Compare Belarus (2003) - Japan (2006)

Compare Belarus (2003) z Japan (2006)

	Belarus (2003)	Japan (2006)

Administrative divisions	6 voblastsi (singular - voblasts') and one municipality* (harady, singular - horad); Brestskaya (Brest), Homyel'skaya (Homyel'), Horad Minsk*, Hrodzyenskaya (Hrodna), Mahilyowskaya (Mahilyow), Minskaya, Vitsyebskaya (Vitsyebsk); note - when using a place name with the adjectival ending 'skaya,' the word voblasts' should be added to the place name note: voblasti have the administrative center name following in parentheses	47 prefectures; Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gunma, Hiroshima, Hokkaido, Hyogo, Ibaraki, Ishikawa, Iwate, Kagawa, Kagoshima, Kanagawa, Kochi, Kumamoto, Kyoto, Mie, Miyagi, Miyazaki, Nagano, Nagasaki, Nara, Niigata, Oita, Okayama, Okinawa, Osaka, Saga, Saitama, Shiga, Shimane, Shizuoka, Tochigi, Tokushima, Tokyo, Tottori, Toyama, Wakayama, Yamagata, Yamaguchi, Yamanashi
Age structure	0-14 years: 16.8% (male 885,265; female 848,516) 15-64 years: 68.9% (male 3,456,769; female 3,652,766) 65 years and over: 14.3% (male 490,529; female 988,306) (2003 est.)	0-14 years: 14.2% (male 9,309,524/female 8,849,476) 15-64 years: 65.7% (male 42,158,122/female 41,611,754) 65 years and over: 20% (male 10,762,585/female 14,772,150) (2006 est.)
Agriculture - products	grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk	rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish
Airports	124 (2002)	175 (2006)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 28 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 4 under 914 m: 1 (2002)	total: 145 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 41 1,524 to 2,437 m: 39 914 to 1,523 m: 28 under 914 m: 30 (2006)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 96 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 11 914 to 1,523 m: 14 under 914 m: 67 (2002)	total: 30 914 to 1,523 m: 4 under 914 m: 26 (2006)
Area	total: 207,600 sq km land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km	total: 377,835 sq km land: 374,744 sq km water: 3,091 sq km note: includes Bonin Islands (Ogasawara-gunto), Daito-shoto, Minami-jima, Okino-tori-shima, Ryukyu Islands (Nansei-shoto), and Volcano Islands (Kazan-retto)
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than Kansas	slightly smaller than California
Background	After seven decades as a constituent republic of the USSR, Belarus attained its independence in 1991. It has retained closer political and economic ties to Russia than any of the other former Soviet republics. Belarus and Russia signed a treaty on a two-state union on 8 December 1999 envisioning greater political and economic integration. Although Belarus agreed to a framework to carry out the accord, serious implementation has yet to take place.	In 1603, a Tokugawa shogunate (military dictatorship) ushered in a long period of isolation from foreign influence in order to secure its power. For 250 years this policy enabled Japan to enjoy stability and a flowering of its indigenous culture. Following the Treaty of Kanagawa with the US in 1854, Japan opened its ports and began to intensively modernize and industrialize. During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Japan became a regional power that was able to defeat the forces of both China and Russia. It occupied Korea, Formosa (Taiwan), and southern Sakhalin Island. In 1931-32 Japan occupied Manchuria, and in 1937 it launched a full-scale invasion of China. Japan attacked US forces in 1941 - triggering America's entry into World War II - and soon occupied much of East and Southeast Asia. After its defeat in World War II, Japan recovered to become an economic power and a staunch ally of the US. While the emperor retains his throne as a symbol of national unity, actual power rests in networks of powerful politicians, bureaucrats, and business executives. The economy experienced a major slowdown starting in the 1990s following three decades of unprecedented growth, but Japan still remains a major economic power, both in Asia and globally. In 2005, Japan began a two-year term as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.
Birth rate	10.18 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	9.37 births/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Budget	revenues: $4 billion expenditures: $4.1 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (1997 est.)	revenues: $1.429 trillion expenditures: $1.775 trillion; including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $71 billion (2005 est.)
