Location: Middle America, between Guatemala and the US

Map references: North America, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area: 1,972,550 sq km
land area: 1,923,040 sq km
comparative area: slightly less than three times the size of Texas

Land boundaries: total 4,538 km, Belize 250 km, Guatemala 962 km, US 3,326 km

Coastline: 9,330 km

Maritime claims:
contiguous zone: 24 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or the natural prolongation of continental margin
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: claims Clipperton Island (French possession)

Climate: varies from tropical to desert

Terrain: high, rugged mountains, low coastal plains, high plateaus, and desert

Natural resources: petroleum, silver, copper, gold, lead, zinc, natural gas, timber

Land use:
arable land: 12%
permanent crops: 1%
meadows and pastures: 39%
forest and woodland: 24%
other: 24%

Irrigated land: 51,500 sq km (1989 est.)

Environment:
current issues: natural water resources scarce and polluted in north, inaccessible and poor quality in center and extreme southeast; untreated sewage and industrial effluents polluting rivers in urban areas; deforestation; widespread erosion; desertification; serious air pollution in the national capital and urban centers along US-Mexico border
natural hazards: subject to tsunamis along the Pacific coast, destructive earthquakes in the center and south, and hurricanes on the Gulf and Caribbean coasts
international agreements: party to - Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Marine Life Conservation, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands, Whaling

Note: strategic location on southern border of US

NOTE: The information regarding Mexico 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 Mexico Geography 1995 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Mexico Geography 1995 should be addressed to the CIA.