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Background:
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Present-day Turkey was created in 1923 from the Turkish
remnants of the Ottoman Empire. Soon thereafter, the country
instituted secular laws to replace traditional religious
fiats. In 1945 Turkey joined the UN, and in 1952 it became a
member of NATO. Turkey intervened militarily on Cyprus in 1974
to protect Turkish Cypriots and prevent a Greek takeover of
the island; the northern 37 percent of the island remains
under Turkish Cypriot control. Relations between the Turkey
and Greece have improved greatly over the past few years. In
1984, the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK), a Marxist-Leninist,
separatist group, initiated an insurgency in southeast Turkey,
often using terrorist tactics to try to attain its goal of an
independent Kurdistan. The group - whose leader, Abdullah
OCALAN, was captured in Kenya in February 1999 - has largely
ceased violent attacks since it declared a unilateral
cease-fire in September 1999. Nonetheless, occasional clashes
have occurred between Turkish security forces and armed PKK
militants, many of whom remain in northern Iraq. In April
2002, the PKK changed its name to the Kurdistan Freedom and
Democracy Congress (KADEK). In November 2003, the group
changed names again, becoming the Kurdistan People's Congress
(KHK).
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Location:
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southeastern
Europe and southwestern Asia (that portion of Turkey west of
the Bosporus is geographically part of Europe), bordering the
Black Sea, between Bulgaria and Georgia, and bordering the
Aegean Sea and the Mediterranean Sea, between Greece and Syria |
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Geographic coordinates:
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39 00 N, 35 00 E |
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Map references:
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Middle
East |
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Area:
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total:
780,580 sq km
water: 9,820 sq km
land: 770,760 sq km |
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Area - comparative:
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slightly larger
than Texas |
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Land boundaries:
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total:
2,648 km
border countries: Armenia 268 km, Azerbaijan 9 km,
Bulgaria 240 km, Georgia 252 km, Greece 206 km, Iran 499 km,
Iraq 352 km, Syria 822 km |
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Coastline:
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7,200 km |
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Climate:
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temperate; hot,
dry summers with mild, wet winters; harsher in interior |
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Terrain:
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high central
plateau (Anatolia); narrow coastal plain; several mountain
ranges |
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Elevation extremes:
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lowest point:
Mediterranean Sea 0 m
highest point: Mount Ararat 5,166 m |
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Natural resources:
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coal, iron ore,
copper, chromium, antimony, mercury, gold, barite, borate,
celestite (strontium), emery, feldspar, limestone, magnesite,
marble, perlite, pumice, pyrites (sulfur), clay, arable land,
hydropower |
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Land use:
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arable land:
34.53%
permanent crops: 3.36%
other: 62.11% (1998 est.) |
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Irrigated land:
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42,000 sq km
(1998 est.) |
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Natural hazards:
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very severe
earthquakes, especially in northern Turkey, along an arc
extending from the Sea of Marmara to Lake Van |
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Environment - current issues:
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water pollution
from dumping of chemicals and detergents; air pollution,
particularly in urban areas; deforestation; concern for oil
spills from increasing Bosporus ship traffic |
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Environment - international agreements:
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party to:
Air Pollution, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone
Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands
signed, but not ratified: Environmental Modification |
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Geography - note:
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strategic
location controlling the Turkish Straits (Bosporus, Sea of
Marmara, Dardanelles) that link Black and Aegean Seas; Mount
Ararat, the legendary landing place of Noah's Ark, is in the
far eastern portion of the country |
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Population:
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68,893,918 (July
2004 est.) |
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Age structure:
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0-14 years:
26.6% (male 9,328,108; female 8,990,742)
15-64 years: 66.8% (male 23,394,465; female 22,650,532)
65 years and over: 6.6% (male 2,078,881; female
2,451,190) (2004 est.) |
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Median age:
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total:
27.3 years
male: 27.1 years
female: 27.5 years (2004 est.) |
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Population growth rate:
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1.13% (2004 est.) |
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Birth rate:
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17.22
births/1,000 population (2004 est.) |
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Death rate:
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5.95 deaths/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Net migration rate:
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0 migrant(s)/1,000
population (2004 est.) |
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Sex ratio:
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at birth:
1.05 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.04 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.85 male(s)/female
total population: 1.02 male(s)/female (2004 est.) |
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Infant mortality rate:
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total:
42.62 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 38.76 deaths/1,000 live births (2004 est.)
