THE WORLD FACTBOOK

_@Afghanistan *Geography #_Total area: 647,500 km2; land area: 647,500 km2

_#_Comparative area: slightly smaller than Texas

_#_Land boundaries: 5,826 km total; China 76 km, Iran 936 km, Pakistan 2,430 km, USSR 2,384 km

_#_Coastline: none—landlocked

_#_Maritime claims: none—landlocked

_#_Disputes: Pashtun question with Pakistan; Baloch question with Iran and Pakistan; periodic disputes with Iran over Helmand water rights; insurgency with Iranian and Pakistani involvement; traditional tribal rivalries

_#_Climate: arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers

_#_Terrain: mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest

_#_Natural resources: natural gas, crude oil, coal, copper, talc, barites, sulphur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones