s, franken, or franchi (SwF) per US$1--1.5150
(January 1990), 1.6359 (1989), 1.4633 (1988), 1.4912 (1987), 1.7989 (1986),
2.4571 (1985)

Fiscal year: calendar year

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

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

Pipelines: 314 km crude oil; 1,506 km natural gas

Inland waterways: 65 km; Rhine (Basel to Rheinfelden, Schaffhausen
to Bodensee); 12 navigable lakes

Ports: Basel (river port)

Merchant marine: 20 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 215,851
GRT/365,131 DWT; includes 4 cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 3 chemical tanker,
3 specialized liquid cargo, 8 bulk

Civil air: 89 major transport aircraft

Airports: 72 total, 70 usable; 42 with permanent-surface runways;
2 with runways over 3,659 m; 6 with runways 2,440-3,659 m; 17 with runways
1,220-2,439 m

Telecommunications: excellent domestic, international, and broadcast
services; 5,808,000 telephones; stations--6 AM, 36 (400 relays) FM,
145 (1,250 relays) TV; communications satellite earth stations operating
in the INTELSAT (4 Atlantic Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean) and EUTELSAT systems

- Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Air Force

Military manpower: males 15-49, 1,800,211; 1,550,662 fit for military
service; 44,154 reach military age (20) annually

Defense expenditures: $1.2 billion (1989 est.)
----------------------------------------------------
Country: Syria
- Geography
Total area: 185,180 km2; land area: 184,050 km2 (including 1,295 km2
of Israeli-occupied territory)

Comparative area: slightly larger than North Dakota

Land boundaries: 2,253 km total; Iraq 605 km, Israel 76 km,
Jordan 375 km, Lebanon 375 km, Turkey 822 km

Coastline: 193 km

Maritime claims:

Contiguous zone: 6 nm beyond territorial sea limit;

Territorial sea: 35 nm

Disputes: separated from Israel by the 1949 Armistice Line; Golan Heights
is Israeli occupied; Hatay question with Turkey; periodic disputes with Iraq
over Euphrates water rights; ongoing di