Compare Japan (2003) - Belarus (2004)

Compare Japan (2003) z Belarus (2004)

	Japan (2003)	Belarus (2004)

Administrative divisions	47 prefectures; Aichi, Akita, Aomori, Chiba, Ehime, Fukui, Fukuoka, Fukushima, Gifu, Gumma, 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	6 provinces (voblastsi, singular - voblasts') and 1 municipality* (horad); Brest, Homyel', Horad Minsk*, Hrodna, Mahilyow, Minsk, Vitsyebsk note: administrative divisions have the same names as their administrative centers
Age structure	0-14 years: 14.4% (male 9,368,132; female 8,906,024) 15-64 years: 67% (male 42,852,204; female 42,368,109) 65 years and over: 18.6% (male 9,945,638; female 13,774,392) (2003 est.)	0-14 years: 16.3% (male 859,219; female 823,839) 15-64 years: 69.2% (male 3,469,926; female 3,662,203) 65 years and over: 14.5% (male 496,204; female 999,129) (2004 est.)
Agriculture - products	rice, sugar beets, vegetables, fruit; pork, poultry, dairy products, eggs; fish	grain, potatoes, vegetables, sugar beets, flax; beef, milk
Airports	172 (2002)	135 (2003 est.)
Airports - with paved runways	total: 141 over 3,047 m: 7 2,438 to 3,047 m: 37 1,524 to 2,437 m: 38 914 to 1,523 m: 27 under 914 m: 32 (2002)	total: 50 over 3,047 m: 2 2,438 to 3,047 m: 21 1,524 to 2,437 m: 6 under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.)
Airports - with unpaved runways	total: 31 over 3047 m: 1 1,524 to 2,437 m: 1 914 to 1,523 m: 3 under 914 m: 26 (2002)	total: 85 over 3,047 m: 3 2,438 to 3,047 m: 2 1,524 to 2,437 m: 5 914 to 1,523 m: 11 under 914 m: 64 (2003 est.)
Area	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)	total: 207,600 sq km land: 207,600 sq km water: 0 sq km
Area - comparative	slightly smaller than California	slightly smaller than Kansas
Background	While retaining its time-honored culture, Japan rapidly absorbed Western technology during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. 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.	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.
Birth rate	9.61 births/1,000 population (2003 est.)	10.52 births/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Budget	revenues: $441 billion expenditures: $718 billion, including capital expenditures (public works only) of about $0 NA (FY 01/02 est.)	revenues: $2.976 billion expenditures: $3.211 billion, including capital expenditures of $180 million (2003 est.)
Capital	Tokyo	Minsk
Climate	varies from tropical in south to cool temperate in north	cold winters, cool and moist summers; transitional between continental and maritime
Coastline	29,751 km	0 km (landlocked)
Constitution	3 May 1947	30 March 1994; revised by national referendum of 24 November 1996 giving the presidency greatly expanded powers and became effective 27 November 1996; revised again 17 October 2004 removing presidential term limits
Country name	conventional long form: none conventional short form: Japan	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
Currency	yen (JPY)	Belarusian ruble (BYB/BYR)
Death rate	8.55 deaths/1,000 population (2003 est.)	14.1 deaths/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Debt - external	$NA	$851 million (2001 est.)
