Iran (2006) | Yugoslavia (2001) | |
Administrative divisions | 30 provinces (ostanha, singular - ostan); Ardabil, Azarbayjan-e Gharbi, Azarbayjan-e Sharqi, Bushehr, Chahar Mahall va Bakhtiari, Esfahan, Fars, Gilan, Golestan, Hamadan, Hormozgan, Ilam, Kerman, Kermanshah, Khorasan-e Janubi, Khorasan-e Razavi, Khorasan-e Shemali, Khuzestan, Kohgiluyeh va Buyer Ahmad, Kordestan, Lorestan, Markazi, Mazandaran, Qazvin, Qom, Semnan, Sistan va Baluchestan, Tehran, Yazd, Zanjan | 2 republics (republike, singular - republika); and 2 nominally autonomous provinces* (autonomn pokrajine, singular - autonomna pokrajina); Kosovo*, Montenegro, Serbia, Vojvodina* |
Age structure | 0-14 years: 26.1% (male 9,204,785/female 8,731,429)
15-64 years: 69% (male 24,133,919/female 23,245,255) 65 years and over: 4.9% (male 1,653,827/female 1,719,218) (2006 est.) |
0-14 years:
19.8% (male 1,095,905; female 1,024,123) 15-64 years: 65.3% (male 3,415,728; female 3,553,343) 65 years and over: 14.9% (male 681,559; female 906,632) (2001 est.) |
Agriculture - products | wheat, rice, other grains, sugar beets, fruits, nuts, cotton; dairy products, wool; caviar | cereals, fruits, vegetables, tobacco, olives; cattle, sheep, goats |
Airports | 321 (2006) | 47 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with paved runways | total: 129
over 3,047 m: 41 2,438 to 3,047 m: 26 1,524 to 2,437 m: 25 914 to 1,523 m: 31 under 914 m: 6 (2006) |
total:
19 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 5 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 4 (2000 est.) |
Airports - with unpaved runways | total: 192
over 3,047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 8 914 to 1,523 m: 140 under 914 m: 43 (2006) |
total:
28 1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 914 to 1,523 m: 12 under 914 m: 14 (2000 est.) |
Area | total: 1.648 million sq km
land: 1.636 million sq km water: 12,000 sq km |
total:
102,350 sq km land: 102,136 sq km water: 214 sq km |
Area - comparative | slightly larger than Alaska | slightly smaller than Kentucky |
Background | Known as Persia until 1935, Iran became an Islamic republic in 1979 after the ruling monarchy was overthrown and the shah was forced into exile. Conservative clerical forces established a theocratic system of government with ultimate political authority nominally vested in a learned religious scholar. Iranian-US relations have been strained since a group of Iranian students seized the US Embassy in Tehran on 4 November 1979 and held it until 20 January 1981. During 1980-88, Iran fought a bloody, indecisive war with Iraq that eventually expanded into the Persian Gulf and led to clashes between US Navy and Iranian military forces between 1987-1988. Iran has been designated a state sponsor of terrorism for its activities in Lebanon and elsewhere in the world and remains subject to US economic sanctions and export controls because of its continued involvement. Following the elections of a reformist president and Majlis in the late 1990s, attempts to foster political reform in response to popular dissatisfaction floundered as conservative politicians prevented reform measures from being enacted, increased repressive measures, and made electoral gains against reformers. Parliamentary elections in 2004 and the August 2005 inauguration of a conservative stalwart as president, completed the reconsolidation of conservative power in Iran's government. | The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats, and Slovenes was formed in 1918; its name was changed to Yugoslavia in 1929. Occupation by Nazi Germany in 1941 was resisted by various partisan bands that fought themselves as well as the invaders. The group headed by Marshal TITO took full control upon German expulsion in 1945. Although communist in name, his new government successfully steered its own path between the Warsaw Pact nations and the West for the next four and a half decades. In the early 1990s, post-TITO Yugoslavia began to unravel along ethnic lines: Slovenia, Croatia, and The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia all declared their independence in 1991; Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1992. The remaining republics of Serbia and Montenegro declared a new "Federal Republic of Yugoslavia" in 1992 and, under President Slobodan MILOSEVIC, Serbia led various military intervention efforts to unite Serbs in neighboring republics into a "Greater Serbia." All of these efforts were ultimately unsuccessful. In 1999, massive expulsions by Serbs of ethnic Albanians living in the autonomous republic of Kosovo provoked an international response, including the NATO bombing of Serbia and the stationing of NATO and Russian peacekeepers in Kosovo. Blatant attempts to manipulate presidential balloting in October of 2000 were followed by massive nationwide demonstrations and strikes that saw the election winner, Vojislav KOSTUNICA, replace MILOSEVIC. |
