The 1999 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

rate: 12% (October 1998)

      Budget:

       revenues: $56 billion

       expenditures: $60 billion, including capital expenditures of $4

       billion (1998 est.)

      Industries: food processing, motor vehicles, consumer durables,

       textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals, printing, metallurgy, steel

      Industrial production growth rate: 2% (1998)

      Electricity—production: 64.669 billion kWh (1996)

      Electricity—production by source: fossil fuel: 45% hydro: 44.3% nuclear: 10.7% other: 0% (1996)

      Electricity—consumption: 67.509 billion kWh (1996)

      Electricity—exports: 330 million kWh (1996)

      Electricity—imports: 3.17 billion kWh (1996)

      Agriculture—products: sunflower seeds, lemons, soybeans, grapes, corn, tobacco, peanuts, tea, wheat; livestock

      Exports: $26 billion (f.o.b., 1998 est.)

      Exports—commodities: cereals, feed, motor vehicles, crude

       petroleum, steel manufactures

      Exports—partners: Brazil 31%, US 8%, Chile 7.0%, China 3%,

       Uruguay 3% (1997 est.)

      Imports: $32 billion (c.i.f., 1998 est.)

      Imports—commodities: motor vehicles, motor vehicle parts, organic

       chemicals, telecommunications equipment, plastics

      Imports—partners: Brazil 23%, US 20%, Italy 6%, Germany 5%,

       France 5% (1997)

      Debt—external: $133 billion (1998 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

      Communications

      Telephones: 4.6 million (1990)

      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 grounds out 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—2 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean)

      Radio broadcast stations: AM 260 (including 10 inactive stations), FM NA (probably more than 1,000, mostly unlicensed), shortwave 6 (1998 est.)

      Radios: 22.3 million (1991 est.)

      Television broadcast stations: 42 (in addition, there are 444 repeaters) (1997)

      Televisions: 7.165 million (1991 est.)

      Transportation

      Railways:

       total: 37,830 km

       broad gauge: 23,992 km 1.676-m gauge (167 km electrified)

       standard gauge: 2,765 km 1.435-m gauge

       narrow gauge: 11,073 km 1.000-m gauge (26 km electrified)

      Highways:

       total: 208,350 km

       paved: 47,550 km (including 567 km of expressways)

       unpaved: 160,800 km (1998 est.)

      Waterways: 11,000 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: 29 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 233,856 GRT/363,335 DWT

       ships by type: cargo 10, container 1, oil tanker 13, railcar carrier

       1, refrigerated cargo 2, roll-on/roll-off cargo 1, short-sea

       passenger 1 (1998 est.)

      Airports: 1,374 (1998 est.)

      Airports—with paved runways:

       total: 141

       over 3,047 m: 5

       2,438 to 3,047 m: 26

       1,524 to 2,437 m: 58

       914 to 1,523 m: 45

       under 914 m: 7 (1998 est.)

      Airports—with unpaved runways:

       total: 1,233

       over 3,047 m: 2

       2,438 to 3,047 m: 2

       1,524 to 2,437 m: 67

       914 to 1,523 m: 621

       under 914 m: 541 (1998 est.)

      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: 9,169,681 (1999 est.)

      Military manpower—fit for military service:

       males age 15–49: 7,435,551 (1999 est.)

      Military manpower—reaching military age annually:

       males: 343,038 (1999 est.)

      Military expenditures—dollar figure: $4.6 billion (1998)

      Military expenditures—percent of GDP: 1.4% (1998)

      Transnational Issues

      Disputes—international: short section of the southwestern boundary with Chile is indefinite—process to resolve boundary issues is underway; 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 money-laundering center

      ======================================================================

      @Armenia———

      Introduction

      Background: Armenia was one of the 15 successor republics to the USSR in December 1991. Its leaders remain preoccupied by the long conflict with Azerbaijan over the Nagorno-Karabakh enclave. Although a cease-fire has been in effect since May 1994, the sides have not made substantial progress toward a peaceful resolution. In January 1998, differences between President TER-PETROSSIAN and members of his cabinet over the Nagorno-Karabakh peace process came to a head. With the prime minister, defense minister, and security minister arrayed against him, an isolated TER-PETROSSIAN resigned the presidency on 3 February 1998. Prime Minister Robert KOCHARIAN was elected president in March 1998. Concerns about Armenia's economic performance have continued since 1997 with a slowdown in growth and the serious impact of the 1998 financial crisis in Russia.

      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