Diplomatic representation from the US	chief of mission: Ambassador Howard H. BAKER, Jr. embassy: 10-5 Akasaka 1-chome, 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	chief of mission: Ambassador George A. KROL embassy: 46 Starovilenskaya St., Minsk 220002 mailing address: PSC 78, Box B Minsk, APO 09723 telephone: [375] (17) 210-12-83, 217-7347, 217-7348 FAX: [375] (17) 234-7853
Diplomatic representation in the US	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, Hagatna (Guam), Honolulu, Houston, Kansas City (Missouri), Los Angeles, Miami, New Orleans, New York, Portland (Oregon), San Francisco, and Seattle consulate(s): Saipan (Northern Mariana Islands)	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
Disputes - international	islands of Etorofu, Kunashiri, and Shikotan, and the Habomai group occupied by the Soviet Union in 1945, now administered by Russia, claimed by Japan; Liancourt Rocks (Take-shima/Tok-do) disputed with South Korea; Senkaku Islands (Diaoyu Tai) claimed by China and Taiwan	1997 boundary treaty with Ukraine remains unratified over unresolved financial claims, preventing demarcation and diminishing border security; boundaries with Latvia and Lithuania remain undemarcated despite European Union financial support
Economic aid - donor	ODA, $9.1 billion (1999)	-
Economic aid - recipient	-	$194.3 million (1995)
Economy - overview	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 third-largest economy after the US and China. One notable characteristic of the economy is the working together of manufacturers, suppliers, and distributors 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. Industry, the most important sector of the economy, is heavily dependent on imported raw materials and fuels. The much smaller 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 50% of its requirements of other grain and fodder crops. 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 aftereffects of overinvestment during the late 1980s and contractionary domestic policies intended to wring speculative excesses from the stock and real estate markets. Government efforts to revive economic growth have met with little success and were further hampered in 2000-2003 by the slowing of the US, European, and Asian economies. Japan's huge government debt, which is approaching 150% of GDP, and the ageing of the population are two major long-run problems. Robotics constitutes a key long-term economic strength with Japan possessing 410,000 of the world's 720,000 "working robots." Internal conflict over the proper way to reform the ailing banking system continues.	Belarus' economy in 2003 posted 6.1 percent growth and is likely to continue expanding through 2004, albeit at a slower growth rate. The Belarusian economy in 2004 is likely to be hampered by high inflation, persistent trade deficits, and ongoing rocky relations with Russia, Belarus' largest trading partner and energy supplier. 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 enterprises. In addition, 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. For the time being, Belarus remains self-isolated from the West and its open-market economies.
Electricity - consumption	964.2 billion kWh (2001)	26.69 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - exports	0 kWh (2001)	300 million kWh (2001)
Electricity - imports	0 kWh (2001)	4.3 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production	1.037 trillion kWh (2001)	24.4 billion kWh (2001)
Electricity - production by source	fossil fuel: 60% hydro: 8.4% nuclear: 29.8% other: 1.8% (2001)	-
Elevation extremes	lowest point: Hachiro-gata -4 m highest point: Mount Fuji 3,776 m	lowest point: Nyoman River 90 m highest point: Dzyarzhynskaya Hara 346 m
Environment - current issues	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	soil pollution from pesticide use; southern part of the country contaminated with fallout from 1986 nuclear reactor accident at Chornobyl' in northern Ukraine
Environment - international agreements	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, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling	party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 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
Ethnic groups	Japanese 99%, others 1% (Korean 511,262, Chinese 244,241, Brazilian 182,232, Filipino 89,851, other 237,914) (2000)	Belarusian 81.2%, Russian 11.4%, Polish, Ukrainian, and other 7.4%
Exchange rates	yen per US dollar - 125.39 (2002), 121.53 (2001), 107.77 (2000), 113.91 (1999), 130.91 (1998)	Belarusian rubles per US dollar - 1,790.92 (2003), 1,920 (2002), 1,390 (2001), 876.75 (2000), 248.795 (1999)
Executive branch	chief of state: Emperor AKIHITO (since 7 January 1989) head of government: Prime Minister Junichiro KOIZUMI (since 26 April 2001) cabinet: Cabinet appointed by the prime minister elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; the Diet designates the prime minister; the constitution requires that the prime minister must command a parliamentary majority; therefore, following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party or leader of a majority coalition in the House of Representatives usually becomes prime minister note: following the resignation of Prime Minister Yoshiro MORI, Junichiro KOIZUMI was elected as the new president of the majority Liberal Democratic Party and soon thereafter designated by the Diet to become the next prime minister	chief of state: President Aleksandr LUKASHENKO (since 20 July 1994) head of government: Prime Minister Sergei SIDORSKY (since 19 December 2003); First Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir SEMASHKO (since December 2003); Deputy Prime Ministers Andrei KOBYAKOV (since December 2003), Vladimir DRAZHIN (since 24 September 2001), Ivan BAMBIZA (since 25 May 2004), Anatoly TYUTYUNOV (since July 2002) 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; October 2004 referendum ended presidential term limits allowing president to run for a third term in 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%
Exports	93,360 bbl/day (2001)	NA (2001)
Exports - commodities	motor vehicles, semiconductors, office machinery, chemicals	machinery and equipment, mineral products, chemicals, metals; textiles, foodstuffs
Exports - partners	US 28.8%, China 9.6%, South Korea 6.9%, Taiwan 6.2%, Hong Kong 6.1% (2002)	Russia 49.1%, UK 9.4%, Poland 4.4%, Germany 4.2%, Netherlands 4.2% (2003)
Fiscal year	1 April - 31 March	calendar year
Flag description	white with a large red disk (representing the sun without rays) in the center	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 Belarusian national ornamention in red
GDP	purchasing power parity - $3.651 trillion (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $62.56 billion (2003 est.)
