The 2004 CIA World Factbook. United States. Central Intelligence Agency

FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)

      Radios:

       3.02 million (1997)

      Television broadcast stations:

       47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)

      Televisions:

       2.52 million (1997)

      Internet country code:

       .by

      Internet hosts:

       5,308 (2004)

      Internet Service Providers (ISPs):

       23 (2002)

      Internet users:

       1,391,900 (2003)

      Transportation Belarus

      Railways: total: 5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003)

      Highways: total: 74,385 km paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000)

      Waterways:

       2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by

       shallowness) (2003)

      Pipelines:

       gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)

      Ports and harbors:

       Mazyr

      Airports:

       135 (2003 est.)

      Airports - with paved runways: total: 50 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.) 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6

      Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 85 under 914 m: 64 (2003 est.) 914 to 1,523 m: 11 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5

      Heliports: 1 (2003 est.)

      Military Belarus

      Military branches:

       Army, Air and Air Defense Force

      Military manpower - military age and obligation: 18–27 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 18 months (May 2004)

      Military manpower - availability:

       males age 15–49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.)

      Military manpower - fit for military service:

       males age 15–49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.)

      Military manpower - reaching military age annually:

       males: 86,716 (2004 est.)

      Military expenditures - dollar figure:

       $176.1 million (FY02)

      Military expenditures - percent of GDP:

       1.4% (FY02)

      Transnational Issues Belarus

      Disputes - international:

       1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over

       unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing

       border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain

       undemarcated despite European Union financial support

      Illicit drugs:

       limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the

       domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via

       Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe; a small and lightly

       regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation

       does not meet international standards; few investigations or

       prosecutions of money-laundering activities

      This page was last updated on 10 February, 2005

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

      @Belgium

      Introduction Belgium

      Background:

       Belgium became independent from the Netherlands in 1830 and was

       occupied by Germany during World Wars I and II. It has prospered in

       the past half century as a modern, technologically advanced European

       state and member of NATO and the EU. Tensions between the

       Dutch-speaking Flemings of the north and the French-speaking

       Walloons of the south have led in recent years to constitutional

       amendments granting these regions formal recognition and autonomy.

      Geography Belgium

      Location:

       Western Europe, bordering the North Sea, between France and the

       Netherlands

      Geographic coordinates:

       50 50 N, 4 00 E

      Map references:

       Europe

      Area:

       total: 30,528 sq km

       land: 30,278 sq km

       water: 250 sq km

      Area - comparative:

       about the size of Maryland

      Land boundaries:

       total: 1,385 km

       border countries: France 620 km, Germany 167 km, Luxembourg 148 km,

       Netherlands 450 km

      Coastline:

       66.5 km

      Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm continental shelf: median line with neighbors exclusive economic zone: geographic coordinates define outer limit

      Climate:

       temperate; mild winters, cool summers; rainy, humid, cloudy

      Terrain:

       flat coastal plains in northwest, central rolling hills, rugged

       mountains of Ardennes Forest in southeast

      Elevation extremes:

       lowest point: North Sea 0 m

       highest point: Signal de Botrange 694 m

      Natural resources:

       coal, natural gas, construction materials, silica sand, carbonates

      Land use:

       arable land: 23.28%

       permanent crops: 0.4%

       note: includes Luxembourg (2001)

       other: 76.32%

      Irrigated land:

       40 sq km (includes Luxembourg) (1998 est.)

      Natural hazards:

       flooding is a threat along rivers and in areas of reclaimed coastal

       land, protected from the sea by concrete dikes

      Environment - current issues:

       the environment is exposed to intense pressures from human

       activities: urbanization, dense transportation network, industry,

       extensive animal breeding and crop cultivation; air and water

       pollution also have repercussions for neighboring countries;

       uncertainties regarding federal and regional responsibilities (now

       resolved) have slowed progress in tackling environmental challenges

      Environment - international agreements:

       party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air

       Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile