Great Pakistanis.com
The separation in 1947 of British India into the Muslim state of Pakistan (with two sections West and East) and largely Hindu India was never satisfactorily resolved, and India and Pakistan fought two wars - in 1947-48 and 1965 - over the disputed Kashmir territory. A third war between these countries in 1971 - in which India capitalized on Islamabad's marginalization of Bengalis in Pakistani politics - resulted in East Pakistan becoming the separate nation of Bangladesh. In response to Indian nuclear weapons testing, Pakistan conducted its own tests in 1998. The dispute over the state of Kashmir is ongoing, but discussions and confidence-building measures have led to decreased tensions since 2002.
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Location:
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Southern Asia, bordering the Arabian Sea, between India on the east and Iran and Afghanistan on the west and China in the north |
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Geographic coordinates:
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30 00 N, 70 00 E |
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Area:
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total: 803,940 sq km land: 778,720 sq km water: 25,220 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly less than twice the size of California |
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Land boundaries:
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total: 6,774 km border countries: Afghanistan 2,430 km, China 523 km, India 2,912 km, Iran 909 km |
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Coastline:
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1,046 km |
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Maritime claims:
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territorial sea: 12 nm contiguous zone: 24 nm exclusive economic zone: 200 nm continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin |
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Climate:
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mostly hot, dry desert; temperate in northwest; arctic in north |
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Terrain:
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flat Indus plain in east; mountains in north and northwest; Balochistan plateau in west |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point: Indian Ocean
0 m highest point: K2 (Mt. Godwin-Austen) 8,611 m |
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Natural resources:
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land, extensive natural gas reserves, limited petroleum, poor quality coal, iron ore, copper, salt, limestone |
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Land use:
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arable land: 24.44% permanent crops: 0.84% other: 74.72% (2005) |
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Irrigated land:
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182,300 sq km (2003) |
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Natural hazards:
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frequent earthquakes, occasionally severe especially in north and west; flooding along the Indus after heavy rains (July and August) |
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Environment - current
issues:
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water pollution from raw sewage, industrial wastes, and agricultural runoff; limited natural fresh water resources; a majority of the population does not have access to potable water; deforestation; soil erosion; desertification |
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Environment - international
agreements:
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party to: Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification,
Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous
Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection,
Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: Marine Life Conservation |
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Geography - note:
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controls Khyber Pass and Bolan Pass, traditional invasion routes between Central Asia and the Indian Subcontinent |