GDP - composition by sector	agriculture: 1.4% industry: 30.9% services: 67.7% (2001 est.)	agriculture: 11.1% industry: 36.4% services: 52.5% (2003 est.)
GDP - per capita	purchasing power parity - $28,700 (2002 est.)	purchasing power parity - $6,100 (2003 est.)
GDP - real growth rate	0.2% (2002 est.)	6.8% (2003 est.)
Geographic coordinates	36 00 N, 138 00 E	53 00 N, 28 00 E
Geography - note	strategic location in northeast Asia	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
Heliports	15 (2002)	1 (2003 est.)
Highways	total: 1,161,894 km paved: 534,471 km (including 6,455 km of expressways) unpaved: 627,423 km (1999)	total: 74,385 km paved: 66,203 km unpaved: 8,182 km (2000)
Household income or consumption by percentage share	lowest 10%: 4.8% highest 10%: 21.7% (1993)	lowest 10%: 5.1% highest 10%: 20% (1998)
Illicit drugs	-	limited cultivation of opium poppy and cannabis, mostly for the domestic market; transshipment point for illicit drugs to and via Russia, and to the Baltics and Western Europe; a small and lightly regulated financial center; new anti-money-laundering legislation does not meet international standards; few investigations or prosecutions of money-laundering activities
Imports	5.449 million bbl/day (2001)	NA (2001)
Imports - commodities	machinery and equipment, fuels, foodstuffs, chemicals, textiles, raw materials (2001)	mineral products, machinery and equipment, chemicals, foodstuffs, metals
Imports - partners	China 18.3%, US 17.4%, South Korea 4.6%, Indonesia 4.2%, Australia 4.1% (2002)	Russia 65.8%, Germany 7.1%, Ukraine 3.1% (2003)
Independence	660 BC (traditional founding by Emperor Jimmu)	25 August 1991 (from Soviet Union)
Industrial production growth rate	-1.4% (2002 est.)	5% (2003 est.)
Industries	among world's largest and technologically advanced producers of motor vehicles, electronic equipment, machine tools, steel and nonferrous metals, ships, chemicals; textiles, processed foods	metal-cutting machine tools, tractors, trucks, earthmovers, motorcycles, television sets, chemical fibers, fertilizer, textiles, radios, refrigerators
Infant mortality rate	total: 3.3 deaths/1,000 live births male: 3.56 deaths/1,000 live births female: 3.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2003 est.)	total: 13.62 deaths/1,000 live births male: 14.71 deaths/1,000 live births female: 12.47 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices)	-0.9% (2002 est.)	28.2% (2003 est.)
International organization participation	ABEDA, AfDB, APEC, ARF (dialogue partner), AsDB, ASEAN (dialogue partner), Australia Group, BIS, CE (observer), CERN (observer), CP, EBRD, ESCAP, 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, ISO, ITU, NAM (guest), NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE (partner), PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNDOF, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNITAR, UNMISET, UNMOVIC, UNRWA, UNU, UPU, WCL, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WToO, WTrO, ZC	CEI, CIS, EAPC, EBRD, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICFTU, ICRM, IFC, IFRCS, ILO, IMF, Interpol, IOC, IOM (observer), ISO, ITU, MIGA, NAM, NSG, OPCW, OSCE, PCA, PFP, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU, WCO, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTrO (observer)
Internet Service Providers (ISPs)	73 (2000)	-
Irrigated land	26,790 sq km (1998 est.)	1,150 sq km (1998 est.)
Judicial branch	Supreme Court (chief justice is appointed by the monarch after designation by the cabinet; all other justices are appointed by the cabinet)	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)
Labor force	67.7 million (December 2001)	4.8 million (2000 est.)