Birth rate | 17 births/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 12.61 births/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Budget | revenues: $48.82 billion
expenditures: $60.4 billion; including capital expenditures of $7.6 billion (2005 est.) |
revenues:
$NA expenditures: $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA |
Capital | name: Tehran
geographic coordinates: 35 40 N, 51 26 E time difference: UTC+3.5 (8.5 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time) |
Belgrade |
Climate | mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical along Caspian coast | in the north, continental climate (cold winters and hot, humid summers with well distributed rainfall); central portion, continental and Mediterranean climate; to the south, Adriatic climate along the coast, hot, dry summers and autumns and relatively cold winters with heavy snowfall inland |
Coastline | 2,440 km; note - Iran also borders the Caspian Sea (740 km) | 199 km |
Constitution | 2-3 December 1979; revised 1989 to expand powers of the presidency and eliminate the prime ministership | 27 April 1992 |
Country name | conventional long form: Islamic Republic of Iran
conventional short form: Iran local long form: Jomhuri-ye Eslami-ye Iran local short form: Iran former: Persia |
conventional long form:
Federal Republic of Yugoslavia conventional short form: Yugoslavia local long form: Savezna Republika Jugoslavija local short form: Jugoslavija |
Currency | - | new Yugoslav dinar (YUM); note - in Montenegro the German deutsche mark is legal tender (1999) |
Death rate | 5.55 deaths/1,000 population (2006 est.) | 10.54 deaths/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Debt - external | $19.06 billion (2005 est.) | $14.1 billion (1999 est.) |
Diplomatic representation from the US | none; note - protecting power in Iran is Switzerland | chief of mission:
Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires William MONTGOMERY embassy: Kneza Milosa 30, 11000 Belgrade note: the US reestablished relations with Yugoslavia 17 November 2000; the embassy is not scheduled to open for business until extensive renovations have been completed |
Diplomatic representation in the US | none; note - Iran has an Interests Section in the Pakistani Embassy; address: Iranian Interests Section, Pakistani Embassy, 2209 Wisconsin Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20007; telephone: [1] (202) 965-4990; FAX [1] (202) 965-1073 | chief of mission:
Ambassador Milan PROTIC chancery: 2410 California St. NW, Washington, DC 20008 note: Yugoslavia restored its diplomatic mission in the US in November 2000 after temporarily ceasing its operations at the beginning of the March 1999 NATO bombing campaign |
Disputes - international | Iran protests Afghanistan's limiting flow of dammed tributaries to the Helmand River in periods of drought; Iraq's lack of a maritime boundary with Iran prompts jurisdiction disputes beyond the mouth of the Shatt al Arab in the Persian Gulf; Iran and UAE dispute Tunb Islands and Abu Musa Island, which are occupied by Iran; Iran stands alone among littoral states in insisting upon a division of the Caspian Sea into five equal sectors | Albanian majority in Kosovo seeks independence from Yugoslavia; Croatia and Yugoslavia are negotiating the status of the strategically important Prevlaka Peninsula, which is currently under a UN military observer mission (UNMOP); the February 2001 agreement with the Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia settled alignment of boundary, stipulating implementation within two years |
Economic aid - recipient | $408 million (2002 est.) | $NA |
