| Location: |
Southeastern Asia, bordering the Gulf of Thailand, Gulf of Tonkin, and South China Sea, alongside China, Laos, and Cambodia
|
| Geographic coordinates: |
16 00 N, 106 00 E
|
| Map references: |
Southeast Asia
|
| Area: |
total:
329,560 sq km
land:
325,360 sq km
water:
4,200 sq km
|
| Area - comparative: |
slightly larger than New Mexico
|
| Land boundaries: |
total:
4,639 km
border countries:
Cambodia 1,228 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 2,130 km
|
| Coastline: |
3,444 km (excludes islands)
|
| 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 in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
|
| Terrain: |
low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest
|
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point:
South China Sea 0 m
highest point:
Ngoc Linh 3,143 m
|
| Natural resources: |
phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate, offshore oil and gas deposits, forests, hydropower
|
| Land use: |
arable land:
17%
permanent crops:
4%
permanent pastures:
1%
forests and woodland:
30%
other:
48% (1993 est.)
|
| Irrigated land: |
18,600 sq km (1993 est.)
|
| Natural hazards: |
occasional typhoons (May to January) with extensive flooding
|
| Environment - current issues: |
logging and slash-and-burn agricultural practices contribute to deforestation and soil degradation; water pollution and overfishing threaten marine life populations; groundwater contamination limits potable water supply; growing urban industrialization and population migration are rapidly degrading environment in Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City
|
| Environment - international agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified:
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Nuclear Test Ban
|
|
