1987 Edition

Boundary disputes

none; maritime dispute with Canada; Guantanamo (US Naval Base) leased from Cuba; Haiti claims Navassa Island (US possession), has made no territorial claim in Antarctica (but has reserved the right to do so) and does not recognize the claims of any other nation

Climate

mostly temperate, but varies from tropical (Hawaii) to arctic (Alaska); arid to semiarid with occasional warm, dry chinook wind in west

Coastline

19,924 km

Comparative area

about four-tenths the size of USSR; about one-third the size of Africa; about one-half the size of South America (or slightly larger than Brazil); slightly smaller than China; about two and one-half times the size of Western Europe

Contiguous zone

12 nm

Continental shelf

200 meters

Environment

pollution control measures improving air and water quality; acid rain; agricultural fertilizer and pesticide polfution; management of sparse natural water resources in west; desertification; tsunamis, volcanoes, and earthquake activity around Pacific Basin

Extended economic zone

200 nm

Land boundaries

12,000 km total

Land use

20% arable land; NEGL% permanent crops; 26% meadows and pastures; 29% forest and woodland; 25% other; includes 2% irrigated

Special notes

world’s fourth largest country (after USSR, Canada, and China)

Terrain

vast central plain, mountains in west, hills and low mountains in east; rugged mountains and broad river valleys United States (continued) in Alaska; rugged, volcanic topography in Hawaii

Territorial sea

8 nm

Total area

9,372,610 km?; land area: 9,166,600 km?

Ethnic divisions

83.1% white; 11.6% black; 6.448% Spanish origin; 0.622% American Indian, Eskimo, and Aleut; 0.357% Chinese; 0.343% Filipino; 0.31% Japanese, 0.1595% other Asian; 0.156% Korean; 0.115% Vietnamese (1980)

Infant mortality rate

10.6/1,000 (1984)

Labor force

117.17 million (includes the armed forces and the unemployed)— annual averages of monthly data; unemployment rate 7.2% (1985); 7.1% unemployed as a share of total civilian labor force (1985)

Language

predominantly English; sizable Spanish-speaking minority

Life expectancy

men 71.6, women 76.3

Literacy

99%

Organized labor

17.3 million members; 18% of civilian labor force (1985)

Population

243,084,000 (July 1987), average annual growth rate 0.92%

Religion

total membership in religious bodies 140.170 million; Protestant 76.8 million, Roman Catholic 52.7 million, Jewish 5.7 million, other religions 5.0 million; 60% of the population have a religious affiliation (1982)

Administrative divisions

50 states and the District of Columbia

Branches

executive (President), bicameral legislature (House of Representatives and Senate), and judicial (Supreme Court); branches, in principle, independent and maintain balance of power

Capital

Washington, D. C. t

Communists

Communist Party (claimed 15,000-20,000 members), Gus Hall, general secretary; Socialist Workers Party (claimed 1,800 members), Jack Barnes, national secretary (1983)

Dependent areas

American Samoa, Baker Island, Guam, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Islands, Navassa Island, Palmyra Atoll, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, Wake Island. Since 18 July 1947, the US has administered the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands, but recently entered into a new political relationship with three of the four political units. The Northern Mariana Islands is a Commonwealth associated with the US (effective 3 November 1986). Palau concluded a Compact of Free Association with the US that was approved by the US Congress but to date the Compact process has not been completed in Palau, which continues to be administered by the US as the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. The Federated States of Micronesia signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 8 November 1986). The Republic of the Marshall Islands signed a Compact of Free Association with the US (effective 21 October 1986). Maps and data on the Federated States of Micronesia and the Republic of the Marshall Islands will be included in the next edition.

Elections

presidential, every four years (next November 1988); all members of the House of Representatives, every two years; one-third of members of the Senate, every two years Political parties and leaders: Republican Party, Frank J. Fahrenkopf, Jr., national chairman, Maureen Reagan, cochairman; Democratic Party, Paul G. Kirk, Jr., national committee chairman; several other groups or parties of minor political significance

Government leaders

Ronald REAGAN, President (since January 1981); George BUSH, Vice President (since January 1981)

Legal system

based on English common law; dual system of courts, state and federal; constitution adopted 1789; judicial review of legislative acts; accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations

Member of

ADB, ANZUS, Bank of International Settlements, CCC, CENTO, Colombo Plan, DAC, FAO, ESCAP, GATT, Group of Ten, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAC, ICAO, ICEM, ICES, ICO, IDA, IDB—Inter-American Development Bank, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IHO, ILO, International Lead and Zinc Study Group, IMF, IMO, INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IPU, IRC, ITC, ITU, IWC—International Whaling Commission, [WC—International Wheat Council, NATO, OAS, OECD, PAHO, SPC, UN, UPU, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WSG, WTO

National holiday

Independence Day, 4 July

Official name

United States of America

Suffrage

all citizens over age 18; not compulsory

Type

federal republic; strong democratic tradition

Voting strength

53.3% voter participation (1984 presidential election); Republican Party (Ronald Reagan), 59% of the popular vote (525 electoral votes); Democratic Party (Walter Mondale), 41% of the popular vote (13 electoral votes)

Agriculture

food grains, feed crops, oilbearing crops, cattle, dairy products

Aid

including Ex-Im (FY80-85), $54.2 billion

Budget

(1986) receipts, $769.1 billion; outlays, $989.8 billion; deficit, $220.7 billion

Crude steel

80.1 million metric tons produced, 335 kg per capita (1985)

Electric power

717,643,000 kW capacity; 2,733,630 billion kWh produced, 11,850 kWh per capita (1986)

Exports

$213,144 billion (f.0.b., 1985); machinery, chemicals, transport equipment, agricultural products

Fiscal year

1 October-30 September

Fishing

catch 4,143 thousand metric tons (1983); 5.5 kg per capita consumption (1981); imports $4.173 billion (1981); exports $1.156 billion, (1981); est. value, $2.388 billion (1981)

GNP

$3,988.5 billion (1985); $2,186.5 billion (65%) personal consumption, $501.0 billion (14.9%) private investment, $701.8 billion (20.9%) government, - $25.9 billion (—.1%) net exports; $16,710 per capita; 2.3 % real growth (1985)

Imports

$361,627 billion (c.i.f., 1985); crude and partly refined petroleum, machinery, transport equipment (mainly new automobiles)

Major trade partners

exports—$4,030 million Canada, $1,925.7 million Japan, $1,015.7 million Mexico, $842.8 million UK, $651.4 million FRG (1985); imports— $6,153.8 million Canada, $6,451.8 million Japan, $1,479.4 million Mexico, $1,300.1 million UK, $1,807.5 million FRG (1985)

Military transfers

(FY80-85) $27.4 billion

Natural gas

16.5 trillion cubic feet produced (1985)

Natural resources

coal, copper, lead, molybdenum, phosphates, uranium, bauxite, gold, iron, mercury, nickel, potash, silver, tungsten, zinc

Airfields

15,422 in operation (1981)

Civil air

2,960 commercial multiengine transport aircraft, including 2,724 jet, 185 turboprop, 51 piston (1984)

Freight carried

rai]—1,637.0 million metric tons, 1,345.6 billion metric ton/km (1984); highways—987.53 billion metric ton/km (1984); inland water freight (excluding Great Lakes traffic)—582.81 million metric tons, 358.29 billion metric ton/km (1984); air—11,495 million metric ton/km (1984)

Highways

6,365,590 km, including 88,641 km expressways

Inland waterways

est. 41,009 km of navigable inland channels, exclusive of the Great Lakes

Pipelines

petroleum, 883.3 billion metric ton/km, 1,049.6 million metric tons carried (1984)

Ports

44 handling 10.9 million metric tons or more per year

Railroads

270,312 km

Telecommunications

182,558,000 telephones (791 telephones per 1,000 popl.); 4,892 AM, 3,915 FM, 1,285 noncommercial FM stations (10,092 total); 796 commercial, 300 noncommercial (public broadcasting), 6,200 commercial cable TV broadcast stations (7,296 total); 495 million radio and 150 million TV receivers (1982)

Branches

Royal Army, Royal Navy, Royal Air Force, Royal Marines Military manpower; males 15-49, 14,315,000; 12,117,000 fit for military service; no conscription North Atlantic

Department of the Army, Department of the Navy (including Marine Corps), US Coast Guard, Department of the Air Force

Military budget

for fiscal year ending 31 . Oceee March 1986, $28.4 billion; about 20.1% of central government budget +, Hawaiian Gult of * Islands México Seeregiona! map Il

$289.1 billion; 29.2% of central government budget (1986)

Military manpower

2,185,900 total; 780,800, army; 594,500, air force; 761,400, navy (includes 196,600 marines) (1984)

Note

this section was compiled from information in the public domain and does not represent Intelligence Community estimates