Labor force - by occupation	services 70%, industry 25%, agriculture 5% (2002 est.)	NA
Land boundaries	0 km	total: 2,900 km border countries: Latvia 141 km, Lithuania 502 km, Poland 407 km, Russia 959 km, Ukraine 891 km
Land use	arable land: 12.13% permanent crops: 1.01% other: 86.86% (1998 est.)	arable land: 29.55% permanent crops: 0.6% other: 69.85% (2001)
Languages	Japanese	Belarusian, Russian, other
Legal 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	based on civil law system
Legislative branch	bicameral Diet or Kokkai consists of the House of Councillors or Sangi-in (247 seats - members elected for six-year terms; half reelected every three years; 149 members in multi-seat constituencies and 98 by proportional representation); 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 29 July 2001 (next to be held in July 2004); House of Representatives - last held 9 November 2003 (next election has not been scheduled) election results: House of Councillors - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - LDP 110, DPJ 59, Komeito 23, JCP 20, SDP 8, Liberal Party 8, Conservative Party 5, independents 14; distribution of seats as of July 2001 was: LDP 115, DPJ 60, Komeito 24, JCP 20, SDP 8, Liberal Party 8 (merged with DPJ in 2003), independents 6, others 6; House of Representatives - percent of vote by party - LDP 49.38%, DPJ 36.88%, Komeito 7.09%, JCP 1.88%, SDP 1.25%, NCP .84%; seats by party - LDP 237, DPJ 177, Komeito 34, JCP 9, SDP 6, NCP 4, others 13; distribution of seats as of 13 November 2003 was: LDP 244, DPJ 177, Komeito 34, JCP 9, SDP 6, others 10	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 Predstaviteliy (110 seats; members elected by universal adult suffrage to serve 4-year terms) elections: last held 18 March and 1 April 2001 and 17 and 31 October 2004 (bi-election will be held March 2005 to fill one unfilled seat in the Palata Predstaviteliy); international observers widely denounced the October 2004 elections as flawed and undemocratic, based on massive government falsification; pro-Lukashenko candidates won every seat, after many opposition candidates were disqualified for technical reasons election results: Soviet Respubliki - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA; Palata Pretsaviteley - percent of vote by party - NA%; seats by party - NA
Life expectancy at birth	total population: 80.93 years male: 77.63 years female: 84.41 years (2003 est.)	total population: 68.57 years male: 62.79 years female: 74.65 years (2004 est.)
Literacy	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99% (1995 est.) male: NA% female: NA%	definition: age 15 and over can read and write total population: 99.6% male: 99.8% female: 99.5% (2003 est.)
Location	Eastern Asia, island chain between the North Pacific Ocean and the Sea of Japan, east of the Korean Peninsula	Eastern Europe, east of Poland
Map references	Asia	Europe
Maritime claims	contiguous zone: 24 NM exclusive economic zone: 200 NM 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	none (landlocked)
Merchant marine	total: 594 ships (1,000 GRT or over) 10,467,142 GRT/13,335,833 DWT ships by type: bulk 120, cargo 45, chemical tanker 18, combination bulk 28, combination ore/oil 1, container 18, liquefied gas 52, passenger 8, passenger/cargo 2, petroleum tanker 179, refrigerated cargo 9, roll on/roll off 59, short-sea passenger 6, vehicle carrier 49 note: includes some foreign-owned ships registered here as a flag of convenience: China 1, Panama 1, Singapore 1 (2002 est.)	-
Military branches	Ground Self-Defense Force (Army), Maritime Self-Defense Force (Navy), Air Self-Defense Force (Air Force), Coast Guard	Army, Air and Air Defense Force
Military expenditures - dollar figure	$39.52 billion (FY02)	$176.1 million (FY02)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	1% (FY02)	1.4% (FY02)
Military manpower - availability	males age 15-49: 29,392,559 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 2,764,856 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service	males age 15-49: 25,405,779 (2003 est.)	males age 15-49: 2,164,923 (2004 est.)
Military manpower - military age	18 years of age (2003 est.)	-
Military manpower - reaching military age annually	males: 725,281 (2003 est.)	males: 86,716 (2004 est.)
National holiday	Birthday of Emperor AKIHITO, 23 December (1933)	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
Nationality	noun: Japanese (singular and plural) adjective: Japanese	noun: Belarusian(s) adjective: Belarusian
Natural hazards	many dormant and some active volcanoes; about 1,500 seismic occurrences (mostly tremors) every year; tsunamis; typhoons	NA
Natural resources	negligible mineral resources, fish	forests, peat deposits, small quantities of oil and natural gas, granite, dolomitic limestone, marl, chalk, sand, gravel, clay
Net migration rate	0 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2003 est.)	2.54 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2004 est.)
