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Laos
is landlocked and lies between Thailand,
Myanmar, China, Vietnam and Cambodia. The
Mekong River forms the country's western border
and the Annamite mountains form its eastern
border with Vietnam. The total land area is
approximately 237,000 sq km - an area similar to
that of the United Kingdom. The main features
of the country are its mountains and the Mekong
River valley.
The
Mekong River and its 15 tributaries make up a
total of 2,400 km of waterways, but only about
one third of these are navigable. 70% of the
country is mountainous. In the south, the
Annamite mountains reach 2,600m in height. The
Khammouanne plateau in the centre of the range
is mass of limestone karst. At the south of the
range is the Bolaven Plateau. The north of
Laos is made of steep sloped mountain ranges
with the highest mountain in the country at
2820m in Xiang Khouang province. Over half of
Laos is forest.
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Location: |
Southeastern Asia, northeast of
Thailand, west of Vietnam
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Geographic coordinates: |
18 00 N, 105 00 E |
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Map references: |
Southeast Asia |
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Area: |
total:
236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km
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Area - comparative: |
slightly larger than Utah
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Land boundaries: |
total:
5,083 km
border countries: Burma 235
km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km,
Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km
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Coastline: |
0 km (landlocked) |
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Maritime claims: |
none (landlocked) |
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Climate: |
tropical monsoon; rainy season (May
to November); dry season (December
to April) |
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Terrain: |
mostly rugged mountains; some plains
and plateaus |
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Elevation extremes: |
lowest point:
Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817
m |
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Natural resources: |
timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin,
gold, gemstones |
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Land use: |
arable land:
4.01%
permanent crops: 0.34%
other: 95.65% (2005)
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Irrigated land: |
1,750 sq km (2003) |
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Natural hazards: |
floods, droughts |
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Environment - current issues: |
unexploded ordnance; deforestation;
soil erosion; most of the population
does not have access to potable
water |
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Environment - international
agreements: |
party to:
Biodiversity, Climate Change,
Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol,
Desertification, Endangered Species,
Environmental Modification, Law of
the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection
signed, but not ratified:
none of the selected agreements
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Geography - note: |
landlocked; most of the country is
mountainous and thickly forested;
the Mekong River forms a large part
of the western boundary with
Thailand |
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