ad gauge: 2,125 km 1.520-m gauge (1,278 km electrified) (1993)

Highways: total: 24,981 km

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

unpaved: 1,924 km (these roads are made of unstabilized earth and
are difficult to negotiate in wet weather) (1998)

Waterways: none

Pipelines: crude oil 1,130 km; petroleum products 630 km; natural
gas 1,240 km

Ports and harbors: Baku (Baki)

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

ships by type: bulk 1, cargo 12, petroleum tanker 40, roll on/roll
off 2, short-sea passenger 1 (2000 est.)

Airports: 52 (2000 est.)

Airports - with paved runways: total: 9

2,438 to 3,047 m: 5

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

Airports - with unpaved runways: total: 43

1,524 to 2,437 m: 7

914 to 1,523 m: 8

under 914 m: 28 (2000 est.)

Azerbaijan Military

Military branches: Army, Navy, Air and Air Defense Forces, Border
Guards

Military manpower - military age: 18 years of age

Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 2,102,780 (2001
est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49:
1,684,673 (2001 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 77,099
(2001 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $121 million (FY99)

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.6% (FY99)

Azerbaijan Transnational Issues

Disputes - international: Armenia supports ethnic Armenians in the
Nagorno-Karabakh region of Azerbaijan in the longstanding,
separatist conflict against the Azerbaijani Government; Caspian Sea
boundaries are not yet determined among Azerbaijan, Iran,
Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan

Illicit drugs: limited illicit cultivation of cannabis and opium
poppy, mostly for CIS consumption; limited government eradication
program; transshipment point for opiates via Iran, Central Asia, and
Russia to Western Europe

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@Bahamas, The

Bahamas, The Introduction

Background: Since attaining independence from the UK in 1973, The
Bahamas have prospered through tourism and international banking and
investment management. Because of its geography, the country is a
major transshipment point for