1987 Edition

Boundary disputes

separated from Israel by 1949 Armistice Line; Golan Heights is Israeli occupied; Hatay question with Turkey; periodic disputes with Iraq over Euphrates water rights; potential dispute over water development plans by Turkey for the Tigris and Euphrates rivers

Climate

temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers

mostly dry desert with hot, dry, sunny summers (June to August) and mild, rainy winters (December to February) along coast

Coastline

193 km

Comparative area

about twice the size of New Jersey

about the size of North Dakota

Continental shelf

200 meters or to depth of exploitation

Environment

dominated by Alps

deforestation; overgrazing; soil erosion; desertification

Land boundaries

1,884 km total

2,196 km total (excludes 2,156 km occupied area)

Land use

10% arable land; 1% permanent crops; 40% meadows and pastures; 26% forest and woodland; 23% other; includes 1% irrigated

28% arable land; 3% permanent crops; 46 meadows and pastures; 3% forest and woodland; 20% other; includes 3% irrigated

Special notes

landlocked; crossroads of northern and southern Europe

none

Terrain

mostly mountains (Alps in south, Jura in northwest) with central plateau of rolling hills and plains

primarily semiarid and desert plain; narrow coastal plain; mountains in west

Territorial sea

35 nm

Total area

Ziirich 4 Zitricher Seo N ate! SERN « “ * Lucerns Fribourg Leke Genavi See regions! map V

41,290 km?; land area: 39,770 km?

185,180 km?; land area: 184,050 km? (including 1,295 km? of Israeli-occupied territory)

Ethnic divisions

total popnlation—65% German, 18% French, 10% Italian, 1% Romansch, 5% other; Swiss nationals—74% German, 20% French, 4% Italian, 1% Romansch, 1% other

90.3% Arab; 9.7% Kurds, Armenians, and other

Infant mortality rate

9/1,000 (1985)

57/1,000 (1984)

Labor force

3.05 million, about 706,000 foreign workers, mostly Italian; 42% services, 39% industry and crafts, 11% government, 7% agriculture and forestry, 1% other; 0.9% unemployed (1985)

2.4 million; 836% miscellaneous services, 32% agriculture, 32% industry (including construction); majority unskilled; shortage of skilled labor

Language

total population—65% German, 18% French, 12% Italian, 1% Romansch, 4% other; Swiss nationals—74% German, 20% French, 4% Italian, 1% Romansch, 1% other

Arabic (official), Kurdish, Armenian, Aramaic, Circassian; French and English widely understood

Life expectancy

men 70.3, women 76.2

men 64.9, women 67.6

Literacy

99%

47%

Nationality

noun—Swiss (sing. & pl.); adjective—Swiss

noun—Syrian(s); adjective— Syrian

Organized labor

20% of labor force

5% of labor force

Population

6,572,739 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 0.32%

11,147,763 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 3.69%

Religion

49% Catholic, 48% Protestant, 0.3% Jewish ’ % Switzerland (continued)

74% Sunni Muslim; 16% Alawite, Druze, and other Muslim sects; 10% Christian (various sects)

Administrative divisions

23 cantons (3 divided into half cantons)

13 provinces and city of Damascus

Branches

bicameral parliament (National Council, Council of States) has legislative authority; federal council (Bundesrat) has executive authority; justice left chiefly to cantons

executive powers vested in President and Council of Ministers; power rests in unicameral legislative (People’s Council); seat of power is the Ba‘th Party Regional (Syrian) Command