Economy - overview | Iran's economy is marked by a bloated, inefficient state sector, over reliance on the oil sector, and statist policies that create major distortions throughout. Most economic activity is controlled by the state. Private sector activity is typically small-scale - workshops, farming, and services. President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD has continued to follow the market reform plans of former President RAFSANJANI, with limited progress. Relatively high oil prices in recent years have enabled Iran to amass some $40 billion in foreign exchange reserves, but have not eased economic hardships such as high unemployment and inflation. The proportion of the economy devoted to the development of weapons of mass destruction remains a contentious issue with leading Western nations. | The swift collapse of the Yugoslav federation in 1991 was followed by highly destructive warfare, the destabilization of republic boundaries, and the breakup of important interrepublic trade flows. Output in Yugoslavia dropped by half in 1992-93. Like the other former Yugoslav republics, it had depended on its sister republics for large amounts of energy and manufactures. Wide differences in climate, mineral resources, and levels of technology among the republics accentuated this interdependence, as did the communist practice of concentrating much industrial output in a small number of giant plants. The breakup of many of the trade links, the sharp drop in output as industrial plants lost suppliers and markets, and the destruction of physical assets in the fighting all have contributed to the economic difficulties of the republics. Hyperinflation ended with the establishment of a new currency unit in June 1993; prices were relatively stable from 1995 through 1997, but inflationary pressures resurged in 1998. Reliable statistics continue to be hard to come by, and the GDP estimate is extremely rough. The economic boom anticipated by the government after the suspension of UN sanctions in December 1995 has failed to materialize. Government mismanagement of the economy is largely to blame, but the damage to Yugoslavia's infrastructure and industry by the NATO bombing during the war in Kosovo have added to problems. All sanctions now have been lifted. Yugoslavia is in the first stage of economic reform. Severe electricity shortages are chronic, the result of lack of investment by former regimes, depleted hydropower reservoirs due to extended drought, and lack of funds. GDP growth in 2000 was perhaps 15%, which made up for a large part of the 20% decline of 1999. |
Electricity - consumption | 132.1 billion kWh (2003) | 33.006 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - exports | 840 million kWh (2003) | 960 million kWh (1999) |
Electricity - imports | 600 million kWh (2003) | 1.923 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production | 142.3 billion kWh (2003) | 34.455 billion kWh (1999) |
Electricity - production by source | - | fossil fuel:
70% hydro: 30% nuclear: 0% other: 0% (1999) |
Elevation extremes | lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
highest point: Kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m |
lowest point:
Adriatic Sea 0 m highest point: Daravica 2,656 m |
Environment - current issues | air pollution, especially in urban areas, from vehicle emissions, refinery operations, and industrial effluents; deforestation; overgrazing; desertification; oil pollution in the Persian Gulf; wetland losses from drought; soil degradation (salination); inadequate supplies of potable water; water pollution from raw sewage and industrial waste; urbanization | pollution of coastal waters from sewage outlets, especially in tourist-related areas such as Kotor; air pollution around Belgrade and other industrial cities; water pollution from industrial wastes dumped into the Sava which flows into the Danube |
Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification, Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
party to:
Air Pollution, Climate Change, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Biodiversity |
Ethnic groups | Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur 2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1% | Serb 62.6%, Albanian 16.5%, Montenegrin 5%, Hungarian 3.3%, other 12.6% (1991) |
Exchange rates | rials per US dollar - 8,964 (2005), 8,614 (2004), 8,193.9 (2003), 6,907 (2002), 1,753.6 (2001)
note: Iran has been using a managed floating exchange rate regime since unifying multiple exchange rates in March 2002 |
new Yugoslav dinars per US dollar - official rate: 10.0 (December 1998), 5.85 (December 1997), 5.02 (September 1996), 1.5 (early 1995); black market rate: 14.5 (December 1998), 8.9 (December 1997), 2 to 3 (early 1995) |
Executive branch | chief of state: Supreme Leader Ali Hoseini-KHAMENEI (since 4 June 1989)
