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Introduction - China
Background:
For centuries China stood as a leading civilization, outpacing the rest of the
world in the arts and sciences, but in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the
country was beset by civil unrest, major famines, military defeats, and foreign
occupation. After World War II, the Communists under MAO Zedong established an
autocratic socialist system that, while ensuring China's sovereignty, imposed
strict controls over everyday life and cost the lives of tens of millions of
people. After 1978, MAO's successor DENG Xiaoping and other leaders focused on
market-oriented economic development and by 2000 output had quadrupled. For much
of the population, living standards have improved dramatically and the room for
personal choice has expanded, yet political controls remain tight. China since
the early 1990s has increased its global outreach and participation in
international organizations.
Geography - China
Location:
Eastern Asia, bordering the East China Sea, Korea Bay, Yellow Sea, and South
China Sea, between North Korea and Vietnam
Geographic coordinates:
35 00 N, 105 00 E
Map references:
Asia
Area:
total: 9,596,961 sq km
country comparison to the world: 4
land: 9,569,901 sq km
water: 27,060 sq km
Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than the US
Land boundaries:
total: 22,117 km
border countries: Afghanistan 76 km, Bhutan 470 km, Burma 2,185 km, India 3,380
km, Kazakhstan 1,533 km, North Korea 1,416 km, Kyrgyzstan 858 km, Laos 423 km,
Mongolia 4,677 km, Nepal 1,236 km, Pakistan 523 km, Russia (northeast) 3,605 km,
Russia (northwest) 40 km, Tajikistan 414 km, Vietnam 1,281 km
regional borders: Hong Kong 30 km, Macau 0.34 km
Coastline:
14,500 km
Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
contiguous zone: 24 nm
exclusive economic zone: 200 nm
continental shelf: 200 nm or to the edge of the continental margin
Climate:
Current Weather
extremely diverse; tropical in south to subarctic in north
Terrain:
mostly mountains, high plateaus, deserts in west; plains, deltas, and hills in
east
Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Turpan Pendi -154 m
highest point: Mount Everest 8,850 m
Natural resources:
coal, iron ore, petroleum, natural gas, mercury, tin, tungsten, antimony,
manganese, molybdenum, vanadium, magnetite, aluminum, lead, zinc, uranium,
hydropower potential (world's largest)
Land use:
arable land: 14.86%
permanent crops: 1.27%
other: 83.87% (2005)
Irrigated land:
545,960 sq km (2003)
Total renewable water resources:
2,829.6 cu km (1999)
Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 549.76 cu km/yr (7%/26%/68%)
per capita: 415 cu m/yr (2000)
Natural hazards:
frequent typhoons (about five per year along southern and eastern coasts);
damaging floods; tsunamis; earthquakes; droughts; land subsidence
Environment - current issues:
air pollution (greenhouse gases, sulfur dioxide particulates) from reliance on
coal produces acid rain; water shortages, particularly in the north; water
pollution from untreated wastes; deforestation; estimated loss of one-fifth of
agricultural land since 1949 to soil erosion and economic development;
desertification; trade in endangered species
Environment - international agreements:
party to: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity,
Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered
Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine
Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical
Timber 94, Wetlands, Whaling
signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements
Geography - note:
world's fourth largest country (after Russia, Canada, and US); Mount Everest on
the border with Nepal is the world's tallest peak
People - China
Population:
1,330,141,295 (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 1
Age structure:
0-14 years: 17.9% (male 128,363,812/female 109,917,641)
15-64 years: 73.4% (male 501,987,034/female 474,871,442)
65 years and over: 8.6% (male 55,287,997/female 59,713,369) (2010 est.)
Median age:
total: 35.2 years
male: 34.5 years
female: 35.8 years (2010 est.)
Population growth rate:
0.494% (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 153
Birth rate:
12.17 births/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 164
Death rate:
6.89 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 143
Net migration rate:
-0.34 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 102
Urbanization:
urban population: 43% of total population (2008)
rate of urbanization: 2.7% annual rate of change (2005-10 est.)
Sex ratio:
at birth: 1.14 male(s)/female
under 15 years: 1.17 male(s)/female
15-64 years: 1.06 male(s)/female
65 years and over: 0.93 male(s)/female
total population: 1.06 male(s)/female (2010 est.)
