Vietnam Geographical location
Vietnam is located in the Eastern part of the Indochina peninsula, bordering China to the North, Laos and Cambodia to the West with a long land border of 4,550 km, and facing the Eastern Sea (South China Sea) and the Pacific to the East and the South. On the map, Vietnam is an S-shaped long strip of land, stretching from 23°23' to 8°27' North latitude. The country's total length is 1,650 km from the northernmost point to the southernmost point. Its width, stretching from the Eastern coast to the Western border, is about 500 km at the widest part and about 50 km at the narrowest part. The country's territory is made up of hills, mountains, deltas, coastal lines and continental shelf, reflecting the long history of geology and topography formation in a monsoon, humid climate and a strongly weathered environment. The topography is lower from the Northwest to the Southeast, which is clearly shown in the flows of major rivers. Three quarters of Vietnam's territory are made up of low mountains and hilly regions. Regions with elevations less than 1,000 metres above sea level make up 85% of the territory. Mountainous regions over 2,000 metres above sea level only account for 1%. Mountain ranges and hills form a large bow facing the Eastern Sea with 1,400 km length from the Northwest to the Southeast. The highest mountain ranges are all located in the West and Northwest. Fan Xi Pan peak, with a height of 3,143 metres, is considered the roof of Indochina. Nearer to the Eastern Sea the mountain range is lower and ends with a coastal strip of lowland. From Hai Van pass to the South, the topography is less complex. A long limestone mountain range is replaced by large granite mountains followed by a vast plateau known as the Central Highlands behind Truong Son range to the East. Only one fourth of the Vietnamese territory is covered by deltas separated in many regions by mountains and hills. There are two major deltas with fertile arable land in Vietnam, which are the Red River delta, locally known as the Northern delta of 16,700 sq km, and the Mekong River delta or the Southern delta of 40,000 sq km. Between these two major deltas is a chain of small deltas located along the Central coast from the Ma River basin in Thanh Hoa province to Phan Thiet with a total area of 15,000 sq km. Vietnam faces the Eastern Sea to the East and the Gulf of Thailand to the South and Southwest. The country has a long coastline of 3,260 kms running from Mong Cai in the North to Ha Tien in the Southwest. Vietnam's territorial waters in the Eastern Sea extend to the East and Southeast, including the continental shelf and many islands and archipelagoes. There is a group of 3,000 islands belonging to Vietnam in the Tonkin Gulf, including Ha Long Bay, Bai Tu Long, Cat Hai, Cat Ba, Bach Long Vi, Hoang Sa (Paracel) and Truong Sa (Spratley) Archipelagoes. To the East and Southeast, there are groups of islands including Con Son, Phu Quoc and Tho Chu.