Capital

Bern

Communists

about 5,000 members

mostly sympathizers, numbering about 5,000

Elections

held every four years; next elections scheduled for 1987 Political parties and leaders: Social Democratic Party (SPS), Helmuth Hubacher, chairman; Radical Democratic Party (FDP), Bruno Hunziker, president; Christian Democratic People’s Party (CVP), Flavio Cotti, president; Swiss People’s Party (SVP), Adolf Ogi, president; Workers’ Party (PdA), Armand Magnin, secretary general; National Action Party (NA), Hans Zwicky, chairman; Independents’ Party (LdU), Dr. Franz Jaeger, president; Republican Movement (Rep), Dr. James Schworzenboch, Franz Baumgartner, leaders; Liberal Party (LPS), Gilbert Coutau, president; Evangelical People’s Party (EVP), Max Diik, president; Progressive Organizations of Switzerland (POCH), Georg Degen, secretary; Federation of Ecology Parties (GP), Laurent Rebeaud, president; Autonomous Socialist Party (PSA), Werner Carobbio, secretary

People’s Council election held November 1983; presidential election held February 1985 Syria (continued) Political parties and leaders: ruling party is the Arab Socialist Resurrectionist (Bath) Party; the Progressive National Front is dominated by Ba’‘thists but includes independents and members of the Syrian Arab Socialist Party (ASP), Arab Socialist Union (ASU), Socialist Unionist Movement, and Syrian Communist Party (SCP)

Government leader

Lt. Gen. Hafiz alASSAD, President (since February 1971)

Government leaders

Pierre AUBERT, President (1987—presidency rotates annually); Otto STICH, Vice President (term runs concurrently with that of President)

Legal system

civil law system influenced by customary law; constitution adopted 1874, amended since; judicial review of legislative acts, except with respect to federal decrees of general obligatory character; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

based on Islamic law and civil law system; special religious courts; constitution promulgated in 1973; has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction

Member of

ADB, Council of Europe, DAC, EFTA, ELDO (observer), ESRO, FAO, GATT, IAEA, ICAC, ICAO, ICO, IDB—Inter-American Development Bank, IEA, IFAD, ILO, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, ITU, [!WC—International Wheat Council, OECD, UNESCO, UPU, World Confederation of Labor, WFTU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG, WTO; permanent observer status at the UN

Arab League, FAO, G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, IDA, IDB—Islamic Development Bank, IFAD, IFC, ILO, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOOC, IPU, ITU, ['WC—International Wheat Council, NAM, OAPEC, OIC, UN, UNESCO, UPU, WFTU, WHO, WMO, WSG, WTO

National holiday

National Day, ] August

Independence Day, 17 April

Official name

Swiss Confederation

Syrian Arab Republic

Other political or pressure groups

nonBa‘th parties have little effective political influence; Communist Party ineffective; greatest threat to Assad regime lies in factionalism in the military; conservative religious leaders; Muslim Brotherhood

Suffrage

universal over age 20

universal at age 18

Type

federal republic

republic; under leftwing military regime since March 1963 Capital; Damascus

Voting strength

(1983 election) 23.4% FDP, 22.8% SPS, 20.5% CVP, 11.1% SVP, 3.5% NA, 2.9% GP

Agriculture

dairy farming predominates; less than 50% self-sufficient; food shortages—fish, refined sugar, fats and oils (other than butter), grains, eggs, fruits, vegetables, meat

cotton, wheat, barley, tobacco; sheep and goat raising; selfsufficient in most foods in years of good weather

Aid

donor—ODA and OOF economic aid committed (1970-84), $1.6 billion

Budget

receipts, $8.50 billion; expenditures, $8.7 billion; deficit, $0.20 billion (1985)

1985—revenues $6.3 billion (excluding aid payments); expenditures $10.9 billion

Electric power

17,690,000 kW capacity; 57,330 million kWh produced, 8,870 kWh per capita (1986)

2,296,000 kW capacity; 8,050 million kWh produced, 740 kWh per capita (1986)

Exports

$27.4 billion (f.0.b., 1985), machinery and equipment, chemicals, precision instruments, metal products, textiles, foodstuffs

$1.6 billion (f.0.b., 1985); petroleum, textiles and textile products, tobacco, fruits and vegetables, cotton

Fiscal year

calendar year

Fiseal year

calendar year

GDP

$21.46 billion (1985), $2,040 per capita; real GDP growth rate —3% (1984)