Infant mortality rate:
total: 16.51 deaths/1,000 live births
country comparison to the world: 115
male: 15.84 deaths/1,000 live births
female: 17.27 deaths/1,000 live births (2010 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 74.51 years
country comparison to the world: 92
male: 72.54 years
female: 76.77 years (2010 est.)
Total fertility rate:
1.54 children born/woman (2010 est.)
country comparison to the world: 182
HIV/AIDS - adult prevalence rate:
0.1% (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 115
HIV/AIDS - people living with HIV/AIDS:
700,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
HIV/AIDS - deaths:
39,000 (2007 est.)
country comparison to the world: 15
Major infectious diseases:
degree of risk: intermediate
food or waterborne diseases: bacterial diarrhea, hepatitis A, and typhoid fever
vectorborne diseases: Japanese encephalitis and dengue fever
soil contact disease: hantaviral hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome (HFRS)
animal contact disease: rabies
note: highly pathogenic H5N1 avian influenza has been identified in this
country; it poses a negligible risk with extremely rare cases possible among US
citizens who have close contact with birds (2009)
Nationality:
noun: Chinese (singular and plural)
adjective: Chinese
Ethnic groups:
Han Chinese 91.5%, Zhuang, Manchu, Hui, Miao, Uyghur, Tujia, Yi, Mongol,
Tibetan, Buyi, Dong, Yao, Korean, and other nationalities 8.5% (2000 census)
Religions:
Daoist (Taoist), Buddhist, Christian 3%-4%, Muslim 1%-2%
note: officially atheist (2002 est.)
Languages:
Standard Chinese or Mandarin (Putonghua, based on the Beijing dialect), Yue
(Cantonese), Wu (Shanghainese), Minbei (Fuzhou), Minnan (Hokkien-Taiwanese),
Xiang, Gan, Hakka dialects, minority languages (see Ethnic groups entry)
Literacy:
definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.6%
male: 95.7%
female: 87.6% (2007)
School life expectancy (primary to tertiary education):
total: 11 years
male: 11 years
female: 11 years (2006)
Education expenditures:
1.9% of GDP (1999)
country comparison to the world: 169
Government - China
Country name:
conventional long form: People's Republic of China
conventional short form: China
local long form: Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo
local short form: Zhongguo
abbreviation: PRC
Government type:
Communist state
Capital:
name: Beijing
geographic coordinates: 39 55 N, 116 23 E
time difference: UTC+8 (13 hours ahead of Washington, DC during Standard Time)
note: despite its size, all of China falls within one time zone; many people in
Xinjiang Province observe an unofficial "Xinjiang timezone" of UTC+6, two hours
behind Beijing
Administrative divisions:
23 provinces (sheng, singular and plural), 5 autonomous regions (zizhiqu,
singular and plural), and 4 municipalities (shi, singular and plural)
provinces: Anhui, Fujian, Gansu, Guangdong, Guizhou, Hainan, Hebei,
Heilongjiang, Henan, Hubei, Hunan, Jiangsu, Jiangxi, Jilin, Liaoning, Qinghai,
Shaanxi, Shandong, Shanxi, Sichuan, Yunnan, Zhejiang; (see note on Taiwan)
autonomous regions: Guangxi, Nei Mongol, Ningxia, Xinjiang Uygur, Xizang (Tibet)
municipalities: Beijing, Chongqing, Shanghai, Tianjin
note: China considers Taiwan its 23rd province; see separate entries for the
special administrative regions of Hong Kong and Macau
Independence:
221 BC (unification under the Qin Dynasty); 1 January 1912 (Qing Dynasty
replaced by the Republic of China); 1 October 1949 (People's Republic of China
established)
National holiday:
Anniversary of the founding of the People's Republic of China, 1 October (1949)
Constitution:
most recent promulgation 4 December 1982 with amendments in 1988, 1993, 2004
Legal system:
based on civil law system; derived from Soviet and continental civil code legal
principles; legislature retains power to interpret statutes; constitution
ambiguous on judicial review of legislation; has not accepted compulsory ICJ
jurisdiction
Suffrage:
18 years of age; universal
Executive branch:
chief of state: President HU Jintao (since 15 March 2003); Vice President XI
Jinping (since 15 March 2008)
head of government: Premier WEN Jiabao (since 16 March 2003); Executive Vice
Premier LI Keqiang (17 March 2008), Vice Premier HUI Liangyu (since 17 March
2003), Vice Premier ZHANG Deijiang (since 17 March 2008), and Vice Premier WANG
