Country:  French Southern and Antarctic Lands
(overseas territory of France)
- Geography
Total area: 7,781 km2; land area: 7,781 km2; includes Ile Amsterdam,
Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Crozet; excludes claim not
recognized by the US of about 500,000 km2 in Antarctica known as Terre Adelie
 
Comparative area: slightly less than 1.5 times the size of Delaware
 
Land boundaries: none
 
Coastline: 1,232 km
 
Maritime claims:
 
Contiguous zone: 12 nm;
 
Continental shelf: 200 meters or to depth of exploration;
 
Extended economic zone: 200 nm;
 
Territorial sea: 12 nm
 
Disputes: claim in Antarctica (Terre Adelie) not recognized by the US
 
Climate: antarctic
 
Terrain: volcanic
 
Natural resources: fish, crayfish
 
Land use: 0% arable land; 0% permanent crops; 0% meadows and
pastures; 0% forest and woodland; 100% other
 
Environment: Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes
 
Note: located in the southern Indian Ocean about equidistant
between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia
 
- People
Population: 210 (July 1990), growth rate 0.00% (1990); mostly
researchers
 
- Government
Long-form name: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
 
Type: overseas territory of France governed by High Administrator
Claude CORBIER (since NA  1988)
 
Flag: the flag of France is used
 
- Economy
Overview: Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and
geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fishing
catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships
are exported to France and Reunion.
 
- Communications
Ports: none; offshore anchorage only
 
Merchant marine: 10 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling
217,203 GRT/348,632 DWT; includes 2 cargo, 3 refrigerated cargo,
1 petroleum, oils, and lubricants (POL) tanker, 2 liquefied gas, 2 bulk;
note--a subset of the French register
 
Telecommunications: NA
 
- Defense Forces
Note: defense is the responsibility of France