Location: Northern Asia, between China and Russia

Map references: Asia, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area: 1.565 million sq km
land area: 1.565 million sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than Alaska

Land boundaries: total 8,114 km, China 4,673 km, Russia 3,441 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)

Maritime claims: none; landlocked

International disputes: none

Climate: desert; continental (large daily and seasonal temperature ranges)

Terrain: vast semidesert and desert plains; mountains in west and southwest; Gobi Desert in southeast

Natural resources: oil, coal, copper, molybdenum, tungsten, phosphates, tin, nickel, zinc, wolfram, fluorspar, gold

Land use:
arable land: 1%
permanent crops: 0%
meadows and pastures: 79%
forest and woodland: 10%
other: 10%

Irrigated land: 770 sq km (1989)

Environment:
current issues: limited water resources; policies of the former communist regime promoting rapid urbanization and industrial growth have raised concerns about their negative effects on the environment; the burning of soft coal and the concentration of factories in Ulaanbaatar have severely polluted the air; deforestation, overgrazing, the converting of virgin land to agricultural production have increased soil erosion from wind and rain; desertification
natural hazards: NA
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Environmental Modification, Nuclear Test Ban; signed, but not ratified - Law of the Sea

Note: landlocked; strategic location between China and Russia

NOTE: The information regarding Mongolia on this page is re-published from the 1995 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Mongolia Geography 1995 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Mongolia Geography 1995 should be addressed to the CIA.