Middle East, bordering the Persian Gulf, between Iran and Kuwait
33 00 N, 44 00 E
Middle East
total: 438,317 sq km
land: 437,367 sq km
water: 950 sq km
slightly more than three times the size of New York state
total: 3,809 km
border countries (6): Iran 1599 km, Jordan 179 km, Kuwait 254 km, Saudi Arabia 811 km, Syria 599 km, Turkey 367 km
58 km
territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: not specified
mostly desert; mild to cool winters with dry, hot, cloudless summers; northern mountainous regions along Iranian and Turkish borders experience cold winters with occasionally heavy snows that melt in early spring, sometimes causing extensive flooding in central and southern Iraq
mostly broad plains; reedy marshes along Iranian border in south with large flooded areas; mountains along borders with Iran and Turkey
highest point: Cheekha Dar (Kurdish for "Black Tent") 3,611 m
lowest point: Persian Gulf 0 m
mean elevation: 312 m
petroleum, natural gas, phosphates, sulfur
agricultural land: 18.1% (2018 est.)
arable land: 8.4% (2018 est.)
permanent crops: 0.5% (2018 est.)
permanent pasture: 9.2% (2018 est.)
forest: 1.9% (2018 est.)
other: 80% (2018 est.)
35,250 sq km (2012)
89.86 billion cubic meters (2017 est.)
population is concentrated in the north, center, and eastern parts of the country, with many of the larger urban agglomerations found along extensive parts of the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers; much of the western and southern areas are either lightly populated or uninhabited
dust storms; sandstorms; floods
party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Environmental Modification
strategic location on Shatt al Arab waterway and at the head of the Persian Gulf
NOTE: The information regarding Iraq on this page is re-published from the 2021 World Fact Book of the United States Central Intelligence Agency and other sources. No claims are made regarding the accuracy of Iraq 2021 information contained here. All suggestions for corrections of any errors about Iraq 2021 should be addressed to the CIA or the source cited on each page.
This page was last modified 16 Dec 23, Copyright © 2023 ITA all rights reserved.