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Compare Azerbaijan (2001) - Syria (2007)

Compare Azerbaijan (2001) z Syria (2007)

 Azerbaijan (2001)Syria (2007)
 AzerbaijanSyria
Administrative divisions 59 rayons (rayonlar; rayon - singular), 11 cities* (saharlar; sahar - singular), 1 autonomous republic** (muxtar respublika); Abseron Rayonu, Agcabadi Rayonu, Agdam Rayonu, Agdas Rayonu, Agstafa Rayonu, Agsu Rayonu, Ali Bayramli Sahari*, Astara Rayonu, Baki Sahari*, Balakan Rayonu, Barda Rayonu, Beylaqan Rayonu, Bilasuvar Rayonu, Cabrayil Rayonu, Calilabad Rayonu, Daskasan Rayonu, Davaci Rayonu, Fuzuli Rayonu, Gadabay Rayonu, Ganca Sahari*, Goranboy Rayonu, Goycay Rayonu, Haciqabul Rayonu, Imisli Rayonu, Ismayilli Rayonu, Kalbacar Rayonu, Kurdamir Rayonu, Lacin Rayonu, Lankaran Rayonu, Lankaran Sahari*, Lerik Rayonu, Masalli Rayonu, Mingacevir Sahari*, Naftalan Sahari*, Naxcivan Muxtar Respublikasi**, Neftcala Rayonu, Oguz Rayonu, Qabala Rayonu, Qax Rayonu, Qazax Rayonu, Qobustan Rayonu, Quba Rayonu, Qubadli Rayonu, Qusar Rayonu, Saatli Rayonu, Sabirabad Rayonu, Saki Rayonu, Saki Sahari*, Salyan Rayonu, Samaxi Rayonu, Samkir Rayonu, Samux Rayonu, Siyazan Rayonu, Sumqayit Sahari*, Susa Rayonu, Susa Sahari*, Tartar Rayonu, Tovuz Rayonu, Ucar Rayonu, Xacmaz Rayonu, Xankandi Sahari*, Xanlar Rayonu, Xizi Rayonu, Xocali Rayonu, Xocavand Rayonu, Yardimli Rayonu, Yevlax Rayonu, Yevlax Sahari*, Zangilan Rayonu, Zaqatala Rayonu, Zardab Rayonu 14 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Hasakah, Al Ladhiqiyah, Al Qunaytirah, Ar Raqqah, As Suwayda', Dar'a, Dayr az Zawr, Dimashq, Halab, Hamah, Hims, Idlib, Rif Dimashq, Tartus
Age structure 0-14 years:
28.95% (male 1,146,315; female 1,103,393)

15-64 years:
63.93% (male 2,415,678; female 2,552,759)

65 years and over:
7.12% (male 219,549; female 333,398) (2001 est.)
0-14 years: 36.5% (male 3,633,562/female 3,423,435)


15-64 years: 60.1% (male 5,952,275/female 5,664,236)


65 years and over: 3.3% (male 303,346/female 337,893) (2007 est.)
Agriculture - products cotton, grain, rice, grapes, fruit, vegetables, tea, tobacco; cattle, pigs, sheep, goats wheat, barley, cotton, lentils, chickpeas, olives, sugar beets; beef, mutton, eggs, poultry, milk
Airports 52 (2000 est.) 90 (2007)
Airports - with paved runways total:
9

2,438 to 3,047 m:
5

1,524 to 2,437 m:
4 (2000 est.)
total: 26


over 3,047 m: 6


2,438 to 3,047 m: 15


914 to 1,523 m: 3


under 914 m: 2 (2007)
Airports - with unpaved runways total:
43

1,524 to 2,437 m:
7

914 to 1,523 m:
8

under 914 m:
28 (2000 est.)
total: 64


1,524 to 2,437 m: 1


914 to 1,523 m: 11


under 914 m: 52 (2007)
Area total:
86,600 sq km

land:
86,100 sq km

water:
500 sq km

note:
includes the exclave of Naxcivan Autonomous Republic and the Nagorno-Karabakh region; the region's autonomy was abolished by Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet on 26 November 1991
total: 185,180 sq km


