domestic: mostly radiotelephone
international: submarine cables to Australia and Guam; satellite
earth station--1 Intelsat (Pacific Ocean); international radio
communication service

Radio broadcast stations: AM 31, FM 2, shortwave 0

Radios: 298,000 (1992 est.)

Television broadcast stations: 3 (1997)

Televisions: 10,000 (1992 est.)

Transportation

Railways: 0 km

Highways:
total: 19,600 km
paved: 686 km
unpaved: 18,914 km (1996 est.)

Waterways: 10,940 km

Ports and harbors: Kieta, Lae, Madang, Port Moresby, Rabaul

Merchant marine:
total: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 35,400 GRT/50,869 DWT
ships by type: bulk 2, cargo 6, chemical tanker 1, combination
ore/oil 5, container 1, oil tanker 2, roll-on/roll-off 3 (1998 est.)

Airports: 492 (1998 est.)

Airports--with paved runways:
total: 19
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
1,524 to 2,437 m: 14
914 to 1,523 m: 3
under 914 m: 1 (1998 est.)

Airports--with unpaved runways:
total: 473
1,524 to 2,437 m: 13
914 to 1,523 m: 60
under 914 m: 400 (1998 est.)

Heliports: 2 (1998 est.)

Military

Military branches: Papua New Guinea Defense Force (includes
Ground, Naval, and Air Forces, and Special Forces Unit)

Military manpower--availability:
males age 15-49: 1,238,683 (1999 est.)

Military manpower--fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 687,978 (1999 est.)

Military expenditures--dollar figure: $41.5 million (1998)

Military expenditures--percent of GDP: 1% (1998)

Transnational Issues

Disputes--international: none

======================================================================

@Paracel Islands
---------------

Geography

Location: Southeastern Asia, group of small islands and reefs in
the South China Sea, about one-third of the way from central Vietnam
to the northern Philippines

Geographic coordinates: 16 30 N, 112 00 E

Map references: Southeast Asia

Area:
total: NA sq km
land: NA sq km
water: 0 sq km

Area--comparative: NA

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 518 km

Maritime claims: NA

Climate: tropical

Terrain: NA

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: South China Sea 0 m
highest point: unnamed location on Rocky Island 14 m

Natural resources: none

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100%

Irrigated land: 0 sq km (1