Manpower reaching military service age annually:
males age 18-49: 247,334
females age 18-49: 234,500 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - dollar figure:
$18 billion (2002)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
10% (2002)
Transnational Issues Saudi Arabia
Disputes - international:
despite resistance from nomadic groups, the demarcation of the
Saudi Arabia-Yemen boundary established under the 2000 Jeddah Treaty
is almost complete; Saudi Arabia still maintains the concrete-filled
pipe as a security barrier along sections of the border with Yemen
in 2004 to stem illegal cross-border activities; Kuwait and Saudi
Arabia continue discussions on a maritime boundary with Iran; the
United Arab Emirate 2006 Yearbook published a map and text
rescinding the 1974 boundary with Saudi Arabia, as stipulated in a
treaty filed with the UN in 1993, on the grounds that the agreement
was not formally ratified
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 240,000 (Palestinian Territories)
(2005)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: Saudi Arabia is a destination country for
workers from South and Southeast Asia who are subjected to
conditions that constitute involuntary servitude including being
subjected to physical and sexual abuse, non-payment of wages,
confinement, and withholding of passports as a restriction on their
movement; domestic workers are particularly vulnerable because some
are confined to the house in which they work, unable to seek help;
Saudi Arabia is also a destination country for Nigerian, Yemeni,
Pakistani, Afghan, Somali, Malian, and Sudanese children trafficked
for forced begging and involuntary servitude as street vendors; some
Nigerian women were reportedly trafficked into Saudi Arabia for
commercial sexual exploitation
tier rating: Tier 3 - Saudi Arabia does not fully comply with the
minimum standards for the elimination of trafficking and is not
making significant efforts to do so
Illicit drugs:
death penalty for traffickers; increasing consumption of heroin,
cocaine, and hashish; improving anti-money-laundering legislation
and enforcement
This page was last updated on 19 December, 2006
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