Capital	Minsk	name: Tokyo geographic coordinates: 35 42 N, 139 46 E time difference: UTC+9 (14 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
Climate	cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime	varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north
Coastline	0 km (landlocked)	29,751 km
Constitution	30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996	3 May 1947
Country name	conventional long form: Republic of Belarus conventional short form: Belarus local long form: Respublika Byelarus' local short form: none former: Belorussian (Byelorussian) Soviet Socialist Republic	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Japan local long form: Nihon-koku/Nippon-koku local short form: Nihon/Nippon
Currency	Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR)	-
Death rate	14.05 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	9.16 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Debt - external	$851 million (2001 est.)	$1.545 trillion (31 December 2004)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Michael G. KOZAK embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853	chief of mission: Ambassador J. Thomas SCHIEFFER embassy: 1-10-5 Akasaka, Minato-ku, Tokyo 107-8420 mailing address: Unit 45004, Box 258, APO AP 96337-5004 telephone: [81] (03) 3224-5000 FAX: [81] (03) 3505-1862 consulate(s) general: Naha (Okinawa), Osaka-Kobe, Sapporo consulate(s): Fukuoka, Nagoya
Diplomatic representation in the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Mikhail KHVOSTOV chancery: 1619 New Hampshire Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20009 telephone: [1] (202) 986-1604 FAX: [1] (202) 986-1805 consulate(s) general: New York	chief of mission: Ambassador Ryozo KATO chancery: 2520 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 238-6700 FAX: [1] (202) 328-2187 consulate(s) general: Anchorage, Atlanta, Boston, Chicago, Denver, Detroit, Agana (Guam), Honolulu, Houston, Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, Seattle
Disputes - international	1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and encouraging illegal border crossing; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support	the sovereignty dispute over the islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan, and the Habomai group, known in Japan as the "Northern Territories" and in Russia as the "Southern Kuril Islands," occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia and claimed by Japan, remains the primary sticking point to signing a peace treaty formally ending World War II hostilities; Japan and South Korea claim Liancourt Rocks (Take-shima/Tok-do) occupied by South Korea since 1954; China and Taiwan dispute both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of the Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and Japan's unilaterally declared exclusive economic zone in the East China Sea, the site of intensive hydrocarbon prospecting
Economic aid - donor	-	ODA, $8.9 billion (2004)
Economic aid - recipient	$194.3 million (1995)	-
Economy - overview	Belarus has seen little structural reform since 1995, when President LUKASHENKO launched the country on the path of "market socialism." In keeping with this policy, LUKASHENKO reimposed administrative controls over prices and currency exchange rates and expanded the state's right to intervene in the management of private enterprise. In addition to the burdens imposed by high inflation and persistent trade deficits, businesses have been subject to pressure on the part of central and local governments, e.g., arbitrary changes in regulations, numerous rigorous inspections, retroactive application of new business regulations, and arrests of "disruptive" businessmen and factory owners. A wide range of redistributive policies has helped those at the bottom of the ladder. Close relations with Russia, possibly leading to reunion, color the pattern of economic developments. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies.	Government-industry cooperation, a strong work ethic, mastery of high technology, and a comparatively small defense allocation (1% of GDP) helped Japan advance with extraordinary rapidity to the rank of second most technologically powerful economy in the world after the US and the third-largest economy in the world after the US and China, measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis. One notable characteristic of the economy is how manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors work together in closely-knit groups called keiretsu. A second basic feature has been the guarantee of lifetime employment for a substantial portion of the urban labor force. Both features are now eroding. Japan's industrial sector is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. The tiny agricultural sector is highly subsidized and protected, with crop yields among the highest in the world. Usually self sufficient in rice, Japan must import about 60% of its food on a caloric basis. Japan maintains one of the world's largest fishing fleets and accounts for nearly 15% of the global catch. For three decades, overall real economic growth had been spectacular - a 10% average in the 1960s, a 5% average in the 1970s, and a 4% average in the 1980s. Growth slowed markedly in the 1990s, averaging just 1.7%, largely because of the after effects of overinvestment during the late 1980s and contractionary domestic policies intended to wring speculative excesses from the stock and real estate markets and to force a restructuring of the economy. From 2000 to 2003, government efforts to revive economic growth met with little success and were further hampered by the slowing of the US, European, and Asian economies. In 2004 and 2005, growth improved and the lingering fears of deflation in prices and economic activity lessened. Japan's huge government debt, which totals 170% of GDP, and the aging of the population are two major long-run problems. Some fear that a rise in taxes could endanger the current economic recovery. Internal conflict over the proper way to reform the financial system will continue as Japan Post's banking, insurance, and delivery services undergo privatization between 2007 and 2017.