land: 184,050 sq km


water: 1,130 sq km


note: includes 1,295 sq km of Israeli-occupied territory
Area - comparative slightly smaller than Maine slightly larger than North Dakota
Background Azerbaijan - a nation of Turkic Muslims - has been an independent republic since the collapse of the Soviet Union in 1991. Despite a cease-fire, in place since 1994, Azerbaijan has yet to resolve its conflict with Armenia over the Azerbaijani Nagorno-Karabakh enclave (largely Armenian populated). Azerbaijan has lost almost 20% of its territory and must support some 750,000 refugees and internally displaced persons (IDPs) as a result of the conflict. Corruption is ubiquitous and the promise of widespread wealth from Azerbaijan's undeveloped petroleum resources remains largely unfulfilled. Following the breakup of the Ottoman Empire during World War I, France administered Syria until its independence in 1946. The country lacked political stability, however, and experienced a series of military coups during its first decades. Syria united with Egypt in February 1958 to form the United Arab Republic. In September 1961, the two entities separated, and the Syrian Arab Republic was reestablished. In November 1970, Hafiz al-ASAD, a member of the Socialist Ba'th Party and the minority Alawite sect, seized power in a bloodless coup and brought political stability to the country. In the 1967 Arab-Israeli War, Syria lost the Golan Heights to Israel. During the 1990s, Syria and Israel held occasional peace talks over its return. Following the death of President al-ASAD, his son, Bashar al-ASAD, was approved as president by popular referendum in July 2000. Syrian troops - stationed in Lebanon since 1976 in an ostensible peacekeeping role - were withdrawn in April 2005. During the July-August 2006 conflict between Israel and Hizballah, Syria placed its military forces on alert but did not intervene directly on behalf of its ally Hizballah.
Birth rate 18.44 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) 27.19 births/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Budget revenues:
$777 million

expenditures:
$995 million, including capital expenditures of $NA (1999 est.)
revenues: $7.635 billion


expenditures: $9.38 billion (2006 est.)
Capital Baku (Baki) name: Damascus


geographic coordinates: 33 30 N, 36 18 E


time difference: UTC+2 (7 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)


daylight saving time: +1hr, begins 1 April; ends 30 September
Climate dry, semiarid steppe mostly desert; hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast; cold weather with snow or sleet periodically in Damascus
Coastline 0 km (landlocked); note - Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (800 km, est.) 193 km
Constitution adopted 12 November 1995 13 March 1973
Country name conventional long form:
Republic of Azerbaijan

conventional short form:
Azerbaijan

local long form:
Azarbaycan Respublikasi

local short form:
none

former:
Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic
conventional long form: Syrian Arab Republic


conventional short form: Syria


local long form: Al Jumhuriyah al Arabiyah as Suriyah


local short form: Suriyah


former: United Arab Republic (with Egypt)
Currency Azerbaijani manat (AZM) -
Death rate 9.55 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) 4.74 deaths/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Debt - external $1 billion (2000) $6.601 billion; note - excludes military debt and debt to Russia (2006 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Ross WILSON

embassy:
Azadliq Prospekt 83, Baku 370007

mailing address:
American Embassy Baku, Department of State, Washington, DC 20521-7050

telephone:
[9] (9412) 98-03-35, 36, 37

FAX:
[9] (9412) 90-66-71
chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Michael CORBIN


embassy: Abou Roumaneh, Al-Mansour Street, No. 2, Damascus


mailing address: P. O. Box 29, Damascus


telephone: [963] (11) 3391-4444


FAX: [963] (11) 3391-3999
Diplomatic representation in the US chief of mission:
Ambassador Hafiz Mir Jalal PASHAYEV

chancery:
(temporary) Suite 700, 927 15th Street NW, Washington, DC 20005 or P. O. Box 28790, Washington, DC 20038-8790