head of government: President Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD (since 3 August 2005); First Vice President Parviz DAVUDI (since 11 September 2005) cabinet: Council of Ministers selected by the president with legislative approval; the Supreme Leader has some control over appointments to the more sensitive ministries note: also considered part of the Executive branch of government are three oversight bodies: 1) Assembly of Experts, a popularly elected body of 86 religious scholars constitutionally charged with determining the succession of the Supreme Leader, reviewing his performance, and deposing him if deemed necessary; 2) Expediency Council or Council for the Discernment of Expediency is a policy advisory and implementation board consisting of permanent and temporary members representing all major government factions, some of whom are appointed by the Supreme Leader; the Council exerts supervisory authority over the executive, judicial, and legislative branches and resolves legislative issues on which the Majles and the Council of Guardians disagree; 3) Council of Guardians or Council of Guardians of the Constitution is a 12-member board of clerics and jurists serving six-year terms that determines whether proposed legislation is both constitutional and faithful to Islamic law; the Council also vets candidates for suitability and supervises national elections elections: Supreme Leader appointed for life by the Assembly of Experts; president elected by popular vote for a four-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held 17 June 2005 with a two-candidate runoff on 24 June 2005 (next to be held in 2009) election results: Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD elected president; percent of vote - Mahmud AHMADI-NEJAD 62%, Ali Akbar Hashemi RAFSANJANI 36% |
chief of state:
President Vojislav KOSTUNICA (since 7 October 2000) head of government: Prime Minister Dragisa PESIC (since 24 July 2001); Deputy Prime Minister Miroljub LABUS (since 25 January 2001) cabinet: Federal Executive Council elections: president elected by direct popular vote for up to two, four-year terms; election last held 24 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); prime minister appointed by the president election results: Vojislav KOSTUNICA elected president; percent of vote - Vojislav KOSTUNICA 55%, Slobodan MILOSEVIC 35% |
Exports | 2.5 million bbl/day (2004 est.) | $1.5 billion (1999) |
Exports - commodities | petroleum 80%, chemical and petrochemical products, fruits and nuts, carpets | manufactured goods, food and live animals, raw materials |
Exports - partners | Japan 16.6%, China 11%, Italy 5.8%, South Korea 5.7%, South Africa 5.7%, Turkey 5.6%, Netherlands 4.5%, France 4.3% (2005) | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Italy, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Germany (1998) |
Fiscal year | 21 March - 20 March | calendar year |
Flag description | three equal horizontal bands of green (top), white, and red; the national emblem (a stylized representation of the word Allah in the shape of a tulip, a symbol of martyrdom) in red is centered in the white band; ALLAH AKBAR (God is Great) in white Arabic script is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green band and 11 times along the top edge of the red band | three equal horizontal bands of blue (top), white, and red |
GDP | - | purchasing power parity - $24.2 billion (2000 est.) |
GDP - composition by sector | agriculture: 11.6%
industry: 42.4% services: 46% (2005 est.) |
agriculture:
20% industry: 50% services: 30% (1998 est.) |
GDP - per capita | - | purchasing power parity - $2,300 (2000 est.) |
GDP - real growth rate | 6.9% (2005 est.) | 15% (2000 est.) |
Geographic coordinates | 32 00 N, 53 00 E | 44 00 N, 21 00 E |
Geography - note | strategic location on the Persian Gulf and Strait of Hormuz, which are vital maritime pathways for crude oil transport | controls one of the major land routes from Western Europe to Turkey and the Near East; strategic location along the Adriatic coast |
Heliports | 15 (2006) | 2 (2000 est.) |
Highways | - | total:
48,603 km paved: 28,822 km (including 560 km of expressways) unpaved: 19,781 km (1998 est.) note: because of the 1999 Kosovo conflict, many road bridges were destroyed; since the end of the conflict in June 1999, there has been an intensive program to either rebuild bridges or build by-pass routes |