Qishan (since 17 March 2008)
cabinet: State Council appointed by National People's Congress
(For more information visit the World Leaders website )
elections: president and vice president elected by National People's Congress
for a five-year term (eligible for a second term); elections last held on 15-17
March 2008 (next to be held in mid-March 2013); premier nominated by president,
confirmed by National People's Congress
election results: HU Jintao elected president by National People's Congress with
a total of 2,963 votes; XI Jinping elected vice president with a total of 2,919
votes
Legislative branch:
unicameral National People's Congress or Quanguo Renmin Daibiao Dahui (2,987
seats; members elected by municipal, regional, and provincial people's
congresses, and People's Liberation Army to serve five-year terms)
elections: last held in December 2007-February 2008 (date of next election to be
held in late 2012 to early 2013)
election results: percent of vote - NA; seats - 2,987
note: only members of the CCP, its eight allied parties, and sympathetic
independent candidates are elected
Judicial branch:
Supreme People's Court (judges appointed by the National People's Congress);
Local People's Courts (comprise higher, intermediate, and basic courts); Special
People's Courts (primarily military, maritime, railway transportation, and
forestry courts)
Political parties and leaders:
Chinese Communist Party or CCP [HU Jintao]; eight registered small parties
controlled by CCP
Political pressure groups and leaders:
no substantial political opposition groups exist
International organization participation:
ADB, AfDB (nonregional member), APEC, APT, ARF, ASEAN (dialogue partner), BIS,
CDB, CICA, EAS, FAO, FATF, G-20, G-24 (observer), G-77, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC,
ICRM, IDA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM
(observer), IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MONUC, NAM
(observer), NSG, OAS (observer), OPCW, PCA, PIF (partner), SAARC (observer),
SCO, SICA (observer), UN, UN Security Council, UNAMID, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR,
UNIDO, UNIFIL, UNITAR, UNMIL, UNMIS, UNMIT, UNOCI, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WFTU,
WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador ZHANG Yesui
chancery: 3505 International Place NW, Washington, DC 20008
telephone: [1] (202) 495-2000
FAX: [1] (202) 495-2190
consulate(s) general: Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York, San Francisco
Diplomatic representation from the US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Jon M. HUNTSMAN, Jr.
embassy: 55 An Jia Lou Lu, 100600 Beijing
mailing address: PSC 461, Box 50, FPO AP 96521-0002
telephone: [86] (10) 8531-3000
FAX: [86] (10) 8531-3300
consulate(s) general: Chengdu, Guangzhou, Shanghai, Shenyang, Wuhan
Flag description:
red with a large yellow five-pointed star and four smaller yellow five-pointed
stars (arranged in a vertical arc toward the middle of the flag) in the upper
hoist-side corner; the color red represents revolution, while the stars
symbolize the four social classes - the working class, the peasantry, the urban
petty bourgeoisie, and the national bourgeoisie (capitalists) - united under the
Communist Party of China
Economy - China
Economy - overview:
China's economy during the past 30 years has changed from a centrally planned
system that was largely closed to international trade to a more market-oriented
economy that has a rapidly growing private sector and is a major player in the
global economy. Reforms started in the late 1970s with the phasing out of
collectivized agriculture, and expanded to include the gradual liberalization of
prices, fiscal decentralization, increased autonomy for state enterprises, the
foundation of a diversified banking system, the development of stock markets,
the rapid growth of the non-state sector, and the opening to foreign trade and
investment. Annual inflows of foreign direct investment rose to nearly $108
billion in 2008. China has generally implemented reforms in a gradualist or
piecemeal fashion. In recent years, China has re-invigorated its support for
leading state-owned enterprises in sectors it considers important to "economic
security," explicitly looking to foster globally competitive national champions.
