Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2001) - French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2003)

Compare British Indian Ocean Territory (2001) z French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2003)

	British Indian Ocean Territory (2001)	French Southern and Antarctic Lands (2003)

Administrative divisions	-	none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 districts named Ile Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes "Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Airports	1 (2000 est.)	none (2002)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 1 over 3,047 m: 1 (2000 est.)	-
Area	total: 60 sq km land: 60 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes the entire Chagos Archipelago	total: 7,829 sq km land: 7,829 sq km water: 0 sq km note: includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen; excludes "Adelie Land" claim of about 500,000 sq km in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Area - comparative	about 0.3 times the size of Washington, DC	slightly less than 1.3 times the size of Delaware
Background	Established as a territory of the UK in 1965, a number of the British Indian Ocean Territory (BIOT) islands were transferred to the Seychelles when it attained independence in 1976. Subsequently, BIOT has consisted only of the six main island groups comprising the Chagos Archipelago. The largest and most southerly of the islands, Diego Garcia, contains a joint UK-US naval support facility. All of the remaining islands are uninhabited. Former agricultural workers, earlier resident in the islands, were relocated primarily to Mauritius but also to the Seychelles, between 1967 and 1973. In 2000, a British High Court ruling invalidated the local immigration order which had excluded them from the archipelago, but upheld the special military status of Diego Garcia.	The Southern Lands consist of two archipelagos, Iles Crozet and Iles Kerguelen, and two volcanic islands, Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul. They contain no permanent inhabitants and are visited only by researchers studying the native fauna. The Antarctic portion consists of "Adelie Land," a thin slice of the Antarctic continent discovered and claimed by the French in 1840.
Climate	tropical marine; hot, humid, moderated by trade winds	antarctic
Coastline	698 km	1,232 km
Country name	conventional long form: British Indian Ocean Territory conventional short form: none abbreviation: BIOT	conventional long form: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands conventional short form: French Southern and Antarctic Lands local long form: Territoire des Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises local short form: Terres Australes et Antarctiques Francaises
Dependency status	overseas territory of the UK; administered by a commissioner, resident in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London	overseas territory of France since 1955; administered from Paris by Administrateur Superieur Francois GARDE (since 24 May 2000), assisted by Secretary General Jean-Yves HERMOSO (since NA)
Diplomatic representation from the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	none (overseas territory of France)
Diplomatic representation in the US	none (overseas territory of the UK)	none (overseas territory of France)
Disputes - international	the Chagos Archipelago is claimed by Mauritius and Seychelles	"Adelie Land" claim in Antarctica is not recognized by the US
Economy - overview	All economic activity is concentrated on the largest island of Diego Garcia, where joint UK-US defense facilities are located. Construction projects and various services needed to support the military installations are done by military and contract employees from the UK, Mauritius, the Philippines, and the US. There are no industrial or agricultural activities on the islands. When the Ilois return, they plan to reestablish sugarcane production and fishing.	Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and Reunion.
Electricity - consumption	NA kWh	-
Electricity - production	NA kWh; note - electricity supplied by the US military	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: unnamed location on Diego Garcia 15 m	lowest point: Indian Ocean 0 m highest point: Mont Ross on Iles Kerguelen 1,850 m
Environment - current issues	NA	NA
Executive branch	chief of state: Queen ELIZABETH II (since 6 February 1952) head of government: Commissioner John WHITE (since NA); Administrator Louise SAVILL (since NA); note - both reside in the UK cabinet: NA elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; commissioner and administrator appointed by the monarch	-
Flag description	white with six blue wavy horizontal stripes; the flag of the UK is in the upper hoist-side quadrant; the striped section bears a palm tree and yellow crown centered on the outer half of the flag	the flag of France is used
Geographic coordinates	6 00 S, 71 30 E	43 00 S, 67 00 E
Geography - note	archipelago of 2,300 islands; Diego Garcia, largest and southernmost island, occupies strategic location in central Indian Ocean; island is site of joint US-UK military facility	islands component is widely scattered across remote locations in the southern Indian Ocean
Highways	total: NA km paved: short stretch of paved road of NA km between port and airfield on Diego Garcia unpaved: NA km	-
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	1 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	0 sq km (1993)	0 sq km (1998 est.)
Land boundaries	0 km	0 km
Land use	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 0% forests and woodland: NA% other: NA%	arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (1998 est.)
Legal system	the laws of the UK, where applicable, apply	the laws of France, where applicable, apply
Location	Southern Asia, archipelago in the Indian Ocean, about one-half the way from Africa to Indonesia	southeast of Africa, islands in the southern Indian Ocean, about equidistant between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia; note - French Southern and Antarctic Lands include Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet, and Iles Kerguelen in the southern Indian Ocean, along with the French-claimed sector of Antarctica, "Adelie Land"; the US does not recognize the French claim to "Adelie Land"
Map references	World	Antarctic Region
Maritime claims	exclusive fishing zone: 200 NM territorial sea: 3 NM	exclusive economic zone: 200 NM from Iles Kerguelen only territorial sea: 12 NM
Merchant marine	-	total: 73 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 3,596,194 GRT/5,924,475 DWT ships by type: bulk 4, cargo 4, chemical tanker 14, container 15, liquefied gas 5, passenger 1, petroleum tanker 17, roll on/roll off 11, vehicle carrier 2 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: Belgium 2, France 62, Japan 3, Monaco 1, Norway 5, Sweden 1 (2002 est.)
Military - note	defense is the responsibility of the UK; the US lease on Diego Garcia expires in 2016	defense is the responsibility of France
Natural hazards	NA	Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes
Natural resources	coconuts, fish, sugarcane	fish, crayfish
Population	no indigenous inhabitants note: approximately 1,200 former agricultural workers resident in the Chagos Archipelago, often referred to as Chagossians or Ilois, were relocated to Mauritius and the Seychelles around the time of the construction of UK-US military facilities; in 1995, there were approximately 1,700 UK and US military personnel and 1,500 civilian contractors living on the island of Diego Garcia	no indigenous inhabitants (July 2002 est.) note: in 2002, there were 145 researchers whose numbers vary from winter (July) to summer (January) (July 2003 est.)
Ports and harbors	Diego Garcia	none; offshore anchorage only
Radio broadcast stations	AM 1, FM 2, shortwave 0 (1998)	-
Radios	NA	-
Telephone system	general assessment: separate facilities for military and public needs are available domestic: all commercial telephone services are available, including connection to the Internet international: international telephone service is carried by satellite (2000)	-
Telephones - main lines in use	NA	-
Television broadcast stations	1 (1997)	-
Terrain	flat and low (most areas do not exceed four meters in elevation)	volcanic
Waterways	none	none

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