Map references: Southeast Asia
Area:
total area: 329,560 sq km
land area: 325,360 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than New Mexico
Land boundaries: total: 3,818 km border countries: Cambodia 982 km, China 1,281 km, Laos 1,555 km
Coastline: 3,444 km (excludes islands)
Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: maritime boundary with Cambodia not defined; involved in a complex dispute over the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea with China, Malaysia, Philippines, Taiwan, and possibly Brunei; unresolved maritime boundary with Thailand; maritime boundary dispute with China in the Gulf of Tonkin; Paracel Islands in the South China Sea occupied by China but claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; offshore islands and sections of boundary with Cambodia are in dispute
Climate: tropical in south; monsoonal in north with hot, rainy season (mid-May to mid-September) and warm, dry season (mid-October to mid-March)
Terrain: low, flat delta in south and north; central highlands; hilly, mountainous in far north and northwest lowest point: South China Sea 0 m highest point: Ngoc Linh 3,143 m
Natural resources: phosphates, coal, manganese, bauxite, chromate,
offshore oil deposits, forests
Land use:
arable land: 22%
permanent crops: 2%
meadows and pastures: 1%
forest and woodland: 40%
other: 35%