er - military age: 18 years of age (2002 est.)
Military manpower - availability: males age 15-49: 2,131,331 (2002 est.)
Military manpower - fit for military service: males age 15-49: 1,706,325
(2002 est.)
Military manpower - reaching military age annually: males: 77,099
(2002 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure: $121 million (FY99)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.6% (FY99)
Transnational Issues Azerbaijan
Disputes - international: Armenia supports ethnic Armenian secessionists
in Nagorno-Karabakh and militarily occupies almost one-fifth of
Azerbaijan - Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE)
continues to mediate dispute; Azerbaijan signed bilateral agreements
with Russia delimiting the Caspian seabed, but littoral states are far
from multilateral agreement on dividing the waters and seabed regimes
- Iran insists on division of Caspian Sea into five equal sectors
while Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkmenistan have generally
agreed upon equidistant seabed boundaries; Iran threatens to conduct oil
exploration in Azerbaijani-claimed waters, while interdicting Azerbaijani
activities; Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan await ICJ decision to resolve
sovereignty dispute over oilfields in the Caspian Sea
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
This page was last updated on 1 January 2002
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Albania
Introduction
Albania
Background: In 1990 Albania ended 44 years of xenophobic communist
rule and established a multiparty democracy. The transition has
proven difficult as corrupt governments have tried to deal with high
unemployment, a dilapidated infrastructure, widespread gangsterism,
and disruptive political opponents. International observers judged
local elections in 2001 to be acceptable and a step toward democratic
development, but identified serious deficiencies which should be addressed
through reforms in the Albanian electoral code.
Geography Albania
Location: Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea,
between Greece and the Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Geographic coordinates: 41 00 N, 20 00 E
Map references: Europe
Area: total: 28,748 sq km water: 1,350
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