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Location
Middle East, bordering the Gulf of Oman,
the Persian Gulf, and the Caspian Sea,
between Iraq and Pakistan
Geographic coordinates
32 00 N, 53 00 E
Area
Total: 1.648 million sq km
Comparative: slightly larger than Alaska
Land boundaries
Total: 5,440 km
Border countries: Afghanistan 936 km,
Armenia 35 km, Azerbaijan-proper 432 km,
Azerbaijan-Naxcivan exclave 179 km,
Iraq 1,458 km, Pakistan 909 km,
Turkey 499 km, Turkmenistan 992 km
Coastline
2,440 km; (note - Iran also borders
the Caspian Sea (740 km))
Climate
Mostly arid or semiarid, subtropical
along Caspian coast
Terrain
Rugged, mountainous rim; high,
central basin with deserts, mountains;
small, discontinuous plains along both coasts
Elevation extremes
Lowest point: Caspian Sea -28 m
Highest point: kuh-e Damavand 5,671 m
Natural resources
Petroleum, natural gas, coal, chromium, copper, iron ore, lead, manganese,
zinc, sulfur
Population
66,622,704 (July 2002 est.)
Ethnic groups
Persian 51%, Azeri 24%, Gilaki and Mazandarani 8%, Kurd 7%, Arab 3%, Lur
2%, Baloch 2%, Turkmen 2%, other 1%
Religions
Shi'a Muslim 89%, Sunni Muslim 10%, Zoroastrian, Jewish, Christian, and
Baha'i 1%
Languages
Persian and Persian dialects 58%, Turkic and Turkic dialects 26%, Kurdish
9%, Luri 2%, Balochi 1%, Arabic 1%, Turkish 1%, other 2%
Government type
Theocratic republic
Capital
Tehran
Military branches
Islamic Republic of Iran regular forces (includes Ground Forces, Navy,
Air Force and Air Defense Command), Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps
(IRGC) (includes Ground Forces, Air Force, Navy, Qods [special operations],
and Basij [Popular Mobilization Army] forces), Law Enforcement Forces
Military manpower
Availability: males age 15-49: 18,868,571 (2002 est.)
Fit for military service: males age 15-49: 11,192,731 (2002 est.)
Military expenditures
Dollar figure: $9.7 billion (FY00)
Percent of GDP: 3.1% (FY00)
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Iran