Electricity - consumption	26.69 billion kWh (2001)	946.3 billion kWh (2003)
Electricity - exports	300 million kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - imports	4.3 billion kWh (2001)	0 kWh (2003)
Electricity - production	24.4 billion kWh (2001)	1.017 trillion kWh (2003)
Electricity - production by source	fossil fuel: 99.5% hydro: 0.1% nuclear: 0% other: 0.4% (2001)	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m	lowest point: Hachiro-gata -4 m highest point: Mount Fuji 3,776 m
Environment - current issues	soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine	air pollution from power plant emissions results in acid rain; acidification of lakes and reservoirs degrading water quality and threatening aquatic life; Japan is one of the largest consumers of fish and tropical timber, contributing to the depletion of these resources in Asia and elsewhere
Environment - international agreements	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea	party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
Ethnic groups	Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%	Japanese 99%, others 1% (Korean 511,262, Chinese 244,241, Brazilian 182,232, Filipino 89,851, other 237,914) note: up to 230,000 Brazilians of Japanese origin migrated to Japan in the 1990s to work in industries; some have returned to Brazil (2004)
Exchange rates	Belarusian rubles per US dollar - NA (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.8 (1999), 46.13 (1998)	yen per US dollar - 110.22 (2005), 108.19 (2004), 115.93 (2003), 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001)
Executive branch	chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994) head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (acting; since 10 July 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since 13 March 2000), Sergei SIDORSKY (since 24 September 2001), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Roman VNUCHKO (since 10 July 2003) cabinet: Council of Ministers elections: president elected by popular vote for a five-year term; first election took place 23 June and 10 July 1994; according to the 1994 constitution, the next election should have been held in 1999, however LUKASHENKO extended his term to 2001 via a November 1996 referendum; new election held 9 September 2001 (next election to be held by September 2006); prime minister and deputy prime ministers appointed by the president election results: Aleksandr LUKASHENKO reelected president; percent of vote - Aleksandr LUKASHENKO 75.6%, Vladimir GONCHARIK 15.4%	chief of state: Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989) head of government: Prime Minister Shinzo ABE (since 26 September 2006) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: Diet designates prime minister; constitution requires that prime minister commands parliamentary majority; following legislative elections, leader of majority party or leader of majority coalition in House of Representatives usually becomes prime minister; monarch is hereditary election results: ABE was elected prime minister with 339 of 476 votes cast in the House of Representatives and 136 of 240 votes cast in the House of Councilors.
Exports	NA (2001)	93,360 bbl/day (2001)
Exports - commodities	machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs	transport equipment, motor vehicles, semiconductors, electrical machinery, chemicals
Exports - partners	Russia 50.8%, Latvia 7.3%, Ukraine 6.3%, Lithuania 4.1%, Germany 4.1% (2002)	US 22.9%, China 13.4%, South Korea 7.8%, Taiwan 7.3%, Hong Kong 6.1% (2005)
Fiscal year	calendar year	1 April - 31 March
Flag description	red horizontal band (top) and green horizontal band one-half the width of the red band; a white vertical stripe on the hoist side bears a Belarusian national ornament in red	white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center
GDP	purchasing power parity - $90.19 billion (2002 est.)	-
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 15% industry: 40% services: 45% (2002 est.)	agriculture: 1.7% industry: 25.8% services: 72.5% (2005 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $8,700 (2002 est.)	-
GDP - real growth rate	4.7% (2002 est.)	2.6% (2005 est.)
Geographic coordinates	53 00 N, 28 00 E	36 00 N, 138 00 E
Geography - note	landlocked; glacial scouring accounts for the flatness of Belarusian terrain and for its 11,000 lakes; the country is geologically well endowed with extensive deposits of granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, and clay	strategic location in northeast Asia
Heliports	-	15 (2006)
Highways	total: 74,385 km paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000)	-
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 5.1% highest 10%: 20% (1998)	lowest 10%: 4.8% highest 10%: 21.7% (1993)
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; lax money-laundering and banking regulations	-
Imports	NA (2001)	5.449 million bbl/day (2001)
Imports - commodities	mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals	machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials (2001)
Imports - partners	Russia 68.2%, Germany 9.4%, Ukraine 3.2% (2002)	China 21%, US 12.7%, Saudi Arabia 5.5%, UAE 4.9%, Australia 4.7%, South Korea 4.7%, Indonesia 4% (2005)
Independence	25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)	660 B.C. (traditional founding by Emperor JIMMU)
Industrial production growth rate	2.5% (2002 est.)	1.5% (2005 est.)
