land), Las Palmas (Canary Islands, Spain),
Le Havre (France), Saint Petersburg (formerly Leningrad; USSR), Lisbon
(Portugal), London (UK), Marseille (France), Montevideo (Uruguay),
Montreal (Canada), Naples (Italy), New Orleans (US), New York (US), Oran
(Algeria), Oslo (Norway), Piraeus (Greece), Rio de Janeiro (Brazil),
Rotterdam (Netherlands), Stockholm (Sweden)

_#_Telecommunications: numerous submarine cables with most between
continental Europe and the UK, North America and the UK, and in the
Mediterranean; numerous direct links across Atlantic via INTELSAT
satellite network

_#_Note: Kiel Canal and Saint Lawrence Seaway are two important
waterways
_%_
_@_Australia
_*_Geography
_#_Total area: 7,686,850 km2; land area: 7,617,930 km2; includes
Macquarie Island

_#_Comparative area: slightly smaller than the US

_#_Land boundaries: none

_#_Coastline: 25,760 km

_#_Maritime claims:

Contiguous zone: 12 nm;

Continental shelf: 200 m (depth) or to depth of exploitation;

Exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm;

Territorial sea: 3 nm

_#_Disputes: territorial claim in Antarctica (Australian Antarctic
Territory)

_#_Climate: generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east;
tropical in north

_#_Terrain: mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in
southeast

_#_Natural resources: bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, silver,
uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural
gas, crude oil

_#_Land use: arable land 6%; permanent crops NEGL%; meadows and
pastures 58%; forest and woodland 14%; other 22%; includes irrigated
NEGL%

_#_Environment: subject to severe droughts and floods; cyclones along
coast; limited freshwater availability; irrigated soil degradation;
regular, tropical, invigorating, sea breeze known as the doctor occurs
along west coast in summer; desertification

_#_Note: world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country

_*_People
_#_Population: 17,288,044 (July 1991), growth rate 1.5% (1991)

_#_Birth rate: 15 births/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Death rate: 7 deaths/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Net migration rate: 7 migrants/1,000 population (1991)

_#_Infant mortality rate: 8 deaths/1,000 live births (1991)

_#_Life expectancy at birth: 74 years male, 80 years female (1991)

_#_Total fertility rate: 1.8 children born/woman (1991)

_#_Nationality: noun--Australian(s); adjective--Australian

_#_Eth