After keeping its currency tightly linked to the US dollar for years, China in
July 2005 revalued its currency by 2.1% against the US dollar and moved to an
exchange rate system that references a basket of currencies. Cumulative
appreciation of the renminbi against the US dollar since the end of the dollar
peg was more than 20% by late 2008, but the exchange rate has remained virtually
pegged since the onset of the global financial crisis. The restructuring of the
economy and resulting efficiency gains have contributed to a more than tenfold
increase in GDP since 1978. Measured on a purchasing power parity (PPP) basis
that adjusts for price differences, China in 2009 stood as the second-largest
economy in the world after the US, although in per capita terms the country is
still lower middle-income. The Chinese government faces numerous economic
development challenges, including: (a) reducing its high domestic savings rate
and correspondingly low domestic demand through increased corporate transfers
and a strengthened social safety net; (b) sustaining adequate job growth for
tens of millions of migrants and new entrants to the work force; (c) reducing
corruption and other economic crimes; and (d) containing environmental damage
and social strife related to the economy's rapid transformation. Economic
development has been more rapid in coastal provinces than in the interior, and
approximately 200 million rural laborers and their dependents have relocated to
urban areas to find work. One demographic consequence of the "one child" policy
is that China is now one of the most rapidly aging countries in the world.
Deterioration in the environment - notably air pollution, soil erosion, and the
steady fall of the water table, especially in the north - is another long-term
problem. China continues to lose arable land because of erosion and economic
development. In 2006, China announced that by 2010 it would decrease energy
intensity 20% from 2005 levels. In 2009, China announced that by 2020 it would
reduce carbon intensity 40% from 2005 levels. The Chinese government seeks to
add energy production capacity from sources other than coal and oil, and is
focusing on nuclear and other alternative energy development. In 2009, the
global economic downturn reduced foreign demand for Chinese exports for the
first time in many years. The government vowed to continue reforming the economy
and emphasized the need to increase domestic consumption in order to make China
less dependent on foreign exports for GDP growth in the future.
GDP (purchasing power parity):
$8.789 trillion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
$8.086 trillion (2008 est.)
$7.418 trillion (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP (official exchange rate):
$4.814 trillion (2009 est.)
GDP - real growth rate:
8.7% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
9% (2008 est.)
13% (2007 est.)
GDP - per capita (PPP):
$6,600 (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 128
$6,100 (2008 est.)
$5,700 (2007 est.)
note: data are in 2009 US dollars
GDP - composition by sector:
agriculture: 10.6%
industry: 46.8%
services: 42.6% (2009 est.)
Labor force:
813.5 million (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 1
Labor force - by occupation:
agriculture: 39.5%
industry: 27.2%
services: 33.2% (2008 est.)
Unemployment rate:
4.3% (September 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 39
4.2% (December 2008 est.)
note: official data for urban areas only; including migrants may boost total
unemployment to 9%; substantial unemployment and underemployment in rural areas
Population below poverty line:
2.8% (2007)
Household income or consumption by percentage share:
lowest 10%: 3.5%
highest 10%: 15%
note: data are for urban households only (2008)
Distribution of family income - Gini index:
41.5 (2007)
country comparison to the world: 54
40 (2001)
Investment (gross fixed):
45.2% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
Budget:
revenues: $1.002 trillion
expenditures: $1.111 trillion (2009 est.)
Public debt:
16.9% of GDP (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 109
15.6% of GDP (2008 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices):
-0.7% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
6% (2008 est.)
Central bank discount rate:
2.79% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 125
3.33% (31 December 2007)
Commercial bank prime lending rate:
5.31% (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 142
5.58% (17 December 2007)
Stock of money:
$2.434 trillion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 3
$2.09 trillion (31 December 2007)
Stock of quasi money:
$4.523 trillion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 4
$3.437 trillion (31 December 2007)
Stock of domestic credit:
$5.555 trillion (31 December 2008)
country comparison to the world: 4
$4.653 trillion (31 December 2007)
Market value of publicly traded shares:
$5.011 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
$2.794 trillion (31 December 2008)
$6.226 trillion (31 December 2007 est.)