Household income or consumption by percentage share | lowest 10%: NA%
highest 10%: NA% |
lowest 10%:
NA% highest 10%: NA% |
Illicit drugs | despite substantial interdiction efforts, Iran remains a key transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin to Europe; domestic narcotics consumption remains a persistent problem and according to official Iranian statistics there are at least 2 million drug users in the country; lacks anti-money-laundering laws | transshipment point for Southwest Asian heroin moving to Western Europe on the Balkan route |
Imports | NA bbl/day | $3.3 billion (1999) |
Imports - commodities | industrial raw materials and intermediate goods, capital goods, foodstuffs and other consumer goods, technical services, military supplies | machinery and transport equipment, fuels and lubricants, manufactured goods, chemicals, food and live animals, raw materials |
Imports - partners | Germany 13.8%, UAE 8.3%, China 8.3%, Italy 7%, France 6.2%, South Korea 5.4%, Russia 4.8% (2005) | Germany, Italy, Russia, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia (1998) |
Independence | 1 April 1979 (Islamic Republic of Iran proclaimed) | 27 April 1992 (Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or FRY formed as self-proclaimed successor to the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia or SFRY) |
Industrial production growth rate | 3% excluding oil (2005 est.) | -22% (1999 est.) |
Industries | petroleum, petrochemicals, textiles, cement and other construction materials, food processing (particularly sugar refining and vegetable oil production), metal fabrication, armaments | machine building (aircraft, trucks, and automobiles; tanks and weapons; electrical equipment; agricultural machinery); metallurgy (steel, aluminum, copper, lead, zinc, chromium, antimony, bismuth, cadmium); mining (coal, bauxite, nonferrous ore, iron ore, limestone); consumer goods (textiles, footwear, foodstuffs, appliances); electronics, petroleum products, chemicals, and pharmaceuticals |
Infant mortality rate | total: 40.3 deaths/1,000 live births
male: 40.49 deaths/1,000 live births female: 40.1 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.) |
17.42 deaths/1,000 live births (2001 est.) |
Inflation rate (consumer prices) | 13.5% (2005 est.) | 42% (1999 est.) |
International organization participation | ABEDA, CP, ECO, FAO, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICCt (signatory), ICRM, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, OIC, OPCW, OPEC, PCA, SCO (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNMEE, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTO (observer) | BIS, CE (guest), FAO (applicant), G- 9, G-15, G-24, G-77, IAEA, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU, ICRM, IFAD, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, Inmarsat, Intelsat, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, NAM, OPCW, OSCE, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer) |
Internet Service Providers (ISPs) | - | 9 (2000) |
Irrigated land | 76,500 sq km (2003) | NA sq km |
Judicial branch | Supreme Court - above a special clerical court, a revolutionary court, and a special administrative court | Federal Court or Savezni Sud; Constitutional Court; judges for both courts are elected by the Federal Assembly for nine-year terms |
Labor force | 23.68 million
note: shortage of skilled labor (2005 est.) |
1.6 million (1999 est.) |
Labor force - by occupation | agriculture: 30%
industry: 25% services: 45% (2001 est.) |
agriculture NA%, industry NA%, services NA% |
Land boundaries | total: 5,440 km
border countries: Afghanistan 936 km, Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km, Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km, Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km, Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km |
total:
2,246 km border countries: Albania 287 km, Bosnia and Herzegovina 527 km, Bulgaria 318 km, Croatia (north) 241 km, Croatia (south) 25 km, Hungary 151 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia 221 km, Romania 476 km |
Land use | arable land: 9.78%
permanent crops: 1.29% other: 88.93% (2005) |
arable land:
40% permanent crops: 0% permanent pastures: 20.7% forests and woodland: 17.3% other: 22% (1998 est.) |
Languages | Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish 9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2% | Serbian 95%, Albanian 5% |
