Australia-
conventional long form: Commonwealth of Australia-
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With Unpaved Runways:
Area: total: 7,686,850 sq km.
slightly smaller than the US contiguous 48 states
Background: Aboriginal settlers arrived on the continent from Southeast Asia about 40,000 years before the first Europeans began exploration in the 17th century. No formal territorial claims were made until 1770, when Capt. James COOK took possession in the name of Great Britain. Six colonies were created in the late 18th and 19th centuries; they federated and became the Commonwealth of Australia in 1901. The new country took advantage of its natural resources to rapidly develop its agricultural and manufacturing industries and to make a major contribution to the British effort in World Wars I and II. In recent decades, Australia has transformed itself into an internationally competitive, advanced market economy. It boasted one of the OECD's fastest growing economies during the 1990's, a performance due in large part to economic reforms adopted in the 1980's. Long-term concerns include pollution, particularly depletion of the ozone layer, and management and conservation of coastal areas, especially the Great Barrier Reef.-
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Coastline: 25,760 km-
Climate: generally arid to semiarid; temperate in south and east; tropical in north
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Dependency status:
Dependent areas: Ashmore and Cartier Islands, Christmas Island, Cocos (Keeling) Islands, Coral Sea Islands, Heard Island and McDonald Islands, Norfolk Island, Macquarie Island
Diplomatic representation from the US: chief of mission: William A. STANTON, Charge d'Affaires ad interim
Diplomatic representation in the US: chief of mission: Ambassador Michael J. THAWLEY
Disputes - international: East Timor and Australia continue to meet but disagree over how to delimit a permanent maritime boundary and share unexploited petroleum resources that fall outside the Joint Petroleum Development Area covered by the 2002 Timor Sea Treaty; East Timor dispute hampers creation of a revised maritime boundary with Indonesia (see also Ashmore and Cartier Islands dispute); regional states express concern over Australia's 2004 declaration of a 1,000-nautical mile-wide maritime indentification zone; Australia asserts land and maritime claims to Antarctica (see Antarctica); in 2004 Australia submitted claims to UNCLOS to extend its continental margin from both its mainland and Antarctic claims-
Distribution of family income:
Economic aid - donor: ODA, $894 million (FY99/00)-
Economic aid - recipient:
Economy - overview: Australia has an enviable Western-style capitalist economy, with a per capita GDP on par with the four dominant West European economies. Rising output in the domestic economy, robust business and consumer confidence, and rising exports of raw materials and agricultural products are fueling the economy. Australia's emphasis on reforms, low inflation, and growing ties with China are other key factors behind the economy's strength. The impact of drought, weak foreign demand, and strong import demand pushed the trade deficit up from $8 billion in 2002, to $18 billion in 2003, $13 billion in 2004, and $16 billion in 2005. Housing prices probably peaked in 2005, diminishing the prospect that interest rates would be raised to prevent a speculative bubble. Conservative fiscal policies have kept Australia's budget in surplus from 2002 to 2005.-
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Elevation extremes: lowest point: Lake Eyre -15 m
Environment - current issues: soil erosion from overgrazing, industrial development, urbanization, and poor farming practices; soil salinity rising due to the use of poor quality water; desertification; clearing for agricultural purposes threatens the natural habitat of many unique animal and plant species; the Great Barrier Reef off the northeast coast, the largest coral reef in the world, is threatened by increased shipping and its popularity as a tourist site; limited natural fresh water resources
Environment - International Agreements: party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Seals, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling-
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Exchange rates: -
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Flag description: blue with the flag of the UK in the upper hoist-side quadrant and a large seven-pointed star in the lower hoist-side quadrant known as the Commonwealth Star, representing the federation of the colonies of Australia in 1901; the star depicts one point for each of the six original states and one representing all of Australia's internal and external territories; the remaining half is a representation of the Southern Cross constellation in white with one small five-pointed star and four larger, seven-pointed stars-
GDP (official exchange rate): -
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Geographic coordinates: 27 00 S, 133 00 E
Geography - note: world's smallest continent but sixth-largest country; population concentrated along the eastern and southeastern coasts; the invigorating tropical sea breeze known as the "Fremantle Doctor" affects the city of Perth on the west coast, and is one of the most consistent winds in the world-
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Heliports: 1 (2005 est.)-
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Irrigated land: 24,000 sq km (1998 est.)-
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Land boundaries: 0 km
Land use: arable land: 6.55% (includes about 27 million hectares of cultivated grassland)-
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Legal system: based on English common law; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations-
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Life expectancy at birth: -
Literacy:
Location: Oceania, continent between the Indian Ocean and the South Pacific Ocean-
Major infectious diseases:
Manpower available for military service: males age 16-49: 4,943,676 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service: males age 16-49: 4,092,717 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military service age annually: males: 142,158 (2005 est.)
Map references: Oceania
Maritime claims: territorial sea: 12 nm-
Median age: -
Merchant marine: -
Military - note: -
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Military expenditures - dollar figure: $16.65 billion (2004)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP: 2.7% (2004)
Military service age and obligation: 16 years of age for voluntary service (2001)-
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Natural gas - consumption: 23.33 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - exports: 9.744 billion cu m (2001 est.)
Natural gas - imports:
Natural gas - production: 33.08 billion cu m (2001 est.)-
Natural gas - proved reserves:
Natural hazards: cyclones along the coast; severe droughts; forest fires
Natural resources: bauxite, coal, iron ore, copper, tin, gold, silver, uranium, nickel, tungsten, mineral sands, lead, zinc, diamonds, natural gas, petroleum-
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Population: 20,090,437 (July 2005 est.)-
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Ports and terminals: Brisbane, Dampier, Fremantle, Gladstone, Hay Point, Melbourne, Newcastle, Port Hedland, Port Kembla, Port Walcott, Sydney-
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Roadways: total: 811,601 km-
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Terrain: mostly low plateau with deserts; fertile plain in southeast-
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Waterways: 2,000 km (mainly used for recreation on Murray and Murray-Darling river systems) (2004)