:French Southern and Antarctic Lands Geography

Total area:
    7,781 km2
Land area:
    7,781 km2; includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles
    Crozet; excludes Terre Adelie claim of about 500,000 km2 in Antarctica that
    is not recognized by the US
Comparative area:
    slightly less than 1.5 times the size of Delaware
Land boundaries:
    none
Coastline:
    1,232 km
Maritime claims:
  Exclusive economic zone:
    200 nm (Iles Kerguelen only)
  Territorial sea:
    12 nm
Disputes:
    Terre Adelie claim in Antarctica is not recognized by the US
Climate:
    antarctic
Terrain:
    volcanic
Natural resources:
    fish, crayfish
Land use:
    arable land 0%; permanent crops 0%; meadows and pastures 0%; forest and
    woodland 0%; other 100%
Environment:
    Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes
Note:
    located in the southern Indian Ocean about equidistant between Africa,
    Antarctica, and Australia

:French Southern and Antarctic Lands People

Population:
    summer (January 1991) - 200, winter (July 1992) - 150, growth rate 0.0%
    (1992); note - mostly researchers

:French Southern and Antarctic Lands Government

Long-form name:
    Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands
Type:
    overseas territory of France since 1955; governed by High Administrator
    Bernard de GOUTTES (since May 1990), who is assisted by a 7-member
    Consultative Council and a 12-member Scientific Council
Capital:
    none; administered from Paris, France
Administrative divisions:
    none (overseas territory of France); there are no first-order administrative
    divisions as defined by the US Government, but there are 3 districts named
    Ile Crozet, Iles Kerguelen, and Iles Saint-Paul et Amsterdam; excludes Terre
    Adelie claim in Antarctica that is not recognized by the US
Flag:
    the flag of France is used

:French Southern and Antarctic Lands Economy

Overview:
    Economic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical
    research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fishing catches
    landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and
    Reunion.
Budget:
    $33.6 million (1990)

:French Southern and Antarctic Lands Communications

Ports:
    none; offshore anchorage only
Merchant marine:
    12 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 192,752 GRT/334,400 DWT; includes 1
    cargo, 3 refrigerated cargo, 2 roll-on/roll-off cargo, 2 petroleum tanker, 1
    liquefied gas, 2 bulk, 1 multifunction large load carrier; note - a captive
    subset of the French register
Telecommunications:
    NA

:French Southern and Antarctic Lands Defense Forces

Branches:
    French Forces (including Army, Navy, Air Force)
Note:
    defense is the responsibility of France