 1993

Guernsey:unwritten; partly statutes, partly common law and practice

Guinea:23 December 1990 (Loi Fundamentale)

Guinea-Bissau:16 May 1984, amended 4 May 1991, 4 December 1991, 26February 1993, 9 June 1993, and 1996

Guyana:6 October 1980

Haiti:approved March 1987; suspended June 1988, with most articlesreinstated March 1989; in October 1991, government claimed to beobserving the constitution; return to constitutional rule, October1994

Holy See (Vatican City):Apostolic Constitution of 1967 (effective 1March 1968)

Honduras:11 January 1982, effective 20 January 1982; amended 1995

Hong Kong:Basic Law approved in March 1990 by China's NationalPeople's Congress is Hong Kong's "mini-constitution"

Hungary:18 August 1949, effective 20 August 1949, revised 19 April1972; 18 October 1989 revision ensured legal rights for individualsand constitutional checks on the authority of the prime minister andalso established the principle of parliamentary oversight; 1997amendment streamlined the judicial system

Iceland:16 June 1944, effective 17 June 1944


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