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World > Asia >
Laos > Geography (Facts)
| Location: |
Southeastern Asia, northeast of Thailand, west of Vietnam |
| Geographic coordinates: |
18 00 N, 105 00 E |
| Map references: |
Southeast Asia |
| Area: |
total: 236,800 sq km
land: 230,800 sq km
water: 6,000 sq km |
| Area - comparative: |
slightly larger than Utah |
| 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 |
| Coastline: |
0 km (landlocked) |
| Maritime claims: |
none (landlocked) |
| Climate: |
tropical monsoon; rainy season (May to November); dry season (December to April) |
| Terrain: |
mostly rugged mountains; some plains and plateaus |
| Elevation extremes: |
lowest point: Mekong River 70 m
highest point: Phou Bia 2,817 m |
| Natural resources: |
timber, hydropower, gypsum, tin, gold, gemstones |
| Land use: |
arable land: 4.01%
permanent crops: 0.34%
other: 95.65% (2005) |
| Irrigated land: |
1,750 sq km (2003) |
| Natural hazards: |
floods, droughts |
| Environment - current issues: |
unexploded ordnance; deforestation; soil erosion; most of the population does not have access to potable water |
| 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 |
| 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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