Legal system | the Constitution codifies Islamic principles of government | based on civil law system |
Legislative branch | unicameral Islamic Consultative Assembly or Majles-e-Shura-ye-Eslami (290 seats - formerly 270 seats; members elected by popular vote to serve four-year terms)
elections: last held 20 February 2004 with a runoff held 7 May 2004 (by-elections next to be held in December 2006; general election to be held in February 2008) election results: percent of vote - NA; seats by party - conservatives/Islamists 190, reformers 50, independents 43, religious minorities 5, and 2 seats unaccounted for |
bicameral Federal Assembly or Savezna Skupstina consists of the Chamber of Republics or Vece Republika (40 seats - 20 Serbian, 20 Montenegrin; members distributed on the basis of party representation in the republican assemblies to serve four-year terms; note - the Assembly passed a new constitutional amendment calling for direct elections for the deputies to the upper chamber) and the Chamber of Citizens or Vece Gradjana (138 seats - 108 Serbian with half elected by constituency majorities and half by proportional representation, 30 Montenegrin with six elected by constituency and 24 proportionally; members serve four-year terms)
elections: Chamber of Republics - last held 24 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004); Chamber of Citizens - last held 24 September 2000 (next to be held NA 2004) election results: Chamber of Republics - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - SNP 19, DOS 10, SPS/JUL 7, SRS 2, SPO 1, SNS 1; note - seats are filled on a proportional basis to reflect the composition of the legislatures of the republics of Montenegro and Serbia; since 1998 Serbia has effectively barred Montenegro from its constitutional right to delegate deputies to the Chamber of Republics; Chamber of Citizens - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - DOS 55, SPS/JUL 46, SNP 28, SRS 4, SNS 2, other 3 |
Life expectancy at birth | total population: 70.26 years
male: 68.86 years female: 71.74 years (2006 est.) |
total population:
73.5 years male: 70.57 years female: 76.67 years (2001 est.) |
Literacy | definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 79.4% male: 85.6% female: 73% (2003 est.) |
definition:
age 15 and over can read and write total population: 93% male: 97.2% female: 88.9% (1991) |
Location | Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman, the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea, between Iraq and Pakistan | Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea, between Albania and Bosnia and Herzegovina |
Map references | Middle East | Europe |
Maritime claims | territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: bilateral agreements or median lines in the Persian Gulf continental shelf: natural prolongation |
NA |
Merchant marine | total: 141 ships (1000 GRT or over) 5,086,702 GRT/8,878,829 DWT
by type: bulk carrier 39, cargo 45, chemical tanker 4, container 12, liquefied gas 1, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 6, petroleum tanker 30, roll on/roll off 3 foreign-owned: 1 (UAE 1) registered in other countries: 22 (Bolivia 1, Cyprus 2, Malta 14, Panama 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 1) (2006) |
total:
1 ship (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 2,437 GRT/400 DWT ships by type: short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.) |
Military branches | Islamic Republic of Iran Regular Forces (Artesh): Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force (Niruye Havayi Jomhuriye Islamiye Iran; includes air defense); Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (Sepah-e Pasdaran-e Enqelab-e Eslami, IRGC): Ground Forces, Navy, Air Force, Qods Force (special operations), and Basij Force (Popular Mobilization Army); Law Enforcement Forces (2006) | Army (including ground forces with border troops, naval forces, air and air defense forces) |
Military expenditures - dollar figure | $4.3 billion (2003 est.) | $760 million (FY00) |
Military expenditures - percent of GDP | 3.3% (2003 est.) | NA% |
Military manpower - availability | - | males age 15-49:
2,600,362 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - fit for military service | - | males age 15-49:
2,088,595 (2001 est.) |
Military manpower - military age | - | 19 years of age |
Military manpower - reaching military age annually | - | males:
82,542 (2001 est.) |
National holiday | Republic Day, 1 April (1979)