telephone:
[1] (202) 842-0001

FAX:
[1] (202) 842-0004
chief of mission: Ambassador Imad MUSTAFA


chancery: 2215 Wyoming Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008


telephone: [1] (202) 232-6313


FAX: [1] (202) 234-9548
Disputes - international Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding, separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government; Caspian Sea boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan Golan Heights is Israeli-occupied with the almost 1,000-strong UN Disengagement Observer Force (UNDOF) patrolling a buffer zone since 1964; lacking a treaty or other documentation describing the boundary, portions of the Lebanon-Syria boundary are unclear with several sections in dispute; since 2000, Lebanon has claimed Shaba'a farms in the Golan Heights; 2004 Agreement and pending demarcation settles border dispute with Jordan; approximately two million Iraqis have fled the conflict in Iraq with the majority taking refuge in Syria and Jordan
Economic aid - recipient ODA, $113 million (1996) $77.85 million (2005 est.)
Economy - overview Azerbaijan's most prominent products are oil, cotton, and natural gas. Azerbaijan's oil production declined through 1997 but has registered an increase every year since. Negotiation of 19 production-sharing arrangements (PSAs) with foreign firms, which have thus far committed $60 billion to oil field development, should generate the funds needed to spur future industrial development. Oil production under the first of these PSAs, with the Azerbaijan International Operating Company, began in November 1997. Azerbaijan shares all the formidable problems of the former Soviet republics in making the transition from a command to a market economy, but its considerable energy resources brighten its long-term prospects. Baku has only recently begun making progress on economic reform, and old economic ties and structures are slowly being replaced. An obstacle to economic progress, including stepped up foreign investment, is the continuing conflict with Armenia over the Nagorno-Karabakh region. Trade with Russia and the other former Soviet republics is declining in importance while trade is building up with Turkey, Iran, UAE, and the nations of Europe. Long-term prospects will depend on world oil prices, the location of new pipelines in the region, and Azerbaijan's ability to manage its oil wealth. The Syrian economy grew by an estimated 2.9% in real terms in 2006 led by the petroleum and agricultural sectors, which together account for about one-half of GDP. Higher crude oil prices countered declining oil production and exports and led to higher budgetary and export receipts. Total foreign assets of the Central Bank and domestic banking system rose to about $20 billion in 2006, and the government strengthened the private sector foreign exchange rate by about 7% from the start of the year. The Government of Syria has implemented modest economic reforms in the past few years, including cutting lending interest rates, opening private banks, consolidating some of the multiple exchange rates, and raising prices on some subsidized items, most notably, gasoline and cement. Nevertheless, the economy remains highly controlled by the government. Long-run economic constraints include declining oil production and exports, weak investment, high unemployment, and increasing pressure on water supplies caused by heavy use in agriculture, rapid population growth, industrial expansion, and water pollution.
Electricity - consumption 15.432 billion kWh (1999) 24.74 billion kWh (2005 est.)
Electricity - exports 600 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - imports 800 million kWh (1999) 0 kWh (2005)
Electricity - production 16.378 billion kWh (1999) 33.01 billion kWh (2005 est.)
Electricity - production by source fossil fuel:
86.46%

hydro:
13.54%

nuclear:
0%

other:
0% (1999)
-
Elevation extremes lowest point:
Caspian Sea -28 m

highest point:
Bazarduzu Dagi 4,485 m
lowest point: unnamed location near Lake Tiberias -200 m


highest point: Mount Hermon 2,814 m
Environment - current issues local scientists consider the Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) (including Baku and Sumqayit) and the Caspian Sea to be the ecologically most devastated area in the world because of severe air, water, and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of DDT as a pesticide and also from toxic defoliants used in the production of cotton deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification; water pollution from raw sewage and petroleum refining wastes; inadequate potable water
Environment - international agreements party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection

signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands


signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification
Ethnic groups Azeri 90%, Dagestani 3.2%, Russian 2.5%, Armenian 2%, other 2.3% (1998 est.)

note:
almost all Armenians live in the separatist Nagorno-Karabakh region
Arab 90.3%, Kurds, Armenians, and other 9.7%
Exchange rates Azerbaijani manats per US dollar - 4,579 (1 February 2001), 4,342 (October 1999), 4,373 (1999), 3,869 (1998), 3,985.38 (1997), 4,301.26 (1996) Syrian pounds per US dollar - 51.689 (2006), 50 (2005), 48.5 (2004), 52.8 (2003), 52.4 (2002)


note: data for 2004-06 are the public sector rate; data for 2002-03 are the parallel market rate in 'Amman and Beirut; the official rate for repaying loans was 11.25 Syrian pounds per US dollars during 2004-06,
Executive branch chief of state:
President Heydar ALIYEV (since 18 June 1993)