male: 46.3 deaths/1,000 live births |
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Life expectancy at birth:
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total
population: 72.08 years
male: 69.68 years
female: 74.61 years (2004 est.) |
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HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
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less than 0.1% -
note: no country specific models provided (2001 est.) |
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Nationality:
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noun:
Turk(s)
adjective: Turkish |
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Ethnic groups:
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Turkish 80%,
Kurdish 20% (estimated) |
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Religions:
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Muslim 99.8%
(mostly Sunni), other 0.2% (mostly Christians and Jews) |
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Languages:
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Turkish
(official), Kurdish, Arabic, Armenian, Greek |
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Literacy:
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definition:
age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 86.5%
male: 94.3%
female: 78.7% (2003 est.) |
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Country name:
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conventional
long form: Republic of Turkey
conventional short form: Turkey
local long form: Turkiye Cumhuriyeti
local short form: Turkiye |
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Government type:
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republican
parliamentary democracy |
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Capital:
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Ankara |
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Administrative divisions:
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81 provinces (iller,
singular - il); Adana, Adiyaman, Afyon, Agri, Aksaray, Amasya,
Ankara, Antalya, Ardahan, Artvin, Aydin, Balikesir, Bartin,
Batman, Bayburt, Bilecik, Bingol, Bitlis, Bolu, Burdur, Bursa,
Canakkale, Cankiri, Corum, Denizli, Diyarbakir, Duzce, Edirne,
Elazig, Erzincan, Erzurum, Eskisehir, Gaziantep, Giresun,
Gumushane, Hakkari, Hatay, Igdir, Isparta, Istanbul, Izmir,
Kahramanmaras, Karabuk, Karaman, Kars, Kastamonu, Kayseri,
Kilis, Kirikkale, Kirklareli, Kirsehir, Kocaeli, Konya,
Kutahya, Malatya, Manisa, Mardin, Mersin, Mugla, Mus, Nevsehir,
Nigde, Ordu, Osmaniye, Rize, Sakarya, Samsun, Sanliurfa, Siirt,
Sinop, Sirnak, Sivas, Tekirdag, Tokat, Trabzon, Tunceli, Usak,
Van, Yalova, Yozgat, Zonguldak |
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Independence:
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29 October 1923
(successor state to the Ottoman Empire) |
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National holiday:
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Independence Day,
29 October (1923) |
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Constitution:
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7 November 1982 |
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Legal system:
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derived from
various European continental legal systems; accepts compulsory
ICJ jurisdiction, with reservations |
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Suffrage:
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18 years of age;
universal |
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Executive branch:
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chief of
state: President Ahmet Necdet SEZER (since 16 May 2000)
elections: president elected by the National Assembly
for a seven-year term; election last held 5 May 2000 (next to
be held NA May 2007); prime minister and deputy prime
ministers appointed by the president
note: a National Security Council serves as an advisory
body to the government composed of top military and cabinet
officials and presided over by the president
cabinet: Council of Ministers appointed by the
president on the nomination of the prime minister
head of government: Prime Minister Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN
(14 March 2003)
election results: Ahmed Necdet SEZER elected president
on the third ballot; percent of National Assembly vote - 60%
note: president must have a two-thirds majority of the
National Assembly on the first two ballots and a simple
majority on the third ballot |
