delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines. Land area is the aggregate of all surfaces delimited by international boundaries and/or coastlines, excluding inland water bodies (lakes, reservoirs, rivers). Comparative areas are based on total area equivalents. Most entities are compared with the entire US or one of the 50 states. The smaller entities are compared with Washington, DC (178 km2, 69 miles2) or The Mall in Washington, DC (0.59 km2, 0.23 miles2, 146 acres).

_#_Birth rate: The average annual number of births during a year per 1,000 population at midyear. Also known as crude birth rate.

_#_Dates of information: In general, information available as of 1 January 1991 was used in the preparation of this edition. Population figures are estimates for 1 July 1991, with population growth rates estimated for mid-1991 through mid-1992. Major political events have been updated through 30 June 1991. Military age figures are average annual estimates for 1991-95.

_#_Death rate: The average annual number of deaths during a year per l,000 population at midyear. Also known as crude death rate.

_#_Diplomatic representation: The US Government has diplomatic relations with 162 nations. There are only 144 US embassies, since some nations have US ambassadors accredited to them, but no physical US mission exists. The US has diplomatic relations with 151 of the 159 UN members—the exceptions are Angola, Belorussia (Byelorussia; constituent republic of the Soviet Union), Cambodia, Cuba, Iran, Vietnam, Ukraine (constituent republic of the Soviet Union) and, obviously, the US itself. In addition, the US has diplomatic relations with 12 nations that are not in the UN—Andorra, Federated States of Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Nauru, San Marino, South Korea, Switzerland, Tonga, Tuvalu, and the Vatican City. North Korea is not in the UN and the US does not have diplomatic relations with that nation. The US has not recognized the incorporation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union and continues to accredit the diplomatic representatives of their last free governments.

_#_Disputes: This category includes a wide variety of situations that range from traditional bilateral boundary disputes to unilateral claims of one sort or another. Every international land boundary dispute in the "Guide to International Boundaries," a map published by the Department of State, is included. References to other situations may also be included that are border- or frontier-relevant, such as maritime disputes, geopolitical questions, or irredentist issues. However, inclusion does not necessarily constitute official acceptance or recognition by the US Government.

_#_Economic aid: This entry refers to bilateral commitments of:

Official Development Assistance (ODA), which is defined as government grants that (a) are administered with the promotion of economic development and welfare of LDCs as their main objective and (b) are concessional in character and contain a grant element of at least 25%; and

Other Official Flows (OOF) or transactions by the official sector whose main objective is other than development-motivated or whose grant element is below the 25% threshold for ODA. OOF transactions include official export credits (such as Eximbank credits), official equity and portfolio investment, and debt reorganization by the official sector that does not meet concessional terms.

Aid is considered to have been committed when agreements are initialed by the parties involved and constitute a formal declaration of intent.

_#_Entities: Some of the nations, dependent areas, areas of special sovereignty, and governments included in this publication are not independent, and others are not officially recognized by the US Government. Nation refers to a people politically organized into a sovereign state with a definite territory. Dependent area refers to a broad category of political entities that are associated in some way with a nation. Names used for page headings are usually the short-form names as approved by the US Board on Geographic Names. The long-form name is included in the Government section and an entry of "none" indicates a long-form name does not exist. In some instances, no short-form name exists—then the long-form name must serve for all usages.

There are 247 entities in the Factbook that may be categorized as follows:

NATIONS
157 UN members (there are 159 members in the UN, but only 157 are
      included in The World Factbook because Belorussia
      (Byelorussia) and Ukraine are constituent republics of the Soviet
      Union)
 13 nations that are not members of the UN—Andorra, Federated States of
      Micronesia, Kiribati, Marshall Islands, Monaco, Nauru, North Korea,
      San Marino, South Korea, Switzerland, Tonga, Tuvalu, Vatican City

OTHER
  1 Taiwan

DEPENDENT AREAS
  6 Australia—Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island,
      Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and
      McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island
  2 Denmark—Faroe Islands, Greenland
 16 France—Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island,
      French Guiana, French Polynesia, French Southern and Antarctic
      Lands, Glorioso Islands, Guadeloupe, Juan de Nova Island,
      Martinique, Mayotte, New Caledonia, Reunion, Saint Pierre and
      Miquelon, Tromelin Island, Wallis and Futuna
  2 Netherlands—Aruba, Netherlands Antilles
  3 New Zealand—Cook Islands, Niue, Tokelau
  3 Norway—Bouvet Island, Jan Mayen, Svalbard
  1 Portugal—Macau
 16 United Kingdom—Anguilla, Bermuda, British Indian Ocean Territory,
      British Virgin Islands, Cayman Islands, Falkland Islands,
      Gibraltar, Guernsey, Hong Kong, Isle of Man, Jersey, Montserrat,
      Pitcairn Islands, Saint Helena, South Georgia and the South
      Sandwich Islands, Turks and Caicos Islands
 15 United States—American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island,
      Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands,
      Navassa Island, Northern Mariana Islands, Palmyra Atoll,
      Puerto Rico, Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (Palau),
      Virgin Islands, Wake Island

MISCELLANEOUS
  7 Antarctica, Gaza Strip, Iraq-Saudi Arabia Neutral Zone,
      Paracel Islands, Spratly Islands, West Bank, Western Sahara

OTHER ENTITIES 4 oceans—Arctic Ocean, Atlantic Ocean, Indian Ocean, Pacific Ocean 1 World === 247 total

Notes: The US Government has not recognized the incorporation of Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania into the Soviet Union as constituent republics during World War II. Those Baltic states are not members of the UN and are not included in the list of nations. The US Government does not recognize the four so-called "independent" homelands of Bophuthatswana, Ciskei, Transkei, and Venda in South Africa.

_#_Gross domestic product (GDP): The value of all goods and services produced domestically.

_#_Gross national product (GNP): The value of all goods and services produced domestically, plus income earned abroad,