Location:
Southeastern Europe, bordering the Adriatic Sea and Ionian Sea, between Greece in the south and Montenegro and Kosovo to the north

Geographic coordinates:
41 00 N, 20 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 28,748 sq km
land: 27,398 sq km
water: 1,350 sq km

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Maryland

Land boundaries:
total: 717 km
border countries: Greece 282 km, Macedonia 151 km, Montenegro 172 km, Kosovo 112 km

Coastline:
362 km

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
mild temperate; cool, cloudy, wet winters; hot, clear, dry summers; interior is cooler and wetter

Terrain:
mostly mountains and hills; small plains along coast

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Adriatic Sea 0 m
highest point: Maja e Korabit (Golem Korab) 2,764 m

Natural resources:
petroleum, natural gas, coal, bauxite, chromite, copper, iron ore, nickel, salt, timber, hydropower

Land use:
arable land: 20.1%
permanent crops: 4.21%
other: 75.69% (2005)

Irrigated land:
3,530 sq km (2003)

Total renewable water resources:
41.7 cu km (2001)

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 1.71 cu km/yr (27%/11%/62%)
per capita: 546 cu m/yr (2000)

Natural hazards:
destructive earthquakes; tsunamis occur along southwestern coast; floods; drought

Environment - current issues:
deforestation; soil erosion; water pollution from industrial and domestic effluents

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements

Geography - note:
strategic location along Strait of Otranto (links Adriatic Sea to Ionian Sea and Mediterranean Sea)