Page last updated on February 23,

Location:
Southern Europe, bordering the Aegean Sea, Ionian Sea, and the Mediterranean Sea, between Albania and Turkey

Geographic coordinates:
39 00 N, 22 00 E

Map references:
Europe

Area:
total: 131,957 sq km
[see also: Area - total country ranks ]
country comparison to the world: 97
land: 130,647 sq km
[see also: Area - land country ranks ]
water: 1,310 sq km
[see also: Area - water country ranks ]

Area - comparative:
slightly smaller than Alabama

Land boundaries:
total: 1,228 km
border countries: Albania 282 km, Bulgaria 494 km, Turkey 206 km, Macedonia 246 km
[see also: Land boundaries country ranks ]

Coastline:
13,676 km
[see also: Coastline country ranks ]

Maritime claims:
territorial sea: 12 nm
continental shelf: 200 m depth or to the depth of exploitation

Climate:
temperate; mild, wet winters; hot, dry summers
More Climate Details

Terrain:
mostly mountains with ranges extending into the sea as peninsulas or chains of islands

Elevation extremes:
lowest point: Mediterranean Sea 0 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - lowest point country ranks ]
highest point: Mount Olympus 2,917 m
[see also: Elevation extremes - highest point country ranks ]

Natural resources:
lignite, petroleum, iron ore, bauxite, lead, zinc, nickel, magnesite, marble, salt, hydropower potential

Land use:
arable land: 20.45%
[see also: Land use - arable land country ranks ]
permanent crops: 8.59%
[see also: Land use - permanent crops country ranks ]
other: 70.96% (2005)
[see also: Land use - other country ranks ]

Irrigated land:
15,500 sq km (2008)
[see also: Irrigated land country ranks ]

Total renewable water resources:
72 cu km (2005)
[see also: Total renewable water resources country ranks ]

Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural):
total: 8.7 cu km/yr (16%/3%/81%)
[see also: Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) - total country ranks ]
per capita: 782 cu m/yr (1997)
[see also: Freshwater withdrawal (domestic/industrial/agricultural) - per capita country ranks ]

Natural hazards:
severe earthquakes
volcanism: Santorini (elev. 367 m) has been deemed a "Decade Volcano" by the International Association of Volcanology and Chemistry of the Earth's Interior, worthy of study due to its explosive history and close proximity to human populations; although there have been very few eruptions in recent centuries, Methana and Nisyros in the Aegean are classified as historically active

Environment - current issues:
air pollution; water pollution

Environment - international agreements:
party to: Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, 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
signed, but not ratified: Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds

Geography - note:
strategic location dominating the Aegean Sea and southern approach to Turkish Straits; a peninsular country, possessing an archipelago of about 2,000 islands