Location: North Korea is located in the northern half of the Korean

Peninsula, which extends southward from the northeastern corner of

the Asian continent and is surrounded on three sides by water. North

Korea lies between the Republic of Korea (South Korea) to the south,

China to the north and northwest, and Russia to the northeast.

Size: North Korea occupies about 55 percent of the total land area of

the Korean Peninsula, or approximately 120,410 square kilometers of

land area and 130 square kilometers of water area.

Land Boundaries: The three nations that border North Korea are to the south, South Korea (a 238-kilometer border); to the north, China (a 1,416-kilometer border); and to the northeast, Russia (a 19-kilometer border). The border with South Korea is marked by a 4-kilometer-wide Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), at the center of which is the Military Demarcation Line. The DMZ extends 238 kilometers over land and three kilometers over the sea.

Length of Coastline: The total coastline measures 2,495 kilometers. The west coast is on Korea Bay and the Yellow Sea (sometimes referred to as the West Sea). The east coast is on what Koreans call the East Sea but which is recognized by the United Nations and the U.S. Board on Geographic Names as the Sea of Japan.

Maritime Claims: P’y4ngyang claims a 12-nautical-mile territorial sea and an exclusive economic zone of 200 nautical miles. It also has established a military boundary line of 50 nautical miles from its east coast and a 200-nautical-mile exclusive economic zone limit in the Yellow Sea in which all foreign ships and aircraft without permission from the North Korean government are banned. As an extension of the concept of the land-bound Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) between North and South Korea, the Northern Limit Line serves as a maritime boundary established by the United Nations Command (UNC) in 1954 to ensure access to islands controlled by South Korea north of the thirty-eighth parallel and to maintain a separation between naval forces. The North rejected this unilateral limit and proposed instead a Maritime Military Demarcation Line south of the Northern Limit Line, which would have allowed a narrow southern access to the islands. The UNC did not agree and has continued to enforce the Northern Limit Line.

Topography: Approximately 80 percent of the land area is made up of mountain ranges separated by deep, narrow valleys. All mountains on the Korean Peninsula higher than 2,000 meters above sea level are in North Korea. The highest peak, on the northern border with China, is Paektu-san at 2,744 meters above sea level. There are wide coastal plains on the west coast and discontinuous coastal plains on the east coast.

Principal Rivers: North Korea’s longest river is the Amnokgang (Yalu) (790 kilometers), which flows westerly into the northern Korea Bay. It is navigable for 678 kilometers. The Tumangang (Tumen) is the second longest river (521 kilometers); it flows into the Sea of Japan (or East Sea) but is navigable for only 81 kilometers. Both the Amnokgang and Tumangang form part of the boundary between North Korea and China. The third longest river is the Taedonggang (397 kilometers and navigable for 245 kilometers), which flows through P’y4ngyang and into the southern Korea Bay.

Climate: North Korea has long, cold, dry winters and short, hot, humid summers. The temperatures range between –8E C in December and 27E C in August. Approximately 60 percent of the annual rainfall occurs between June and September; August is the wettest month with an average rainfall of 317 millimeters.

Natural Resources: North Korea’s major natural resources include coal, copper, fluorspar, gold, graphite, iron ore, lead, magnesite, pyrites, salt, tungsten, and zinc. Water is an important source of hydroelectric power generation.

Land Use: Based on 2001 Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) estimates, 20.7 percent, or 25,000 square kilometers, of the land is arable. Of this arable land, 12 percent is in permanent crops, and, according to a 1998 estimate, there were about 14,600 square kilometers of irrigated land.

Environmental Factors: Current environmental concerns include water pollution, inadequate supplies of potable water, water-borne diseases, deforestation, and soil erosion and degradation.

Time Zone: North Korea has one time zone: P’y4ngyang Standard Time (Greenwich Mean Time—GMT—plus nine hours).