ABSTRACT
Situated in the eastern part of the Transcaucasian region, Azerbaijan shares borders with Russia, Turkey, Iran, Armenia and Georgia. It has a land area of 88,600 square kilometres (34,200 square miles), the Caucasus Mountains surround it on the northeast and southwest; to the east is the Caspian Sea. Its 1992 population was approximately 7.3 million, 1.7 million of whom live in Baku, its Capital. Just over 88 per cent of the population are native Azeris. The other 12 per cent are composed of various ethnic groups including Russians, Lezgins, Talyshins and Jews.
