Iraq

*Iraq, Geography

Location:
  Middle East, between Iran and Saudi Arabia
Map references:
  Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World
Area:
 total area:
  437,072 km2  land area:
  432,162 km2
 comparative area:
  slightly more than twice the size of Idaho
Land boundaries:
  total 3,631 km, Iran 1,458 km, Jordan 181 km, Kuwait 242 km, Saudi Arabia
  814 km, Syria 605 km, Turkey 331 km
Coastline:
  58 km
Maritime claims:
 continental shelf:
  not specified
 territorial sea:
  12 nm
International disputes:
  Iran and Iraq restored diplomatic relations in 1990 but are still trying to
  work out written agreements settling outstanding disputes from their
  eight-year war concerning border demarcation, prisoners-of-war, and freedom
  of navigation and sovereignty over the Shatt al Arab waterway; in April 1991
  official Iraqi acceptance of UN Security Council Resolution 687, which
  demands that Iraq accept the inviolability of the boundary set forth in its
  1963 agreement with Kuwait, ending earlier claims to Bubiyan and Warbah
  Islands or to all of Kuwait; the 20 May 1993 final report of the UN
  Iraq/Kuwait Boundary Demarcation Commission was welcomed by the Security
  Council in Resolution 833 of 27 May 1993, which also reaffirmed that the
  decisions of the commission on the boundary were final, bringing to a
  completion the official demarcation of the Iraq-Kuwait boundary; Iraqi
  officials still make public statements claiming Kuwait; periodic disputes
  with upstream riparian Syria over Euphrates water rights; potential dispute
  over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers
Climate:
  mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers;
  northernmost regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold
  winters with occasionally heavy snows
Terrain:
  mostly broad plains; reedy marshes in southeast; mountains along borders
  with Iran and Turkey
Natural resources:
  petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur
Land use:
 arable land:
  12%
 permanent crops:
  1%
 meadows and pastures:
  9%
 forest and woodland:
  3%
 other:
  75%
Irrigated land:
  25,500 km2 (1989 est)

*Iraq, Geography

Environment:
  development of Tigris-Euphrates Rivers system contingent upon agreements
  with upstream riparians (Syria, Turkey); air and water pollution; soil
  degradation (salinization) and erosion; desertification

*Iraq, People

Population:
  19,161,956 (July 1993 est.)
Population growth rate:
  3.73% (1993 est.)
Birth rate:
  44.57 births/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Death rate:
  7.71 deaths/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Net migration rate:
  0.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1993 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
  71.8 deaths/1,000 live births (1993 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
 total population:
  64.96 years
 male:
  64.2 years
 female:
  65.76 years (1993 est.)
Total fertility rate:
  6.86 children born/woman (1993 est.)
Nationality:
 noun:
  Iraqi(s)
 adjective:
  Iraqi
Ethnic divisions:
  Arab 75-80%, Kurdish 15-20%, Turkoman, Assyrian or other 5%
Religions:
  Muslim 97% (Shi'a 60-65%, Sunni 32-37%), Christian or other 3%
Languages:
  Arabic, Kurdish (official in Kurdish regions), Assyrian, Armenian
Literacy:
  age 15 and over can read and write (1990)
 total population:
  60%
 male:
  70%
 female:
  49%
Labor force:
  4.4 million (1989)
 by occupation:
  services 48%, agriculture 30%, industry 22%
 note:
  severe labor shortage; expatriate labor force was about 1,600,000 (July
  1990); since then, it has declined substantially