Agriculture - products:
rice, wheat, potatoes, corn, peanuts, tea, millet, barley, apples, cotton,
oilseed; pork; fish
Industries:
mining and ore processing, iron, steel, aluminum, and other metals, coal;
machine building; armaments; textiles and apparel; petroleum; cement; chemicals;
fertilizers; consumer products, including footwear, toys, and electronics; food
processing; transportation equipment, including automobiles, rail cars and
locomotives, ships, and aircraft; telecommunications equipment, commercial space
launch vehicles, satellites
Industrial production growth rate:
9.5% (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5
Electricity - production:
3.451 trillion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
Electricity - consumption:
3.438 trillion kWh (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
Electricity - exports:
16.64 billion kWh (2008)
Electricity - imports:
3.842 billion kWh (2008)
Oil - production:
3.991 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 5
Oil - consumption:
8.2 million bbl/day (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 3
Oil - exports:
388,000 bbl/day (2008 est.)
country comparison to the world: 32
Oil - imports:
4.393 million bbl/day (2008)
country comparison to the world: 4
Oil - proved reserves:
16 billion bbl (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 14
Natural gas - production:
82.94 billion cu m (2009)
country comparison to the world: 8
Natural gas - consumption:
87.08 billion cu m (2009)
country comparison to the world: 9
Natural gas - exports:
3.32 billion cu m (2009)
country comparison to the world: 31
Natural gas - imports:
7.462 billion cu m (2009)
country comparison to the world: 27
Natural gas - proved reserves:
2.265 trillion cu m (1 January 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 17
Current account balance:
$297.1 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 1
$426.1 billion (2008 est.)
Exports:
$1.204 trillion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 2
$1.435 trillion (2008 est.)
Exports - commodities:
electrical and other machinery, including data processing equipment, apparel,
textiles, iron and steel, optical and medical equipment
Exports - partners:
US 20.03%, Hong Kong 12.03%, Japan 8.32%, South Korea 4.55%, Germany 4.27%
(2009)
Imports:
$954.3 billion (2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 4
$1.074 trillion (2008 est.)
Imports - commodities:
electrical and other machinery, oil and mineral fuels, optical and medical
equipment, metal ores, plastics, organic chemicals
Imports - partners:
Japan 12.27%, Hong Kong 10.06%, South Korea 9.04%, US 7.66%, Taiwan 6.84%,
Germany 5.54% (2009)
Reserves of foreign exchange and gold:
$2.422 trillion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 1
$1.953 trillion (31 December 2008 est.)
Debt - external:
$347.1 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 22
$400.6 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - at home:
$456.3 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 10
$378.1 billion (2007 est.)
Stock of direct foreign investment - abroad:
$191.8 billion (31 December 2009 est.)
country comparison to the world: 18
$147.9 billion (31 December 2008 est.)
Exchange rates:
Renminbi yuan (RMB) per US dollar - 6.8249 (2009), 6.9385 (2008), 7.61 (2007),
7.97 (2006), 8.1943 (2005)
Communications - China
Telephones - main lines in use:
365.6 million (2007)
country comparison to the world: 1
Telephones - mobile cellular:
634 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 1
Telephone system:
general assessment: domestic and international services are increasingly
available for private use; unevenly distributed domestic system serves principal
cities, industrial centers, and many towns; China continues to develop its
telecommunications infrastructure, and is partnering with foreign providers to
expand its global reach; China in the summer of 2008 began a major restructuring