head of government:
Prime Minister Artur RASIZADE (since 26 November 1996)

cabinet:
Council of Ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly

elections:
president elected by popular vote to a five-year term; election last held 11 October 1998 (next to be held NA October 2003); prime minister and first deputy prime ministers appointed by the president and confirmed by the National Assembly

election results:
Heydar ALIYEV reelected president; percent of vote - Heydar ALIYEV 77.6%, Etibar MAMEDOV 11.8%, Nizami SULEYMANOV 8.2%
chief of state: President Bashar al-ASAD (since 17 July 2000); Vice President Farouk al-SHARA (since 11 February 2006) oversees foreign policy; Vice President Najah al-ATTAR (since 23 March 2006) oversees cultural policy


head of government: Prime Minister Muhammad Naji al-UTRI (since 10 September 2003); Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Affairs Abdallah al-DARDARI (since 14 June 2005)


cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the president


elections: president approved by popular referendum for a second seven-year term (no term limits); referendum last held on 27 May 2007 (next to be held in May 2014); the president appoints the vice presidents, prime minister, and deputy prime ministers


election results: Bashar al-ASAD approved as president; percent of vote - Bashar al-ASAD 97.6%
Exports $1.9 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) 175,000 bbl/day (2006)
Exports - commodities oil and gas 75%, machinery, cotton, foodstuffs crude oil, petroleum products, fruits and vegetables, cotton fiber, clothing, meat and live animals, wheat
Exports - partners Italy, Turkey, Russia, Georgia, Iran Iraq 27.3%, Germany 12.2%, Lebanon 9.5%, Italy 6.6%, Egypt 5.3%, Saudi Arabia 4.7% (2006)
Fiscal year calendar year calendar year
Flag description three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), red, and green; a crescent and eight-pointed star in white are centered in red band three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black, colors associated with the Arab Liberation flag; two small green five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; former flag of the United Arab Republic where the two stars represented the constituent states of Syria and Egypt; similar to the flag of Yemen, which has a plain white band, Iraq, which has three green stars (plus an Arabic inscription) in a horizontal line centered in the white band, and that of Egypt, which has a gold Eagle of Saladin centered in the white band; the current design dates to 1980
GDP purchasing power parity - $23.5 billion (2000 est.) -
GDP - composition by sector agriculture:
22%

industry:
33%

services:
45% (1999 est.)
agriculture: 24.8%


industry: 25.1%


services: 50.1% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita purchasing power parity - $3,000 (2000 est.) -
GDP - real growth rate 11.4% (2000 est.) 4% (2006 est.)
Geographic coordinates 40 30 N, 47 30 E 35 00 N, 38 00 E
Geography - note landlocked there are 42 Israeli settlements and civilian land use sites in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights (August 2005 est.)
Heliports - 7 (2007)
Highways total:
24,981 km

paved:
23,057 km (these roads are said to be hard-surfaced, and include, in addition to conventionally paved roads, some that are surfaced with gravel or other coarse aggregate, making them trafficable in all weather)

unpaved:
1,924 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998)
-
Household income or consumption by percentage share lowest 10%:
NA%

highest 10%:
NA%
lowest 10%: NA%


highest 10%: NA%
Illicit drugs limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication program; transshipment point for opiates via Iran, Central Asia, and Russia to Western Europe a transit point for opiates, hashish, and cocaine bound for regional and Western markets; weak anti-money-laundering controls and bank privatization may leave it vulnerable to money laundering
Imports $1.4 billion (f.o.b., 2000 est.) NA bbl/day
Imports - commodities machinery and equipment, foodstuffs, metals, chemicals machinery and transport equipment, electric power machinery, food and livestock, metal and metal products, chemicals and chemical products, plastics, yarn, paper
Imports - partners Russia, Turkey, Ukraine, UAE, Iran Saudi Arabia 12.3%, China 7.9%, Egypt 6.2%, UAE 6%, Italy 4.9%, Ukraine 4.8%, Germany 4.7%, Iran 4.5% (2006)
Independence 30 August 1991 (from Soviet Union) 17 April 1946 (from League of Nations mandate under French administration)
Industrial production growth rate 6.9% (2000 est.) 1.5% (2005)
Industries petroleum and natural gas, petroleum products, oilfield equipment; steel, iron ore, cement; chemicals and petrochemicals; textiles petroleum, textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco, phosphate rock mining, cement, oil seeds crushing
Infant mortality rate 83.08 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) total: 27.7 deaths/1,000 live births


