and navigable most of
the year

Terrain: wild, rugged mountains; much of high land ice covered; west
coast clear of ice about one-half of the year; fjords along west and
north coasts

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Arctic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Newtontoppen 1,717 m

Natural resources: coal, copper, iron ore, phosphate, zinc, wildlife,
fish

Land use:
arable land: 0%
permanent crops: 0%
permanent pastures: 0%
forests and woodland: 0%
other: 100% (no trees and the only bushes are crowberry and
cloudberry)

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Natural hazards: ice floes often block up the entrance to Bellsund (a
transit point for coal export) on the west coast and occasionally make
parts of the northeastern coast inaccessible to maritime traffic

Environment - current issues: NA

Geography - note: northernmost part of the Kingdom of Norway; consists
of nine main islands; glaciers and snowfields cover 60% of the total
area

@Svalbard:People

Population: 2,416 (July 2000 est.)

Age structure:
0-14 years: NA
15-64 years: NA
65 years and over: NA

Population growth rate: -3.55% (2000 est.)

Birth rate: NA births/1,000 population

Death rate: NA deaths/1,000 population

Net migration rate: NA migrant(s)/1,000 population

Infant mortality rate: NA deaths/1,000 live births

Life expectancy at birth:
total population: NA years
male: NA years
female: NA years

Total fertility rate: NA children born/woman

Ethnic groups: Russian and Ukrainian 62%, Norwegian 38%, other NEGL%
(1994)

Languages: Russian, Norwegian

@Svalbard:Government

Country name:
conventional long form: none
conventional short form: Svalbard (sometimes referred to as
Spitzbergen)

Data code: SV

Dependency status: territory of Norway; administered by the Ministry
of Industry, Oslo, through a governor (sysselmann) residing in
Longyearbyen, Spitsbergen; by treaty (9 February 1920) sovereignty was
given to Norway

Government type: NA

Capital: Longyearbyen

Independence: none (territory of Norway)

National holiday: NA

Legal system: NA

Executive branch:
chief of state: King HARALD V of Norway (since 17 January 1991)
head of government: Governor Morten RUUD (since NA November 1998) and
Assistant Governor Rune Baard HANSEN (since NA 1996)
elections: none; the monarch is hereditary; governor and assistant
governor responsible to the Polar Department of the Ministry of
Justice

International organization participati