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Legislative branch:
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unicameral Grand
National Assembly of Turkey or Turkiye Buyuk Millet Meclisi
(550 seats; members are elected by popular vote to serve
five-year terms)
elections: last held 3 November 2002 (next to be held
NA 2007); note - a special rerun of the General Election in
the province of Siirt on 9 March 2003 resulted in the election
of Recep Tayyip ERDOGAN to a seat in parliament, a
prerequisite for becoming prime minister on 13 March 2003
election results: percent of vote by party - AKP 34.3%,
CHP 19.4%, DYP 9.6%, MHP 8.3%, ANAP 5.1%, DSP 1.1%, and
others; seats by party - AKP 363, CHP 178, independents 9;
note - parties surpassing the 10% threshold are entitled to
parliamentary seats; seats by party as of 15 October 2003 -
AKP 368, CHP 175, DYP 3, LDP 1, independents 3 |
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Judicial branch:
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Constitutional
Court (judges are appointed by the president); Court of
Appeals and Council of State (judges are elected by the
Supreme Council of Judges and Prosecutors) |
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Political parties and leaders:
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Democratic Left
Party or DSP [Bulent ECEVIT]; Democratic People's Party or
DEHAP [Tuncer BAKIRHAN]; Justice and Development Party or AKP
[Recep Tayip ERDOGAN]; Liberal Democratic Party or LDP [Emin
SIRIN]; Motherland Party or ANAP [Nesrin NAS]; Nationalist
Action Party or MHP [Devlet BAHCELI]; New Turkey Party or YTP
[Ismail CEM]; Republican People's Party or CHP [Deniz BAYKAL];
Saadet Party (sometimes translated as Contentment Party) or SP
[Necmettin ERBEKAN]; Social Democratic People's Party or SHP [Murat
KARAYALCIN]; True Path Party (sometimes translated as Correct
Way Party) or DYP [Mehmet AGAR]; Young Party or GP [Cem UZAN] |
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Political pressure groups and leaders:
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Confederation of
Public Sector Unions or KESK [Sami EVREN]; Confederation of
Revolutionary Workers Unions or DISK [Suleyman CELEBI];
Independent Industrialists' and Businessmen's Association or
MUSIAD [Ali BAYRAMOGLU]; Moral Rights Workers Union or Hak-Is
[Salim USLU]; Turkish Industrialists' and Businessmen's
Association or TUSIAD [Omer SABANCI]; Turkish Confederation of
Employers' Unions or TISK [Refik BAYDUR]; Turkish
Confederation of Labor or Turk-Is [Salih KILIC]; Turkish
Confederation of Tradesmen and Craftsmen or TESK [Dervis
GUNDAY]; Turkish Union of Chambers of Commerce and Commodity
Exchanges or TOBB [M. Rifat HISARCIKLIOGLU] |
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Diplomatic representation in the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador Dr. Osman Faruk LOGOGLU
FAX: [1] (202) 612-6744
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles,
and New York
chancery: 2525 Massachusetts Avenue NW, Washington, DC
20008
telephone: [1] (202) 612-6700 |
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Diplomatic representation from the US:
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chief of
mission: Ambassador Eric S. EDELMAN
embassy: 110 Ataturk Boulevard, Kavaklidere, 06100
Ankara
mailing address: PSC 93, Box 5000, APO AE 09823
telephone: [90] (312) 455-5555
FAX: [90] (312) 467-0019
consulate(s) general: Istanbul
consulate(s): Adana; note - there is a Consular Agent
in Izmir |
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Economy - overview:
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Turkey's dynamic
economy is a complex mix of modern industry and commerce along
with a traditional agriculture sector that in 2001 still
accounted for 40% of employment. It has a strong and rapidly
growing private sector, yet the state still plays a major role
in basic industry, banking, transport, and communication. The
most important industry - and largest exporter - is textiles
and clothing, which is almost entirely in private hands. In
recent years the economic situation has been marked by erratic
economic growth and serious imbalances. Real GNP growth has
exceeded 6% in many years, but this strong expansion has been
interrupted by sharp declines in output in 1994, 1999, and
2001. Meanwhile, the public sector fiscal deficit has
regularly exceeded 10% of GDP - due in large part to the huge
burden of interest payments, which accounted for more than 40%
of central government spending in 2003. Inflation, in recent
years in the high double-digit range, fell to 18.4% in 2003.