male: 27.94 deaths/1,000 live births


female: 27.44 deaths/1,000 live births (2007 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices) 1.8% (2000 est.) 10% (2006 est.)
International organization participation AsDB, BSEC, CCC, CE, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, ECO, ESCAP, FAO, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, IMO, Intelsat, Interpol, IOC, ISO (correspondent), ITU, NAM (observer), OAS (observer), OIC, OPCW, OSCE, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) ABEDA, AFESD, AMF, CAEU, FAO, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAS, MIGA, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UNRWA, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) 2 (2000) -
Irrigated land 10,000 sq km (1993 est.) 13,330 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council (appoints and dismisses judges; headed by the President); national level - Supreme Constitutional Court (adjudicates electoral disputes and rules on constitutionality of laws and decrees; justices appointed for four-year terms by the President); Court of Cassation; Appeals Courts (Appeals Courts represent an intermediate level between the Court of Cassation and local level courts); local level - Magistrate Courts; Courts of First Instance; Juvenile Courts; Customs Courts; specialized courts - Economic Security Courts (hear cases related to economic crimes); Supreme State Security Court (hear cases related to national security); Personal Status Courts (religious; hear cases related to marriage and divorce)
Labor force 2.9 million (1997) 5.276 million (2006 est.)
Labor force - by occupation agriculture and forestry 32%, industry 15%, services 53% (1997) agriculture: 26%


industry: 14%


services: 60% (2003 est.)
Land boundaries total:
2,013 km

border countries:
Armenia (with Azerbaijan-proper) 566 km, Armenia (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 221 km, Georgia 322 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-proper) 432 km, Iran (with Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave) 179 km, Russia 284 km, Turkey 9 km
total: 2,253 km


border countries: Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km, Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km
Land use arable land:
18%

permanent crops:
5%

permanent pastures:
25%

forests and woodland:
11%

other:
41% (1993 est.)
arable land: 24.8%


permanent crops: 4.47%


other: 70.73% (2005)
Languages Azerbaijani (Azeri) 89%, Russian 3%, Armenian 2%, other 6% (1995 est.) Arabic (official); Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian widely understood; French, English somewhat understood
Legal system based on civil law system based on a combination of French and Ottoman civil law; Islamic law is used in the family court system; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Legislative branch unicameral National Assembly or Milli Mejlis (125 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms)

elections:
last held 4 November 2000 (next to be held NA November 2005)

election results:
percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NAP and allies 108, APF 6, CSP 3, PNIA 2, Musavat Party 2, CPA 2, APF "traditionalist" 1, Compatriot Party 1
unicameral People's Council or Majlis al-Shaab (250 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)


elections: last held on 22-23 April 2007 (next to be held in 2011)


election results: percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - NPF 172, independents 78
Life expectancy at birth total population:
62.96 years

male:
58.65 years

female:
67.49 years (2001 est.)
total population: 70.61 years


male: 69.27 years


female: 72.02 years (2007 est.)
Literacy definition:
age 15 and over can read and write

total population:
97%

male:
99%

female:
96% (1989 est.)
definition: age 15 and over can read and write


total population: 79.6%


male: 86%


female: 73.6% (2004 census)
Location Southwestern Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Russia Middle East, bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Lebanon and Turkey
Map references Commonwealth of Independent States Middle East
Maritime claims none (landlocked) territorial sea: 12 nm


contiguous zone: 24 nm
Merchant marine total:
56 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 253,882 GRT/313,252 DWT

ships by type:
bulk 1, cargo 12, petroleum tanker 40, roll on/roll off 2, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.)
total: 96 ships (1000 GRT or over) 353,351 GRT/512,597 DWT


by type: bulk carrier 7, cargo 82, container 1, livestock carrier 4, petroleum tanker 1, roll on/roll off 1


foreign-owned: 10 (Jordan 2, Lebanon 4, Romania 4)


