Issues Greece
Disputes - international:
Greece and Turkey continue discussions to resolve their complex
maritime, air, territorial, and boundary disputes in the Aegean Sea;
Cyprus question with Turkey; Greece rejects the use of the name
Macedonia or Republic of Macedonia
Illicit drugs:
a gateway to Europe for traffickers smuggling cannabis and heroin
from the Middle East and Southwest Asia to the West and precursor
chemicals to the East; some South American cocaine transits or is
consumed in Greece; money laundering related to drug trafficking and
organized crime
This page was last updated on 20 October, 2005
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@Greenland
Introduction Greenland
Background:
The world's largest island, Greenland is about 81% ice-capped.
Vikings reached the island in the 10th century from Iceland; Danish
colonization began in the 18th century and Greenland was made an
integral part of Denmark in 1953. It joined the European Community
(now the European Union) with Denmark in 1973 but withdrew in 1985
over a dispute over stringent fishing quotas. Greenland was granted
self-government in 1979 by the Danish parliament. The law went into
effect the following year. Denmark continues to exercise control of
Greenland's foreign affairs.
Geography Greenland
Location:
Northern North America, island between the Arctic Ocean and the
North Atlantic Ocean, northeast of Canada
Geographic coordinates:
72 00 N, 40 00 W
Map references:
Arctic Region
Area:
total: 2,166,086 sq km
land: 2,166,086 sq km (410,449 sq km ice-free, 1,755,637 sq km
ice-covered) (2000 est.)
Area - comparative:
slightly more than three times the size of Texas
Land boundaries:
0 km
Coastline:
44,087 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 3 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line
exclusive fishing zone: 200 nm or agreed boundaries or median line
Climate:
arctic to subarctic; cool summers, cold winters
Terrain:
flat to gradually sloping icecap covers all but a narrow,
mountainous, barren, rocky coast
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Atlantic Ocean 0 m
highest point: Gunnbjorn 3,700 m
Natural resources:
coal, iron ore, lead, zinc, molybdenum, gold, platinum, uranium,
fish, seals, whales, hydropower, possible oil and gas
Land use: arable land: 0% permanent crops: 0% other: 100% (2001)
Irrigated land:
NA sq km
Natural hazards:
continuous permafrost over northern two-thirds of the island
Environment - current issues:
protection of the arctic environment; preservation of the Inuit
traditional way of life, including whaling and seal hunting
Geography - note:
dominates North Atlantic Ocean between North America and Europe;
sparse population confined to small settlements along coast, but
close to one-quarter of the population lives in the capital, Nuuk;
world's second largest ice cap
People Greenland
Population:
56,375 (July 2005 est.)
Age structure:
0–14 years: 25% (male 7,216/female 6,888)
15–64 years: 68.7% (male 20,897/female 17,823)
65 years and over: 6.3% (male 1,672/female 1,879) (2005 est.)
Median age:
total: 33.83 years
male: 35.15 years
female: 32.14 years (2005 est.)
Population growth rate:
−0.02% (2005 est.)
Birth rate:
15.93 births/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Death rate:
7.77 deaths/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Net migration rate:
−8.37 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2005 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.02 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.05 male(s)/female
15–64 years: 1.17 male(s)/female