note: additional holidays celebrated widely in Iran include Revolution Day, 11 February (1979); Noruz (New Year's Day), 21 March; Constitutional Monarchy Day, 5 August (1925); and various Islamic observances that change in accordance with the lunar-based hejira calendar |
Republic Day, 29 November |
Nationality | noun: Iranian(s)
adjective: Iranian |
noun:
Serb(s); Montenegrin(s) adjective: Serbian; Montenegrin |
Natural hazards | periodic droughts, floods; dust storms, sandstorms; earthquakes | destructive earthquakes |
Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese, zinc, sulfur | oil, gas, coal, antimony, copper, lead, zinc, nickel, gold, pyrite, chrome, hydropower, arable land |
Net migration rate | -0.48 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2006 est.) | -4.71 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2001 est.) |
Pipelines | condensate 7 km; condensate/gas 397 km; gas 17,099 km; liquid petroleum gas 570 km; oil 8,521 km; refined products 7,808 km (2006) | crude oil 415 km; petroleum products 130 km; natural gas 2,110 km |
Political parties and leaders | formal political parties are a relatively new phenomenon in Iran and most conservatives still prefer to work through political pressure groups rather than parties; a loose pro-reform coalition called the 2nd Khordad Front, which includes political parties as well as less formal pressure groups and organizations, achieved considerable success at elections to the sixth Majles in early 2000; groups in the coalition include: Islamic Iran Participation Front (IIPF), Executives of Construction Party (Kargozaran), Solidarity Party, Islamic Labor Party, Mardom Salari, Mojahedin of the Islamic Revolution Organization (MIRO), and Militant Clerics Society (Ruhaniyun); the coalition participated in the seventh Majles elections in early 2004; following his defeat in the 2005 presidential elections, former MCS Secretary General Mehdi KARRUBI formed the National Trust Party; a new apparently conservative group, the Builders of Islamic Iran, took a leading position in the new Majles after winning a majority of the seats in February 2004 | Alliance of Vojvodina Hungarians or SVM [Jozsef KASZA]; Civic Alliance of Serbia or GSS [Vesna PESIC]; Coalition Sandzak [Rasim JAJIC]; Coalition Sumadija [Branislav KOVACEVIC]; Democratic Alternative of DA [Nebojsa COVIC]; Democratic Center or DC [Dragoljub MICUNOVIC]; Democratic Christian Party of Serbia of DHSS [Vladan BATIC]; Democratic League of Kosovo or LDK [Dr. Ibrahim RUGOVA, president]; Democratic Opposition of Serbia or DOS [leader NA]; Democratic Party or DS [Zoran DJINDJIC]; Democratic Party of Serbia or DSS [Vojislav KOSTUNICA]; Democratic Party of Socialists of Montenegro or DPS [Milo DJUKANOVIC]; Movement for a Democratic Serbia or PDS [Momcilo PERISIC]; New Democracy or ND [Dusan MIHAJLOVIC]; New Serbia [Velimir ILIC and Milan St. PROTIC]; People's Party of Montenegro or NS [Dragan SOC]; Serb People's Party or SNS [leader NA]; Serbian Radical Party or SRS [Vojislav SESELJ]; Serbian Renewal Movement or SPO [Vuk DRASKOVIC, president]; Serbian Socialist Party or SPS (former Communist Party) [Slobodan MILOSEVIC]; Social Democracy or SD [Vuk OBRADOVIC]; Social Democratic Union or SDU [Zarko KORAC]; Socialist People's Party of Montenegro or SNP [Momir BULATOVIC]; Yugoslav United Left or JUL [Ljubisa RISTIC] |
Political pressure groups and leaders | political pressure groups conduct most of Iran's political activities; groups that generally support the Islamic Republic include Ansar-e Hizballah, Muslim Students Following the Line of the Imam, Tehran Militant Clergy Association (Ruhaniyat), Islamic Coalition Party (Motalefeh), and Islamic Engineers Society; active pro-reform student groups include the Office of Strengthening Unity (OSU); opposition groups include Freedom Movement of Iran, the National Front, Marz-e Por Gohar, and various ethnic and Monarchist organizations; armed political groups that have been almost completely repressed by the government include Mujahidin-e Khalq Organization (MEK), People's Fedayeen, Democratic Party of Iranian Kurdistan, and Komala | Alliance for the Future of Kosovo or AAK [leader RAMUSH]; Group of 17 Independent Economists or G-17 [leader NA]; National Movement for the Liberation of Kosovo or LKCK [Sabit GASHI]; Otpor Student Resistance Movement [leader NA]; Political Council for Presevo, Meveda and Bujanovac or PCPMB [leader NA]; The People's Movement for Kosovo or LPK [leader NA] |