Industries	metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators	among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals, textiles, processed foods
Infant mortality rate	total: 13.87 deaths/1,000 live births male: 15.13 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.56 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)	total: 3.24 deaths/1,000 live births male: 3.5 deaths/1,000 live births female: 2.97 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	42.8% (2002 est.)	-0.3% (2005 est.)
International organization participation	CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, ECE, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, NAM (observer), NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)	AfDB, APEC, APT, ARF, AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EAS, EBRD, FAO, G-5, G-7, G-8, G-10, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, LAIA, MIGA, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer), SECI (observer), UN, UN Security Council (temporary), UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMOVIC, UNRWA, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO, ZC
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	23 (2002)	-
Irrigated land	1,150 sq km (1998 est.)	25,920 sq km (2003)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (judges are appointed by the president); Constitutional Court (half of the judges appointed by the president and half appointed by the Chamber of Representatives)	Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch after designation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by the cabinet)
Labor force	4.8 million (2000)	66.4 million (2005 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	industry and construction NA%, agriculture and forestry NA%, services NA%	agriculture: 4.6% industry: 27.8% services: 67.7% (2004)
Land boundaries	total: 2,900 km border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 29.76% permanent crops: 0.69% other: 69.55% (1998 est.)	arable land: 11.64% permanent crops: 0.9% other: 87.46% (2005)
Languages	Belarusian, Russian, other	Japanese
Legal system	based on civil law system	modeled after European civil law system with English-American influence; judicial review of legislative acts in the Supreme Court; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations
Legislative branch	bicameral Parliament or Natsionalnoye Sobranie consists of the Council of the Republic or Soviet Respubliki (64 seats; 56 members elected by regional councils and 8 members appointed by the president, all for 4-year terms) and the Chamber of Representatives or Palata Pretsaviteley (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms) elections: last held October 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: party affiliation data unavailable; under present political conditions party designations are meaningless	bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (242 seats - members elected for six-year terms; half reelected every three years; 146 members in multi-seat constituencies and 96 by proportional representation) and the House of Representatives or Shugi-in (480 seats - members elected for four-year terms; 300 in single-seat constituencies; 180 members by proportional representation in 11 regional blocs) elections: House of Councillors - last held 11 July 2004 (next to be held in July 2007); House of Representatives - last held 11 September 2005 (next election by September 2009) election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party - NA; seats by party - LDP 115, DPJ 82, Komeito 24, JCP 9, SDP 5, others 7; distribution of seats as of January 2006 - LDP 112, DPJ 83, Komeito 24, JCP 9, SDP 6, others 8 House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - LDP 47.8%, DPJ 36.4%, others 15.8%; seats by party - LDP 296, DPJ 113, Komeito 31, JCP 9, SDP 7, others 24; distribution of seats as of January 2006 - LDP 294, DPJ 112, Komeito 31, JCP 9, SDP 7, others 27 (2006)
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 68.43 years male: 62.54 years female: 74.6 years (2003 est.)	total population: 81.25 years male: 77.96 years female: 84.7 years (2006 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.)	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% male: 99% female: 99% (2002)
Location	Eastern Europe, east of Poland	Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula
Map references	Europe	Asia
Maritime claims	none (landlocked)	territorial sea: 12 nm; between 3 nm and 12 nm in the international straits - La Perouse or Soya, Tsugaru, Osumi, and Eastern and Western Channels of the Korea or Tsushima Strait contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
Merchant marine	-	total: 683 ships (1000 GRT or over) 10,415,892 GRT/11,765,038 DWT by type: bulk carrier 134, cargo 30, chemical tanker 20, container 11, liquefied gas 59, passenger 14, passenger/cargo 149, petroleum tanker 156, refrigerated cargo 3, roll on/roll off 51, vehicle carrier 56 registered in other countries: 2,459 (Australia 1, Bahamas 51, Belize 2, Burma 4, Cambodia 4, Cayman Islands 1, China 3, Cyprus 17, French Southern and Antarctic Lands 4, Honduras 4, Hong Kong 67, Indonesia 3, Isle of Man 4, South Korea 1, Liberia 102, Malaysia 4, Malta 1, Marshall Islands 7, Mongolia 1, Norway 1, Panama 2007, Philippines 26, Portugal 9, Singapore 100, Sweden 2, Thailand 4, Vanuatu 28, unknown 1) (2006)
Military branches	Army, Air Force (including air defense), Interior Ministry Troops, Border Guards	Japanese Defense Agency (JDA): Ground Self-Defense Force (Rikujou Jietai, GSDF), Maritime Self-Defense Force (Kaijou Jietai, MSDF), Air Self-Defense Force (Nihon Koku-Jieitai, ASDF) (2006)
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$176.1 million (FY02)	$44.31 billion (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1.4% (FY02)	1% (2005 est.)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 2,756,572 (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 2,158,875 (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - military age	18 years of age (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 86,654 (2003 est.)	-
National holiday	Independence Day, 3 July (1944); note - 3 July 1944 was the date Minsk was liberated from German troops, 25 August 1991 was the date of independence from the Soviet Union	Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933)
Nationality	noun: Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian	noun: Japanese (singular and plural) adjective: Japanese
Natural hazards	NA	many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons
Natural resources	forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay	negligible mineral resources, fish
Net migration rate	2.66 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.)