of its telecommunications industry, resulting in the consolidation of its six
telecom service operators to three, China Telecom, China Mobile and China
Unicom, each providing both fixed-line and mobile services
domestic: interprovincial fiber-optic trunk lines and cellular telephone systems
have been installed; mobile-cellular subscribership is increasing rapidly; the
number of Internet users exceeded 250 million by summer 2008; a domestic
satellite system with 55 earth stations is in place
international: country code - 86; a number of submarine cables provide
connectivity to Asia, the Middle East, Europe, and the US; satellite earth
stations - 7 (5 Intelsat - 4 Pacific Ocean and 1 Indian Ocean; 1 Intersputnik -
Indian Ocean region; and 1 Inmarsat - Pacific and Indian Ocean regions) (2008)
Radio broadcast stations:
AM 369, FM 259, shortwave 45 (1998)
Television broadcast stations:
3,240 (of which 209 are operated by China Central Television, 31 are provincial
TV stations, and nearly 3,000 are local city stations) (1997)
Internet country code:
.cn
Internet hosts:
14.156 million (2009)
country comparison to the world: 7
Internet users:
298 million (2008)
country comparison to the world: 1
Transportation - China
Airports:
482 (2009)
country comparison to the world: 15
Airports - with paved runways:
total: 425
over 3,047 m: 63
2,438 to 3,047 m: 132
1,524 to 2,437 m: 133
914 to 1,523 m: 25
under 914 m: 72 (2009)
Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 57
over 3,047 m: 3
2,438 to 3,047 m: 5
1,524 to 2,437 m: 10
914 to 1,523 m: 13
under 914 m: 26 (2009)
Heliports:
45 (2009)
Pipelines:
gas 32,545 km; oil 20,097 km; refined products 10,915 km (2009)
Railways:
total: 77,834 km
country comparison to the world: 3
standard gauge: 77,084 km 1.435-m gauge (24,433 km electrified)
narrow gauge: 750 km 0.750-m gauge (2008)
Roadways:
total: 3,583,715 km (includes 53,913 km of expressways) (2007)
country comparison to the world: 2
Waterways:
110,000 km navigable (2008)
country comparison to the world: 1
Merchant marine:
total: 1,826
country comparison to the world: 3
by type: barge carrier 4, bulk carrier 451, cargo 689, carrier 2, chemical
tanker 69, combination ore/oil 1, container 162, liquefied gas 44, passenger 8,
passenger/cargo 83, petroleum tanker 244, refrigerated cargo 33, roll on/roll
off 10, specialized tanker 9, vehicle carrier 17
foreign-owned: 20 (Ecuador 1, Greece 2, Hong Kong 12, Indonesia 1, Japan 2,
South Korea 1, Norway 1)
registered in other countries: 1,441 (Bahamas 10, Bangladesh 1, Belize 71,
Bermuda 10, Bolivia 1, Cambodia 193, Cyprus 10, France 5, Georgia 10, Germany 2,
Honduras 3, Hong Kong 324, India 1, Indonesia 2, Kiribati 15, South Korea 1,
Liberia 11, Malta 12, Marshall Islands 7, Mongolia 1, Norway 36, Panama 532,
Philippines 4, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines 94, Sierra Leone 15, Singapore
14, Thailand 1, Tuvalu 16, unknown 39) (2008)
Ports and terminals:
Dalian, Guangzhou, Ningbo, Qingdao, Qinhuangdao, Shanghai, Shenzhen, Tianjin
Military - China
Military branches:
People's Liberation Army (PLA): Ground Forces, Navy (includes marines and naval
aviation), Air Force (Zhongguo Renmin Jiefangjun Kongjun, PLAAF; includes
Airborne Forces), and Second Artillery Corps (strategic missile force); People's
Armed Police (PAP); PLA Reserve Force (2010)
Military service age and obligation:
18-22 years of age for selective compulsory military service, with 24-month
service obligation; no minimum age for voluntary service (all officers are
volunteers); 18-19 years of age for women high school graduates who meet
requirements for specific military jobs; in 2010, a decision was made to allow
women in combat roles (2010)
Manpower available for military service:
males age 16-49: 381,747,145
females age 16-49: 360,385,629 (2010 est.)
Manpower fit for military service:
males age 16-49: 314,668,817
females age 16-49: 298,745,786 (2010 est.)
Manpower reaching militarily significant age annually:
male: 10,699,186
female: 9,460,217 (2010 est.)