*Iraq, Government

Names:
 conventional long form:
  Republic of Iraq
 conventional short form:
  Iraq
 local long form:
  Al Jumhuriyah al Iraqiyah
 local short form:
  Al Iraq
Digraph:
  IZ
Type:
  republic
Capital:
  Baghdad
Administrative divisions:
  18 provinces (muhafazat, singular - muhafazah); Al Anbar, Al Basrah, Al
  Muthanna, Al Qadisiyah, An Najaf, Arbil, As Sulaymaniyah, At Ta'mim, Babil,
  Baghdad, Dahuk, Dhi Qar, Diyala, Karbala', Maysan, Ninawa, Salah ad Din,
  Wasit
Independence:
  3 October 1932 (from League of Nations mandate under British administration)
Constitution:
  22 September 1968, effective 16 July 1970 (interim Constitution); new
  constitution drafted in 1990 but not adopted
Legal system:
  based on Islamic law in special religious courts, civil law system
  elsewhere; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
National holiday:
  Anniversary of the Revolution, 17 July (1968)
Political parties and leaders:
  Ba'th Party
Other political or pressure groups:
  political parties and activity severely restricted; possibly some opposition
  to regime from disaffected members of the regime, Army officers, and Shi'a
  religious and Kurdish ethnic dissidents; the Green Party
  (government-controlled)
Suffrage:
  18 years of age; universal
Elections:
 National Assembly:
  last held on 1 April 1989 (next to be held NA); results - Sunni Arabs 53%,
  Shi'a Arabs 30%, Kurds 15%, Christians 2% est.; seats - (250 total) number
  of seats by party NA
 note:
  in northern Iraq, a "Kurdish Assembly" was elected in May 1992 and calls for
  Kurdish self-determination within a federated Iraq
Executive branch:
  president, vice president, chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council,
  vice chairman of the Revolutionary Command Council, prime minister, first
  deputy prime minister, Council of Ministers
Legislative branch:
  unicameral National Assembly (Majlis al-Watani)
Judicial branch:
  Court of Cassation

*Iraq, Government

Leaders:
 Chief of State:
  President SADDAM Husayn (since 16 July 1979); Vice President Taha Muhyi
  al-Din MA'RUF (since 21 April 1974); Vice President Taha Yasin RAMADAN
  (since 23 March 1991)
 Head of Government:
  Prime Minister Muhammad Hamza al-ZUBAYDI (since 13 September 1991); Deputy
  Prime Minister Tariq 'AZIZ (since NA 1979)
Member of:
  ABEDA, ACC, AFESD, AL, AMF, CAEU, CCC, ESCWA, FAO, G-19, G-77, IAEA, IBRD,
  ICAO, IDA, IDB, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
  ISO, ITU, LORCS, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, OPEC, PCA, UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNIDO, UPU,
  WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO
Diplomatic representation in US:
 chief of mission:
  Iraq has an Interest Section in the Algerian embassy in Washington, DC
 chancery:
  Iraqi Interests Section, 1801 P Street NW, Washington, DC 20036
 telephone:
  (202) 483-7500
 FAX:
  (202) 462-5066
US diplomatic representation:
 chief of mission:
  (vacant); note - operations have been temporarily suspended; a US Interests
  Section is located in Poland's embassy in Baghdad
 embassy:
  Masbah Quarter (opposite the Foreign Ministry Club), Baghdad
 mailing address:
  P. O. Box 2447 Alwiyah, Baghdad
 telephone:
  [964] (1) 719-6138 or 719-6139, 718-1840, 719-3791
Flag:
  three equal horizontal bands of red (top), white, and black with three green
  five-pointed stars in a horizontal line centered in the white band; the
  phrase ALLAHU AKBAR (God is Great) in green Arabic script - Allahu to the
  right of the middle star and Akbar to the left of the middle star - was
  added in January 1991 during the Persian Gulf crisis; similar to the flag of
  Syria that has two stars but no script and the flag of Yemen that has a
  plain white band; also similar to the flag of Egypt that has a symbolic
  eagle centered in the white band

*Iraq, Economy

Overview:
  The Ba'thist regime engages in extensive central planning and management of
  industrial production and foreign trade while leaving some small-scale
  industry and services and most agriculture to private enterprise. The
  economy has been dominated by the oil sector, which has traditionally
  provided about 95% of foreign exchange earnings. In the 1980s, financial
  problems caused by massive expenditures in the eight-year war with Iran and
  damage to oil export facilities by Iran, led the government to implement
  austerity measures and to borrow heavily and later reschedule foreign debt
  payments. After the end of hostilities in 1988, oil exports gradually
  increased with the construction of new pipelines and restoration of damaged
  facilities. Agricultural development remained hampered by labor shortages,
  salinization, and dislocations caused by previous land reform and
  collectivization programs. The industrial sector, although accorded high
  priority by the government, also was under financial constraints. Iraq's
  seizure of Kuwait in August 1990, subsequent international economic
  embargoes, and military action by an international coalition beginning in
  January 1991 drastically changed the economic picture. Industrial and
  transportation facilities suffered severe damage and have been only
  partially restored. Oil exports remain at less than 10% of the previous
  level. Shortages of spare parts continue. Living standards deteriorated even
  further in 1992 and early 1993; consumer prices at least tripled in 1992.
  The UN-sponsored economic embargo has reduced exports and imports and has
  contributed to the sharp rise in prices. The government's policies of
  supporting large military and internal security forces and of allocating
  resources to key supporters of the regime have exacerbated shortages. In
  brief, per capita output in early 1993 is far below the 1989-90 level, but
  no reliable estimate is available.
National product:
  GNP - exchange rate conversion - $35 billion (1989 est.)
National product real growth rate:
  10% (1989 est.)
National product per capita:
  $1,940 (1989 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
  200% (1992 est.)
Unemployment rate:
  less than 5% (1989 est.)
Budget:
  revenues $NA; expenditures $NA, including capital expenditures of $NA
Exports:
  $10.4 billion (f.o.b., 1990)
 commodities:
  crude oil and refined products, fertilizer, sulfur
 partners:
  US, Brazil, Turkey, Japan, Netherlands, Spain (1990)
Imports:
  $6.6 billion (c.i.f., 1990)
 commodities:
  manufactures, food
 partners:
  Germany, US, Turkey, France, UK (1990)
External debt:
  $45 billion (1989 est.), excluding debt of about $35 billion owed to Arab
  Gulf states
Industrial production:   NA%; manufacturing accounts for 10% of GNP (1989)