Pipelines	gas 2,719 km; oil 170 km; oil/gas/water 60 km (2003)	gas 5,223 km; oil 2,443 km; refined products 1,686 km (2004)
Political parties and leaders	Democratic Party of Japan or DPJ [Naoto KAN, leader; Katsuya OKADA, secretary general]; Japan Communist Party or JCP [Kazuo SHII, chairman; Tadayoshi ICHIDA, secretary general]; Komeito [Takenori KANZAKI, president; Tetsuzo FUYUSHIBA, secretary general]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Junichiro KOIZUMI, president; Shinzo ABE, secretary general]; Social Democratic Party or SDP [Mizuho FUKUSHIMA, chairperson; Seiji MATAICHI, secretary general]	Pro-government parties: Agrarian Party or AP; Belarusian Communist Party or KPB; Belarusian Patriotic Movement (Belarusian Patriotic Party) or BPR [Anatoliy BARANKEVICH, chairman]; Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus [Sergei GAYDUKEVICH]; Social-Sports Party; Opposition parties: Belarusian Popular Front or BNF [Vintsuk VYACHORKA]; Belarusian Social-Democrat Party Narodnaya Gromada or BSDP NG [Nikolay STATKEVICH, chairman]; Belarusian Social-Democratic Party Hromada [Stanislav SHUSHKEVICH, chairman]; United Civic Party or UCP [Anatol LEBEDKO]; Party of Communists Belarusian or PKB [Sergei KALYAKIN, chairman]; Women's Party "Nadezhda" [Valentina MATUSEVICH, chairperson] note: the opposition Belarusian Party of Labor [Aleksandr BUKHVOSTOV] was liquidated in August 2004, but remains active
Political pressure groups and leaders	NA	NA
Population	127,214,499 (July 2003 est.)	10,310,520 (July 2004 est.)
Population below poverty line	NA%	22% (1995 est.)
Population growth rate	0.11% (2003 est.)	-0.11% (2004 est.)
Ports and harbors	Akita, Amagasaki, Chiba, Hachinohe, Hakodate, Higashi-Harima, Himeji, Hiroshima, Kawasaki, Kinuura, Kobe, Kushiro, Mizushima, Moji, Nagoya, Osaka, Sakai, Sakaide, Shimizu, Tokyo, Tomakomai	Mazyr
Radio broadcast stations	AM 215 plus 370 repeaters, FM 89 plus 485 repeaters, shortwave 21 (2001)	AM 28, FM 37, shortwave 11 (1998)
Railways	total: 23,168 km (15,995 km electrified) standard gauge: 3,204 km 1.435-m gauge (3,204 km electrified) narrow gauge: 77 km 1.372-m gauge (77 km electrified); 19,855 km 1.067-m gauge (12,683 km electrified); 31 km 0.762-m gauge (31 km electrified) (2002)	total: 5,523 km broad gauge: 5,523 km 1.520-m gauge (875 km electrified) (2003)
Religions	observe both Shinto and Buddhist 84%, other 16% (including Christian 0.7%)	Eastern Orthodox 80%, other (including Roman Catholic, Protestant, Jewish, and Muslim) 20% (1997 est.)
Sex ratio	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: 0.72 male(s)/female total population: 0.96 male(s)/female (2003 est.)	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 (2004 est.)
Suffrage	20 years of age; universal	18 years of age; universal
Telephone system	general assessment: excellent domestic and international service domestic: high level of modern technology and excellent service of every kind international: 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)	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' fiber optics form synchronous digital hierarchy rings through other countries' systems; an inadequate analog system remains operational international: country code - 375; 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
Telephones - main lines in use	60.381 million (1997)	3,071,300 (2003)
Telephones - mobile cellular	63.88 million (2000)	1.118 million (2003)
Television broadcast stations	211 plus 7,341 repeaters note: in addition, US Forces are served by 3 TV stations and 2 TV cable services (1999)	47 (plus 27 repeaters) (1995)
Terrain	mostly rugged and mountainous	generally flat and contains much marshland
Total fertility rate	1.38 children born/woman (2003 est.)	1.36 children born/woman (2004 est.)
Unemployment rate	5.4% (2002)	2.1% officially registered unemployed (December 2000); large number of underemployed workers (2003 est.)
Waterways	1,770 km approximately note: seagoing craft ply all coastal inland seas	2,500 km (use limited by location on perimeter of country and by shallowness) (2003)

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