Part 260

Branches: French Forces, Gendarmerie

Manpower availability: males age 15-49: 43,412 males fit for military service: 28,171 (1996 est.)

Defense expenditures: $NA, NA% of GDP

Defense note: defense is the responsibility of France

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@French Polynesia ----------------

(overseas territory of France)

Map ---

Location: 15 00 S, 140 00 W -- Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from South America to Australia

Flag ----

Description: two narrow red horizontal bands encase a wide white band; centered on the white band is a disk with blue and white wave pattern on the lower half and gold and white ray pattern on the upper half; a stylized red, blue and white ship rides on the wave pattern; the French flag is used for official occasions

Geography ---------

Location: Oceania, archipelago in the South Pacific Ocean, about one-half of the way from South America to Australia

Geographic coordinates: 15 00 S, 140 00 W

Map references: Oceania

Area: total area: 4,167 sq km (118 islands and atolls) land area: 3,660 sq km comparative area: slightly less than one-third the size of Connecticut

Land boundaries: 0 km

Coastline: 2,525 km

Maritime claims: exclusive economic zone: 200 nm territorial sea: 12 nm

International disputes: none

Climate: tropical, but moderate

Terrain: mixture of rugged high islands and low islands with reefs lowest point: Pacific Ocean 0 m highest point: Mount Orohena 2,241 m

Natural resources: timber, fish, cobalt

Land use: arable land: 1% permanent crops: 19% meadows and pastures: 5% forest and woodland: 31% other: 44%

Irrigated land: NA sq km

Environment: current issues: NA natural hazards: occasional cyclonic storms in January international agreements: NA

Geographic note: includes five archipelagoes; Makatea in French Polynesia is one of the three great phosphate rock islands in the Pacific Ocean - the others are Banaba (Ocean Island) in Kiribati and Nauru

People ------