Geographic Characteristics of States States vary greatly in Size-some huge like Russia 6.6 m. sq. miles, others large with 3 m. sq. miles like US, China, Brazil, Canada-some are microstates-Vatican, Monaco, Andorra, Grenada. Shape-some are compact while other are elongated or fragmented. Demography-some have huge populations like China ’ s 1.3 billion or tiny like Iceland with 250,000. Organization-monarchy, democratic, dictatorship, theocratic. Resources-natural and skilled population Development-subsistence to tertiary Power-both economic and military

Stateless Nations Sovereignty-complete control over a territory ’ s political & military affairs. Some nations do not have their own state-this can lead to conflict. Palestinians are the most well known example-a stateless nation in conflict with Israel over territory. Kurds-about 20 million people live in Kurdistan-which covers 6 states-since the 1991 Iraq War- Kurdish Security Zone has been virtually independent.

Territoriality – Territoriality – “ the attempt by an individual or group to affect, influence, or control people, phenomena, and relationships, by delimiting and asserting control over a geographic area. ” – Robert Sack Sovereignty – Sovereignty – having the last say over a territory – legally. Territorial Integrity – Territorial Integrity – a government has the right to keep the borders and territory of a state in tact and free from attack.

Territory Territorial Morphology- shape, size & relative location of a state. Compact-distance from the geographic center does not vary greatly. Fragmented-consisting of 2 or more separate pieces divided by water or other territory. Elongated-long & thin states.

Territory Prorupted-states that are nearly compact, but have a narrow extension. Perforated-having another state lie within ones territory. Exclave-an outlier of a state located within another. Enclave-the counterpart of exclave-it lies within a country and is independent or ruled by another country.

India: The Tin Bigha Corridor Fig. 8-7: The Tin Bigha corridor fragmented two sections of the country of Bangladesh. When it was leased to Bangladesh, a section of India was fragmented.

Landlocked Countries Landlocked states have a serious disadvantage in trade and access to resources. Africa has more landlocked states than any other continent. Sahel is poorly linked to the coastal ports; Uganda linked by rail; Zimbabwe access via South African and Mozambique ports; Rwanda & Burundi the world ’ s most isolated states; Zambia & Malawi have poor connections. Asia-Mongolia & Nepal are landlocked with rough terrain, great distances and limited communication, Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Armenia & Georgia. South America-Bolivia and Paraguay-lost coastline in war Europe-Austria, Switzerland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Moldova, Belarus and Bosnia

Landlocked States

Fig. 8-6: Southern, central, and eastern Africa include states that are compact, elongated, prorupted, fragmented, and perforated. AfricanStates