Location: Southwestern Asia, between Armenia and Turkmenistan, bordering the Caspian Sea

Map references: Africa, Asia, Commonwealth of Independent States - Central Asian States, Commonwealth of Independent States - European States, Middle East, Standard Time Zones of the World

Area:
total area: 86,600 sq km
land area: 86,100 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than Maine
note: includes the Nakhichevan Autonomous Republic and the Nagorno-Karabakh regions; regions' autonomy was abolished by Azerbaijani Supreme Soviet on 26 November 1991

Land boundaries: total 2,013 km, Armenia (west) 566 km, Armenia (southwest) 221 km, Georgia 322 km, Iran (south) 432 km, Iran (southwest) 179 km, Russia 284 km, Turkey 9 km

Coastline: 0 km (landlocked)
note: Azerbaijan borders the Caspian Sea (800 km, est.)

Maritime claims: NA
note: Azerbaijani claims in Caspian Sea unknown; 10-nm fishing zone provided for in 1940 treaty regarding trade and navigation between Soviet Union and Iran

International disputes: violent and longstanding dispute with ethnic Armenians of Nagorno-Karabakh over its status, lesser dispute concerns Nakhichevan; some Azerbaijanis desire absorption of and/or unification with the ethnic Azeri portion of Iran

Climate: dry, semiarid steppe

Terrain: large, flat Kur-Araz Lowland (much of it below sea level) with Great Caucasus Mountains to the north, Qarabag (Karabakh) Upland in west; Baku lies on Abseron (Apsheron) Peninsula that juts into Caspian Sea

Natural resources: petroleum, natural gas, iron ore, nonferrous metals, alumina

Land use:
arable land: 18%
permanent crops: 4%
meadows and pastures: 25%
forest and woodland: 0%
other: 53%

Irrigated land: 14,010 sq km (1990)

Environment:
current issues: local scientists consider the Abseron (Apsheron) Peninsula (including Baku and Sumqayit) and the Caspian Sea to be the ecologically most devastated area in the world because of severe air, water, and soil pollution; soil pollution results from the use of DDT as a pesticide and also from toxic defoliants used in the production of cotton
natural hazards: subject to drought; some coastal areas threatened by rising levels of the Caspian Sea
international agreements: signed, but not ratified - Biodiversity, Climate Change

Note: landlocked

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