nications

Ports:
no natural harbors
Airports:
total:
4
usable:
4 with permanent-surfaced runways:
1
with runways over 3,659 m:
0
with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
0
with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
0

*Spratly Islands, Defense Forces

Note:
about 50 small islands or reefs are occupied by China, Malaysia, the
Philippines, Taiwan, and Vietnam

*Sri Lanka, Geography

Location:
South Asia, 29 km southeast of India across the Palk Strait in the Indian
Ocean
Map references:
Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
total area:
65,610 km2
land area:
64,740 km2
comparative area:
slightly larger than West Virginia
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
1,340 km
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone:
24 nm
continental shelf:
200 nm or the edge of continental margin
exclusive economic zone:
200 nm
territorial sea:
12 nm
International disputes:
none
Climate:
tropical monsoon; northeast monsoon (December to March); southwest monsoon
(June to October)
Terrain:
mostly low, flat to rolling plain; mountains in south-central interior
Natural resources:
limestone, graphite, mineral sands, gems, phosphates, clay
Land use: arable land:
16%
permanent crops:
17%
meadows and pastures:
7%
forest and woodland:
37%
other:
23%
Irrigated land:
5,600 km2 (1989 est.)
Environment:
occasional cyclones, tornados; deforestation; soil erosion
Note:
strategic location near major Indian Ocean sea lanes

*Sri Lanka, People

Population:
17,838,190 (July 1993 est.)
note:
since the outbreak of hostilities between the government and armed Tamil
separatists in the mid 1980s, several hundred thousand Tamil civilians have
fled the island; as of late 1992, nearly 115,000 were housed in refugee
camps in south India, another 95,000 lived outside the Indian camps, and
more than 200,000 Tamils have sought political asylum in the West; fewer
than 10,000 Tamils have been successfully repatriated to Sri Lanka
Population growth rate:
1.11% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
18.71 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
5.84 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
-1.81 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
22.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population:
71.51 years
male:
68.94 years
female:
74.21 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rat