Population | 68,688,433 (July 2006 est.) | 10,677,290
note: all data dealing with population is subject to considerable error because of the dislocations caused by military action and ethnic cleansing (July 2001 est.) |
Population below poverty line | 40% (2002 est.) | NA% |
Population growth rate | 1.1% (2006 est.) | -0.27% (2001 est.) |
Ports and harbors | - | Bar, Belgrade, Kotor, Novi Sad, Pancevo, Tivat, Zelenika |
Radio broadcast stations | AM 72, FM 5, shortwave 5 (1998) | AM 113, FM 194, shortwave 2 (1998) |
Radios | - | 3.15 million (1997) |
Railways | total: 7,256 km
broad gauge: 94 km 1.676-m gauge standard gauge: 7,162 km 1.435-m gauge (186 km electrified) (2005) |
total:
4,095 km standard gauge: 4,095 km 1.435-m gauge (1,377 km partially electrified since 1992) note: during to the 1999 Kosovo conflict, the Serbian rail system suffered significant damage due to bridge destruction; many rail bridges have been rebuilt, but the bridge over the Danube at Novi Sad was still down in early 2000; however, a by-pass is available; Montenegrin rail lines remain intact |
Religions | Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 9%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and Baha'i 2% | Orthodox 65%, Muslim 19%, Roman Catholic 4%, Protestant 1%, other 11% |
Sex ratio | at birth: 1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 1.04 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.96 male(s)/female total population: 1.04 male(s)/female (2006 est.) |
at birth:
1.08 male(s)/female under 15 years: 1.08 male(s)/female 15-64 years: 0.96 male(s)/female 65 years and over: 0.75 male(s)/female total population: 0.95 male(s)/female (2001 est.) |
Suffrage | 15 years of age; universal | 16 years of age, if employed; 18 years of age, universal |
Telephone system | general assessment: inadequate, but currently being modernized and expanded with the goal of not only improving the efficiency and increasing the volume of the urban service but also bringing telephone service to several thousand villages, not presently connected
domestic: as a result of heavy investing in the telephone system since 1994, the number of long-distance channels in the microwave radio relay trunk has grown substantially; many villages have been brought into the net; the number of main lines in the urban systems has approximately doubled; thousands of mobile cellular subscribers are being served; moreover, the technical level of the system has been raised by the installation of thousands of digital switches international: country code - 98; HF radio and microwave radio relay to Turkey, Azerbaijan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, Syria, Kuwait, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan; submarine fiber-optic cable to UAE with access to Fiber-Optic Link Around the Globe (FLAG); Trans-Asia-Europe (TAE) fiber-optic line runs from Azerbaijan through the northern portion of Iran to Turkmenistan with expansion to Georgia and Azerbaijan; satellite earth stations - 9 Intelsat and 4 Inmarsat |
general assessment:
NA domestic: NA international: satellite earth station - 1 Intelsat (Atlantic Ocean) |
Telephones - main lines in use | 18.986 million (2005) | 2.017 million (1995) |
Telephones - mobile cellular | 7.222 million (2005) | 87,000 (1997) |
Television broadcast stations | 28 (plus 450 low-power repeaters) (1997) | more than 771 (including 86 strong stations and 685 low-power stations, plus 20 repeaters in the principal networks; also numerous local or private stations in Serbia and Vojvodina) (1997) |
Terrain | rugged, mountainous rim; high, central basin with deserts, mountains; small, discontinuous plains along both coasts | extremely varied; to the north, rich fertile plains; to the east, limestone ranges and basins; to the southeast, ancient mountains and hills; to the southwest, extremely high shoreline with no islands off the coast |
Total fertility rate | 1.8 children born/woman (2006 est.) | 1.75 children born/woman (2001 est.) |
Unemployment rate | 11.2% (2004 est.) | 30% (2000 est.) |
Waterways | 850 km (850 km on Karun River; additional service on Lake Urmia) (2006) | 587 km
note: The Danube River, which connects Europe with the Black Sea, runs through Serbia; since early 2000, a pontoon bridge, replacing a destroyed conventional bridge, has obstructed river traffic at Novi Sad; the obstruction can be bypassed by a canal system but inadequate lock size limits the size of vessels which may pass (2001) |