GNP

$97.1 billion, $14,030 per capita; 58% consumption, 22% investment, 13% government, 0% net foreign balance; real growth rate 3.2% (1985); annual average exchange rate 2.46 Swiss francs (SF)=US$1 (1985)

Imports

$30.7 billion (c.i.f., 1985); machinery and transportation equipment, metals and metal products, foodstuffs, chemicals, textile fibers and yarns

$3.6 billion (f.0.b., 1985); petroleum, machinery and metal products, textiles, fuels, foodstuffs

Major industries

machinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments

textiles, food processing, beverages, tobacco; petroleum—210,000 b/d production (1986), 229,000 b/d refining capacity

Major trade partners

59% EC, 21% other developed, 17% less developed countries, 3% Communist

exports—Romania, Italy, France, USSR; imports—lIran, FRG, Italy, Libya

Monetary conversion rate

1.69 Swiss francs (SF)=US$1 (November 1986)

3.925 Syrian pounds=US$1 (official rate, February 1986); several other rates are sanctioned by the government, including a promotional rate for specific transactions and others guided by supply and demand

Natural resources

hydroelectric power (potential), timber, salt

crude oil, phosphates, chrome and manganese ores, asphalt, iron ore, rock salt, marble, gypsum

Shortages

practically all important raw materials except hydroelectric energy

Airfields

73 total, 71 usable; 42 with permanent-surface runways; 2 with runways over 3,659 m, 6 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 16 with runways 1,220-2,489 m

99 total, 94 usable; 27 with permanent-surface runways; 21 with runways 2,440-3,659 m, 5 with runways 1,220-2,439 m

Civil air

89 major transport aircraft

26 major transport aircraft

Highways

62,145 km total (all paved), of which 18,620 km are canton and 1,057 km are national highways (740 km autobahn); 42,468 km are communal roads

16,939 km total; 12,051 km paved, 2,625 km gravel or crushed stone, 2,263 km improved earth

Inland waterways

65 km; Rhine River (Basel to Rheinfelden, Schaffhausen to Bodensee); 12 navigable lakes

672 km; of little importance

Pipelines

314 km crude oil; 1,438 km natural gas

1,304 km crude oil; 515 km refined products

Ports

1 major (Basel), 2 minor (all inland)

2 major (Tartts, Latakia), 1 petroleum terminal (Baniy4s), 2 minor

Railroads

5,174 km total, of which 2,971 km are government owned (SBB), and 2,203 km are nongovernment owned; the SBB network consists of 2,897 km 1.435meter standard gauge and 74 km 1.000meter narrow gauge track; 1,432 km double track, 99% electrified; the nongovernment network consists of 710 km 1.435meter standard gauge, 1,418 km 1.000meter gauge, and 75 km 0.790-meter gauge track, 100% electrified

1,543 km total; 1,28] km standard gauge, 262 km 1.050-meter narrow gauge

Telecommunications

excellent domestic, international, and broadcast services; 5.44 million telephones (78.9 per 100 popl.); 7 AM, 265 FM, 1,340 TV stations; 1 satellite station with 2 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean antennas

fair system currently undergoing significant improvement; 512,600 telephones (4.7 per 100 popl.); 9 AM, no FM, 40 TV stations; 1 Indian Ocean INTELSAT station; 1 Intersputnik satellite station under construction; 1 submarine cable; coaxial cable and radio-relay to Iraq, Jordan, Turkey, and Lebanon (inactive)

Branches

Army, Air Force

Syrian Arab Army, Syrian Arab Air Force, Syrian Arab Navy

Military budget

proposed for fiscal year ending 31 December 1985, $2.0 billion; 21.3% of proposed central government budget Syria Al Heaskah na) "Ar Rlaqqeh Latekia Mediterranean Sea Day ax Zewr *Tedmur Boundary representation 1s not necessarily authoritative

Military manpower

males 15-49, 1,736,000; 1,502,000 fit for military service; 47,000 reach military age (20) annually

males 15-49, 2,398,000; 1,341,000 fit for military service; 182,000 reach military age (19) annually