registered in other countries: 164 (Bolivia 1, Cambodia 32, Comoros 8, Cyprus 2, Dominica 2, Georgia 54, Hong Kong 1, North Korea 7, Lebanon 1, Libya 1, Malta 4, Mongolia 1, Panama 24, Sierra Leone 8, Slovakia 2, St Kitts and Nevis 5, St Vincent and The Grenadines 11, unknown 2) (2007)
Military branches Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border Guards Syrian Armed Forces: Syrian Arab Army (includes Syrian Arab Navy), Syrian Arab Air and Air Defense Force (includes Air Defense Command) (2005)
Military expenditures - dollar figure $121 million (FY99) -
Military expenditures - percent of GDP 2.6% (FY99) 5.9% (2005 est.)
Military manpower - availability males age 15-49:
2,102,780 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - fit for military service males age 15-49:
1,684,673 (2001 est.)
-
Military manpower - military age 18 years of age -
Military manpower - reaching military age annually males:
77,099 (2001 est.)
-
National holiday Founding of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaidzhan, 28 May (1918) Independence Day, 17 April (1946)
Nationality noun:
Azerbaijani(s)

adjective:
Azerbaijani
noun: Syrian(s)


adjective: Syrian
Natural hazards droughts; some lowland areas threatened by rising levels of the Caspian Sea dust storms, sandstorms
Natural resources petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, alumina petroleum, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum, hydropower
Net migration rate -5.67 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) 0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2007 est.)
Pipelines crude oil 1,130 km; petroleum products 630 km; natural gas 1,240 km gas 2,764 km; oil 2,000 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders Alliance for Azerbaijan Party [Abutalyb SAMADOV]; Azerbaijani Democratic Party or ADP [Sardar JALAL]; Azerbaijani Independent Democratic Party or AMDP [Leyla YUNUSOVA]; Azerbaijan Popular Front or APF [Ali KERIMOV, leader of "reform faction"; Mirmahmud FATTAYEV, leader of "traditionalist" faction]; Civic Solidarity Party or CSP [Sabir RUSTAMKHANLY]; Civic Union Party [Ayaz MUTALIBOV]; Communist Party of Azerbaijan or CPA [Ramiz AHMADOV]; Communist Party of Azerbaijan or CPA-2 [Firudin HASANOV]; Compatriot Party [Mais SAFARLI]; Democratic Enlightenment Party [Mammadhanifu MUSAYEV]; Democratic Party for Azerbaijan or DPA [Ilyus ISMAILOV and Rasul QULIYEV, co-chairman]; Democratic World Party of Azerbaijan [Mamnad ALIZADE]; Liberal Party of Azerbaijan [Lala Shvkat HAJIYEVA]; Motherland Party [Fazail AGAMALI]; National Congress Party of Azerbaijan [Ihtiyar SHIRIN]; National Movement Party [Samir JAFAROV]; National Statehood Party [Sabir TARIVERDIYEV]; Musavat [Isa GAMBAR, chairman]; New Azerbaijan Party or NAP [Heydar ALIYEV, chairman]; Party for National Independence of Azerbaijan or PNIA [Etibar MAMMADOV, chairman]; People's Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or PDPA [Rafig TURABKHANOGLU]; Social Democratic Party of Azerbaijan or SDP [Zardusht ALIZADE, chairman]

note:
opposition parties regularly factionalize and form new parties
legal parties: National Progressive Front or NPF [President Bashar al-ASAD, Dr. Suleiman QADDAH] (includes Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party [President Bashar al-ASAD]; Arab Socialist Renaissance (Ba'th) Party [President Bashar al-ASAD]; Socialist Unionist Democratic Party [Fadlallah Nasr Al-DIN]; Syrian Arab Socialist Union or ASU [Safwan QUDSI]; Syrian Communist Party (two branches) [Wissal Farha BAKDASH, Yusuf Rashid FAYSAL]; Syrian Social Nationalist Party [Ali QANSU]; Unionist Socialist Party [Fayez ISMAIL]); illegal parties: Kurdish Azadi Party [Khayr al-Din MURAD]; Kurdish Democratic Alliance [Abd al-Hamid DARWISH] (includes four parties); Kurdish Democratic Front (includes three parties but no designated leader); Kurdish Democratic Union Party or PYD [Ali MUHAMMAD]; Kurdish Future Movement; Kurdish Yekiti Party [Hasan SALEH]; National Democratic Front [Hassan Abd al-AZEM]
Political pressure groups and leaders Sadval, Lezgin movement; self-proclaimed Armenian Nagorno-Karabakh Republic; Talysh independence movement Damascus Declaration [Riyad SEIF, secretary general] (a broad alliance of opposition groups including: Committee for Revival of Civil Society [Michel KILO, Riyad SEIF]; Kurdish Democratic Alliance; Kurdish Democratic Front; National Democratic Front; Syrian Human Rights Society or HRAS [Fawed FAWUZ]); National Salvation Front (alliance between former Vice President Abd al-Halim KHADDAM, the SMB, and other small opposition groups); Syrian Muslim Brotherhood or SMB [Sadr al-Din al-BAYANUNI]; (operates in exile in London; endorsed the Damascus Declaration but is not an official member)
Population 7,771,092 (July 2001 est.) 19,314,747


