| Geography | Laos |
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Location:
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Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
Geographic coordinates:
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18 00 N, 105 00 E |
Map references:
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Southeast Asia |
Area:
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total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km |
Area - comparative:
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slightly larger than Utah |
Land boundaries:
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total: 5,083 km
border countries: Burma 235 km, Cambodia 541 km, China 423 km, Thailand 1,754 km, Vietnam 2,130 km |
Coastline:
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0 km (landlocked) |
Maritime claims:
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none (landlocked) |
Climate:
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tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
Terrain:
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mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
Natural resources:
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timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
Land use:
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arable land: 4.01%
permanent crops: 0.34%
other: 95.65% (2005) |
Irrigated land:
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1,750 sq km (2003) |
Total renewable water resources:
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333.6 cu km (2003) |
Total renewable water resources - per capita:
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48,809 cubic meters per capita |
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
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Total: 3 cu km/yr (4%/6%/90%)
Per capita: 507 cu m/yr (2000) |
Natural hazards:
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floods, droughts |
Environment - current issues:
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unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water |
Environment - international agreements:
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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 |
Geography - note:
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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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