Perhaps because of these problems, foreign direct investment
in Turkey remains low - less than $1 billion annually. In late
2000 and early 2001 a growing trade deficit and serious
weaknesses in the banking sector plunged the economy into
crisis - forcing Turkey to float the lira and pushing the
country into recession. Results in 2002-03 were much better,
because of strong financial support from the IMF and tighter
fiscal policy. Healthy growth is likely to continue through at
least the first half of 2004. |
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GDP:
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purchasing power
parity - $455.3 billion (2003 est.) |
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GDP - real growth rate:
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5% (2003 est.) |
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GDP - per capita:
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purchasing power
parity - $6,700 (2003 est.) |
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GDP - composition by sector:
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agriculture:
11.9%
industry: 29.6%
services: 58.5% (2002 est.) |
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Population below poverty line:
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18% (2001) |
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Inflation rate (consumer prices):
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18.4% (2003 est.) |
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Labor force:
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23.8 million
note: about 1.2 million Turks work abroad (2001 3rd
quarter) |
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Labor force - by occupation:
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agriculture
39.7%, services 37.9%, industry 22.4% (3rd quarter, 2001) |
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Unemployment rate:
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11.3% (plus
underemployment of 6.1%) (2003 est.) |
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Budget:
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revenues:
$42.4 billion
expenditures: $69.1 billion, including capital
expenditures of $NA (2001) |
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Industries:
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textiles, food
processing, autos, mining (coal, chromite, copper, boron),
steel, petroleum, construction, lumber, paper |
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Industrial production growth rate:
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6.7% (2003 est.) |
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Electricity - production:
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116.6 billion kWh
(2001) |
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Electricity - production by source:
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fossil fuel:
79.3%
hydro: 20.4%
other: 0.3% (2001)
nuclear: 0% |
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Electricity - consumption:
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112.6 billion kWh
(2001) |
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Oil - production:
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48,000 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Oil - consumption:
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619,500 bbl/day
(2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - production:
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312 million cu m
(2001 est.) |
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Natural gas - consumption:
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15.94 billion cu
m (2001 est.) |
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Agriculture - products:
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tobacco, cotton,
grain, olives, sugar beets, pulse, citrus; livestock |
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Exports:
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$49.12 billion
f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Exports - commodities:
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apparel,
foodstuffs, textiles, metal manufactures, transport equipment |
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Exports - partners:
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Germany 16.6%, US
9.2%, UK 8.5%, Italy 6.4%, France 6% (2002) |
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Imports:
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$62.43 billion
f.o.b. (2003 est.) |
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Imports - commodities:
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machinery,
chemicals, semi-finished goods, fuels, transport equipment |
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Imports - partners:
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Germany 13.7%,
Italy 8%, Russia 7.5%, US 6%, France 6%, UK 4.7%, Switzerland
4.2% (2002) |
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Debt - external:
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$141.3 billion
(Yearend 2003) |
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Economic aid - recipient:
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ODA, $300 million
(2000) |
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Currency:
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Turkish lira (TRL) |
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Currency code:
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TRL |
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Exchange rates:
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Turkish liras per
US dollar - NA (2003), 1,507,230 (2002), 1,225,590 (2001),
625,218 (2000), 418,783 (1999), 151,865 (1997) |
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Fiscal year:
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calendar year |
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Telephones - main lines in use:
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18,914,900
(2002) |
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Telephones - mobile cellular:
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23,374,400
(2002) |
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Telephone system:
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general
assessment: undergoing rapid modernization and expansion,
especially with cellular telephones
domestic: additional digital exchanges are permitting a
rapid increase in subscribers; the construction of a network
of technologically advanced intercity trunk lines, using both
fiber-optic cable and digital microwave radio relay is
facilitating communication between urban centers; remote areas
are reached by a domestic satellite system; the number of
subscribers to mobile cellular telephone service is growing
rapidly
international: country code - 90; international service
is provided by three submarine fiber-optic cables in the
Mediterranean and Black Seas, linking Turkey with Italy,
Greece, Israel, Bulgaria, Romania, and Russia; also by 12
Intelsat earth stations, and by 328 mobile satellite terminals
in the Inmarsat and Eutelsat systems (2002) |
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Radio broadcast stations:
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AM
16, FM 107, shortwave 6 (2001) |
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Television broadcast stations:
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635
(plus 2,934 repeaters) (1995) |
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Internet country code:
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.tr |
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Internet hosts:
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154,585
(2002) |
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Internet users:
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4.9
million (2002) |
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Railways:
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total:
8,607 km
standard gauge: 8,607 km 1.435-m gauge (2,131 km
electrified) (2002) |
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Highways:
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total:
385,960 km
paved: 131,226 km (including 1,749 km of expressways)
unpaved: 254,734 km (1999) |
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Waterways:
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1,200 km
(approximately) |
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Pipelines:
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gas 3,177 km; oil
3,562 km (2003) |
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Ports and harbors:
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Gemlik, Hopa,
Iskenderun, Istanbul, Izmir, Kocaeli (Izmit), Icel (Mersin),
Samsun, Trabzon |
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Merchant marine:
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total: 508
ships (1,000 GRT or over) 4,666,895 GRT/7,311,504 DWT
by type: bulk 111, cargo 229, chemical tanker 46,
combination bulk 1, combination ore/oil 2, container 34,
liquefied gas 6, passenger 1, passenger/cargo 1, petroleum
tanker 36, refrigerated cargo 4, roll on/roll off 26,
short-sea/passenger 8, specialized tanker 3
foreign-owned: Belize 1, Cambodia 1, China 1, Cyprus 4,
Greece 1, Italy 3, Liberia 1, Monaco 1, Switzerland 1,
Thailand 1, United Kingdom 9
registered in other countries: 243 (2003 est.) |
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Airports:
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120 (2003 est.) |
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Airports - with paved runways:
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total: 87
over 3,047 m: 16
2,438 to 3,047 m: 30
914 to 1,523 m: 17
under 914 m: 4 (2003 est.)
1,524 to 2,437 m: 20 |
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Airports - with unpaved runways:
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total: 33
under 914 m: 21 (2003 est.)
over 3,047 m: 1
2,438 to 3,047 m: 1
914 to 1,523 m: 8
1,524 to 2,437 m: 2 |
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Heliports:
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14 (2003 est.) |
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Military branches:
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Turkish Armed
Forces (TSK): Land Forces, Naval Forces Command (includes
Naval Air and Naval Infantry), Air Force, Coast Guard Command,
Gendarmerie (Jandarma) |
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Military manpower - military age:
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20 years of age
(2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - availability:
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males age
15-49: 19,828,702 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - fit for military service:
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males age
15-49: 11,965,262 (2004 est.) |
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Military manpower - reaching military age annually:
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males:
680,673 (2004 est.) |
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Military expenditures - dollar figure:
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$12.155 billion
(2003) |
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Military expenditures - percent of GDP:
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5.3% (2003) |
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Disputes - international:
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complex maritime,
air, and territorial disputes with Greece in the Aegean Sea;
Cyprus question remains with Greece; Syria and Iraq protest
Turkish hydrological projects to control upper Euphrates
waters; Turkey has expressed concern over the status of Kurds
in Iraq; border with Armenia remains closed over
Nagorno-Karabakh |
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Illicit drugs:
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key transit route
for Southwest Asian heroin to Western Europe and - to a far
lesser extent the US - via air, land, and sea routes; major
Turkish, Iranian, and other international trafficking
organizations operate out of Istanbul; laboratories to convert
imported morphine base into heroin are in remote regions of
Turkey as well as near Istanbul; government maintains strict
controls over areas of legal opium poppy cultivation and
output of poppy straw concentrate |
This page was last updated on 11 May, 2004
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