*Iraq, Economy

Electricity:
  7,300,000 kW available out of 9,902,000 kW capacity due to Gulf war; 12,900
  million kWh produced, 700 kWh per capita (1992)
Industries:
  petroleum production and refining, chemicals, textiles, construction
  materials, food processing
Agriculture:
  accounts for 11% of GNP and 30% of labor force; principal products - wheat,
  barley, rice, vegetables, dates, other fruit, cotton, wool; livestock -
  cattle, sheep; not self-sufficient in food output
Economic aid:
  US commitments, including Ex-Im (FY70-80), $3 million; Western (non-US)
  countries, ODA and OOF bilateral commitments (1970-89), $647 million;
  Communist countries (1970-89), $3.9 billion
Currency:
  1 Iraqi dinar (ID) = 1,000 fils
Exchange rates:
  Iraqi dinars (ID) per US$1 - 3.2 (fixed official rate since 1982);
  black-market rate (April 1993) US$1 = 53.5 Iraqi dinars
Fiscal year:
  calendar year

*Iraq, Communications

Railroads:
  2,457 km 1.435-meter standard gauge
Highways:
  34,700 km total; 17,500 km paved, 5,500 km improved earth, 11,700 km
  unimproved earth
Inland waterways:
  1,015 km; Shatt al Arab is usually navigable by maritime traffic for about
  130 km; channel has been dredged to 3 meters and is in use; Tigris and
  Euphrates Rivers have navigable sections for shallow-draft watercraft; Shatt
  al Basrah canal was navigable by shallow-draft craft before closing in 1991
  because of the Persian Gulf war
Pipelines:
  crude oil 4,350 km; petroleum products 725 km; natural gas 1,360 km
Ports:
  Umm Qasr, Khawr az Zubayr, Al Basrah (closed since 1980)
Merchant marine:
  41 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 930,780 GRT/1,674,878 DWT; includes 1
  passenger, 1 passenger-cargo, 15 cargo, 1 refrigerated cargo, 3
  roll-on/roll-off cargo, 19 oil tanker, 1 chemical tanker; note - none of the
  Iraqi flag merchant fleet was trading internationally as of 1 January 1993
Airports:
 total:
  114
 usable:   99
 with permanent-surface runways:
  74
 with runways over 3,659 m:
  9
 with runways 2,440-3,659 m:
  52
 with runways 1,220-2,439 m:
  12
Telecommunications:
  reconstitution of damaged telecommunication facilities began after Desert
  Storm, most damaged facilities have been rebuilt; the network consists of
  coaxial cables and microwave radio relay links; 632,000 telephones;
  broadcast stations - 16 AM, 1 FM, 13 TV; satellite earth stations - 1
  Atlantic Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT, 1 Atlantic Ocean GORIZONT
  in the Intersputnik system and 1 ARABSAT; coaxial cable and microwave radio
  relay to Jordan, Kuwait, Syria, and Turkey, Kuwait line is probably
  non-operational

*Iraq, Defense Forces

Branches:
  Army and Republican Guard, Navy, Air Force, Air Defense Force, Border Guard
  Force, Internal Security Forces
Manpower availability:
  males age 15-49 4,235,321; fit for military service 2,379,999; reach
  military age (18) annually 211,776 (1993 est.)
Defense expenditures:
  exchange rate conversion - $NA, NA% of GNP