basis; some elements of the former Army, Air and Air Defense
Forces, National Guard, Border Guard Forces, National Police Force
(Sarandoi), and tribal militias still exist but are factionalized
among the various groups

Military manpower - military age: 22 years of age

Military manpower - availability:
males age 15-49: 6,401,980 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - fit for military service:
males age 15-49: 3,432,236 (2000 est.)

Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
males: 244,958 (2000 est.)

Military expenditures - dollar figure: $NA

Military expenditures - percent of GDP: NA%

@Afghanistan:Transnational Issues

Disputes - international: support to Islamic militants worldwide by
some factions; question over which group should hold Afghanistan's
seat at the UN

Illicit drugs: world's largest illicit opium producer, surpassing
Burma (potential production in 1999 - 1,670 metric tons; cultivation
in 1999 - 51,500 hectares, a 23% increase over 1998); a major source
of hashish; increasing number of heroin-processing laboratories being
set up in the country; major political factions in the country profit
from drug trade

______________________________________________________________________

ALBANIA

@Albania:Introduction

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 severe
unemployment, the collapse of a fraudulent nationwide investment
scheme, widespread gangsterism, and massive refugee influxes from
neighboring Kosovo.

@Albania:Geography

Location: Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian
Sea, between Greece and Serbia and Montenegro

Geographic coordinates: 41 00 N, 20 00 E

Map references: Europe

Area:
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km

Area - comparative: slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
total: 720 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, The Former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia 151 km, Serbia and Montenegro 287 km (114 km with Serbia,
173 km with Montenegro)

Coastline: 362 km

Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 nm

Climate: mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry
summers; interior is cooler and wetter

Terrain: mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast

Elevation