Turkmenistan vs. Afghanistan
Geography
| Turkmenistan | Afghanistan | |
|---|---|---|
| Location | Central Asia, bordering the Caspian Sea, between Iran and Kazakhstan | Southern Asia, north and west of Pakistan, east of Iran |
| Geographic coordinates | 40 00 N, 60 00 E | 33 00 N, 65 00 E |
| Map references | Asia | Asia |
| Area | total: 488,100 sq km land: 469,930 sq km water: 18,170 sq km | total: 652,230 sq km land: 652,230 sq km water: 0 sq km |
| Area - comparative | slightly more than three times the size of Georgia; slightly larger than California | almost six times the size of Virginia; slightly smaller than Texas |
| Land boundaries | total: 4,158 km border countries (4): Afghanistan 804 km, Iran 1148 km, Kazakhstan 413 km, Uzbekistan 1793 km | total: 5,987 km border countries (6): China 91 km, Iran 921 km, Pakistan 2670 km, Tajikistan 1357 km, Turkmenistan 804 km, Uzbekistan 144 km |
| Coastline | 0 km (landlocked); note - Turkmenistan borders the Caspian Sea (1,768 km) | 0 km (landlocked) |
| Maritime claims | none (landlocked) | none (landlocked) |
| Climate | subtropical desert | arid to semiarid; cold winters and hot summers |
| Terrain | flat-to-rolling sandy desert with dunes rising to mountains in the south; low mountains along border with Iran; borders Caspian Sea in west | mostly rugged mountains; plains in north and southwest |
| Elevation extremes | highest point: Gora Ayribaba 3,139 m lowest point: Vpadina Akchanaya (Sarygamysh Koli is a lake in northern Turkmenistan with a water level that fluctuates above and below the elevation of Vpadina Akchanaya, the lake has dropped as low as -110 m) -81 m mean elevation: 230 m | highest point: Noshak 7,492 m lowest point: Amu Darya 258 m mean elevation: 1,884 m |
| Natural resources | petroleum, natural gas, sulfur, salt | natural gas, petroleum, coal, copper, chromite, talc, barites, sulfur, lead, zinc, iron ore, salt, precious and semiprecious stones, arable land |
| Land use | agricultural land: 72% (2018 est.) arable land: 4.1% (2018 est.) permanent crops: 0.1% (2018 est.) permanent pasture: 67.8% (2018 est.) forest: 8.8% (2018 est.) other: 19.2% (2018 est.) | agricultural land: 58.1% (2018 est.) arable land: 11.8% (2018) permanent crops: 0.3% (2018) permanent pasture: 46% (2018) forest: 1.85% (2018 est.) other: 40.1% (2018) |
| Irrigated land | 19,950 sq km (2012) | 32,080 sq km (2012) |
| Natural hazards | earthquakes; mudslides; droughts; dust storms; floods | damaging earthquakes occur in Hindu Kush mountains; flooding; droughts |
| Environment - current issues | contamination of soil and groundwater with agricultural chemicals, pesticides; salination, water logging of soil due to poor irrigation methods; Caspian Sea pollution; diversion of a large share of the flow of the Amu Darya into irrigation contributes to that river's inability to replenish the Aral Sea; soil erosion; desertification | limited natural freshwater resources; inadequate supplies of potable water; soil degradation; overgrazing; deforestation (much of the remaining forests are being cut down for fuel and building materials); desertification; air and water pollution in overcrowded urban areas |
| Environment - international agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Wetlands signed, but not ratified: none of the selected agreements | party to: Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Climate Change-Paris Agreement, Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Marine Dumping-London Convention, Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection signed, but not ratified: Law of the Sea, Marine Life Conservation |
| Geography - note | landlocked; the western and central low-lying desolate portions of the country make up the great Garagum (Kara-Kum) desert, which occupies over 80% of the country; eastern part is plateau | landlocked; the Hindu Kush mountains that run northeast to southwest divide the northern provinces from the rest of the country; the highest peaks are in the northern Vakhan (Wakhan Corridor) |
| Total renewable water resources | 24.765 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) | 65.33 billion cubic meters (2017 est.) |
| Population distribution | the most densely populated areas are the southern, eastern, and northeastern oases; approximately 50% of the population lives in and around the capital of Ashgabat | populations tend to cluster in the foothills and periphery of the rugged Hindu Kush range; smaller groups are found in many of the country's interior valleys; in general, the east is more densely settled, while the south is sparsely populated |
Source: CIA Factbook