Military expenditures:
4.3% of GDP (2006)
country comparison to the world: 23
Transnational Issues - China
Disputes - international:
continuing talks and confidence-building measures work toward reducing tensions
over Kashmir that nonetheless remains militarized with portions under the de
facto administration of China (Aksai Chin), India (Jammu and Kashmir), and
Pakistan (Azad Kashmir and Northern Areas); India does not recognize Pakistan's
ceding historic Kashmir lands to China in 1964; China and India continue their
security and foreign policy dialogue started in 2005 related to the dispute over
most of their rugged, militarized boundary, regional nuclear proliferation, and
other matters; China claims most of India's Arunachal Pradesh to the base of the
Himalayas; lacking any treaty describing the boundary, Bhutan and China continue
negotiations to establish a common boundary alignment to resolve territorial
disputes due to cartographic discrepancies; Chinese maps show an international
boundary symbol off the coasts of the littoral states of the South China Seas,
where China has interrupted Vietnamese hydrocarbon exploration; China asserts
sovereignty over Scarborough Reef along with the Philippines and Taiwan, and
over the Spratly Islands together with Malaysia, the Philippines, Taiwan,
Vietnam, and Brunei; the 2002 "Declaration on the Conduct of Parties in the
South China Sea" eased tensions in the Spratly's but is not the legally binding
"code of conduct" sought by some parties; Vietnam and China continue to expand
construction of facilities in the Spratly's and in March 2005, the national oil
companies of China, the Philippines, and Vietnam signed a joint accord on marine
seismic activities in the Spratly Islands; China occupies some of the Paracel
Islands also claimed by Vietnam and Taiwan; China and Taiwan continue to reject
both Japan's claims to the uninhabited islands of Senkaku-shoto (Diaoyu Tai) and
Japan's unilaterally declared equidistance line in the East China Sea, the site
of intensive hydrocarbon exploration and exploitation; certain islands in the
Yalu and Tumen rivers are in dispute with North Korea; North Korea and China
seek to stem illegal migration to China by North Koreans, fleeing privations and
oppression, by building a fence along portions of the border and imprisoning
North Koreans deported by China; China and Russia have demarcated the once
disputed islands at the Amur and Ussuri confluence and in the Argun River in
accordance with their 2004 Agreement; China and Tajikistan have begun
demarcating the revised boundary agreed to in the delimitation of 2002; the
decade-long demarcation of the China-Vietnam land boundary was completed in
2009; citing environmental, cultural, and social concerns, China has
reconsidered construction of 13 dams on the Salween River, but energy-starved
Burma, with backing from Thailand, remains intent on building five
hydro-electric dams downstream despite regional and international protests;
Chinese and Hong Kong authorities met in March 2008 to resolve ownership and use
of lands recovered in Shenzhen River channelization, including 96-hectare Lok Ma
Chau Loop; Hong Kong developing plans to reduce 2,000 out of 2,800 hectares of
its restricted Closed Area by 2010
Refugees and internally displaced persons:
refugees (country of origin): 300,897 (Vietnam); estimated 30,000-50,000 (North
Korea)
IDPs: 90,000 (2007)
Trafficking in persons:
current situation: China is a source, transit, and destination country for men,
women, and children trafficked for the purposes of sexual exploitation and
forced labor; the majority of trafficking in China occurs within the country's
borders, but there is also considerable international trafficking of Chinese
citizens to Africa, Asia, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, and North
America; Chinese women are lured abroad through false promises of legitimate
employment, only to be forced into commercial sexual exploitation, largely in
Taiwan, Thailand, Malaysia, and Japan; women and children are trafficked to
China from Mongolia, Burma, North Korea, Russia, and Vietnam for forced labor,
marriage, and prostitution; some North Korean women and children seeking to
leave their country voluntarily cross the border into China and are then sold
into prostitution, marriage, or forced labor
tier rating: Tier 2 Watch List - China is on the Tier 2 Watch List for the
fourth consecutive year for its failure to provide evidence of increasing
efforts to combat human trafficking, particularly in terms of punishment of
trafficking crimes and the protection of Chinese and foreign victims of
trafficking; victims are sometimes punished for unlawful acts that were
committed as a direct result of their being trafficked, such as violations of
prostitution or immigration/emigration controls; the Chinese Government
continued to treat North Korean victims of trafficking solely as economic
migrants, routinely deporting them back to horrendous conditions in North Korea;
additional challenges facing the Chinese Government include the enormous size of
its trafficking problem and the significant level of corruption and complicity
in trafficking by some local government officials (2008)
Illicit drugs:
major transshipment point for heroin produced in the Golden Triangle region of
Southeast Asia; growing domestic consumption of synthetic drugs, and heroin from
Southeast and Southwest Asia; source country for methamphetamine and heroin
chemical precursors, despite new regulations on its large chemical industry
(2008)
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