Pipelines	gas 4,519 km; oil 1,811 km; refined products 1,686 km (2003)	gas 8,015 km; oil 170 km; oil/gas/water 60 km (2006)
Political parties and leaders	Agrarian Party or AP [Mikhail SHIMANSKY]; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB [Viktor CHIKIN, chairman]; Belarusian Ecological Green Party (merger of Belarusian Ecological Party and Green Party of Belarus) [leader NA]; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party or SDBP [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party or Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Socialist Party [Vyacheslav KUZNETSOV]; Civic Accord Bloc (United Civic Party) or CAB [Anatol LIABEDZKA]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDPB [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH, chairman]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Republican Party of Labor and Justice or RPPS [Anatoliy NETYLKIN, chairman]; Social-Democrat Party of Popular Accord or PPA [Leanid SECHKA]; Women's Party or "Nadezhda" [Valentina POLEVIKOVA, chairperson]	Democratic Party of Japan or DPJ [Ichiro OZAWA]; Japan Communist Party or JCP [Kazuo SHII]; Komeito [Akihoro OTA]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Shinzo ABE]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Mizuho FUKUSHIMA]
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	10,322,151 (July 2003 est.)	127,463,611 (July 2006 est.)
Population below poverty line	22% (1995 est.)	NA%
Population growth rate	-0.12% (2003 est.)	0.02% (2006 est.)
Ports and harbors	Mazyr	-
Radio broadcast stations	AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)	AM 215 plus 370 repeaters, FM 89 plus 485 repeaters, shortwave 21 (2001)
Railways	total: 5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2002)	total: 23,556 km standard gauge: 3,204 km 1.435-m gauge (3,204 km electrified) narrow gauge: 77 km 1.372-m gauge (77 km electrified); 20,264 km 1.067-m gauge (13,280 km electrified); 11 km 0.762-m gauge (11 km electrified) (2005)
Religions	Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)	observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)
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: 0.5 male(s)/female total population: 0.88 male(s)/female (2003 est.)	at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.01 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.73 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2006 est.)
Suffrage	18 years of age; universal	20 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: the Ministry of Telecommunications controls all telecommunications through its carrier (a joint stock company) Beltelcom which is a monopoly domestic: local - Minsk has a digital metropolitan network and a cellular NMT-450 network; waiting lists for telephones are long; local service outside Minsk is neglected and poor; intercity - Belarus has a partly developed fiber-optic backbone system presently serving at least 13 major cities (1998); Belarus's fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: Belarus is a member of the Trans-European Line (TEL), Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line, and has access to the Trans-Siberia Line (TSL); three fiber-optic segments provide connectivity to Latvia, Poland, Russia, and Ukraine; worldwide service is available to Belarus through this infrastructure; additional analog lines to Russia; Intelsat, Eutelsat, and Intersputnik earth stations	general assessment: excellent domestic and international service domestic: high level of modern technology and excellent service of every kind international: country code - 81; satellite earth stations - 5 Intelsat (4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean), 1 Intersputnik (Indian Ocean region), and 1 Inmarsat (Pacific and Indian Ocean regions); submarine cables to China, Philippines, Russia, and US (via Guam) (1999)
Telephones - main lines in use	2.313 million (1997)	58.78 million (2005)
Telephones - mobile cellular	8,167 (1997)	94.745 million (2005)
Television broadcast stations	47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)	211 plus 7,341 repeaters note: in addition, US Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services (1999)
Terrain	generally flat and contains much marshland	mostly rugged and mountainous
Total fertility rate	1.34 children born/woman (2003 est.)	1.4 children born/woman (2006 est.)
Unemployment rate	2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers	4.4% (2005 est.)
Waterways	NA km; note - Belarus has extensive and widely used canal and river systems	1,770 km (seagoing vessels use inland seas) (2006)

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