note: in addition, about 40,000 people live in the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights - 20,000 Arabs (18,000 Druze and 2,000 Alawites) and about 20,000 Israeli settlers (July 2007 est.)
Population below poverty line 60% (2000 est.) 11.9% (2006 est.)
Population growth rate 0.32% (2001 est.) 2.244% (2007 est.)
Ports and harbors Baku (Baki) -
Radio broadcast stations AM 10, FM 17, shortwave 1 (1998) AM 14, FM 2, shortwave 1 (1998)
Radios 175,000 (1997) -
Railways total:
2,125 km in common carrier service; does not include industrial lines

broad gauge:
2,125 km 1.520-m gauge (1,278 km electrified) (1993)
total: 2,711 km


standard gauge: 2,460 km 1.435-m gauge


narrow gauge: 251 km 1.050-m gauge (2006)
Religions Muslim 93.4%, Russian Orthodox 2.5%, Armenian Orthodox 2.3%, other 1.8% (1995 est.)

note:
religious affiliation is still nominal in Azerbaijan; percentages for actual practicing adherents are much lower
Sunni Muslim 74%, other Muslim (includes Alawite, Druze) 16%, Christian (various denominations) 10%, Jewish (tiny communities in Damascus, Al Qamishli, and Aleppo)
Sex ratio at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female

under 15 years:
1.04 male(s)/female

15-64 years:
0.95 male(s)/female

65 years and over:
0.66 male(s)/female

total population:
0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.)
at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female


under 15 years: 1.061 male(s)/female


15-64 years: 1.051 male(s)/female


65 years and over: 0.898 male(s)/female


total population: 1.049 male(s)/female (2007 est.)
Suffrage 18 years of age; universal 18 years of age; universal
Telephone system general assessment:
inadequate; requires considerable expansion and modernization; teledensity of 8.6 main lines per 100 persons is very low

domestic:
the majority of telephones are in Baku and other industrial centers - about 700 villages still do not have public telephone service; satellite service connects Baku to a modern switch in its exclave of Naxcivan

international:
the old Soviet system of cable and microwave is still serviceable; a satellite connection to Turkey enables Baku to reach about 200 additional countries, some of which are directly connected to Baku by satellite providers other than Turkey (1997)
general assessment: fair system currently undergoing significant improvement and digital upgrades, including fiber-optic technology


domestic: coaxial cable and microwave radio relay network


international: country code - 963; satellite earth stations - 1 Intelsat (Indian Ocean) and 1 Intersputnik (Atlantic Ocean region); 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and microwave radio relay to Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, and Turkey; participant in Medarabtel
Telephones - main lines in use 663,000 (1997) 3.243 million (2006)
Telephones - mobile cellular 40,000 (1997) 4.675 million (2006)
Television broadcast stations 2 (1997) 44 (plus 17 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain large, flat Kur-Araz Ovaligi (Kura-Araks Lowland) (much of it below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north, Qarabag Yaylasi (Karabakh Upland) in west; Baku lies on Abseron Yasaqligi (Apsheron Peninsula) that juts into Caspian Sea primarily semiarid and desert plateau; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west
Total fertility rate 2.24 children born/woman (2001 est.) 3.31 children born/woman (2007 est.)
Unemployment rate 20% (1999 est.) 12.5% (2005 est.)
Waterways none 900 km (not economically significant) (2005)
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