MALAYSIA

Malaysia consists of two geographical regions divided by the South China Sea: the peninsular Malaysia (or West Malaysia) on the Malay Peninsula bordered by Thailand on the north and Singapore in south, and Malaysian Borneo (or East Malaysia) located on the northern part of the island of Borneo in the South China Sea, bordering Indonesia and surrounding the Sultanate of Brunei. The country shares also maritime borders with the Philippines and Vietnam.

Malaysia covers a total area of 329,847 km², making it slightly larger than Norway, or slightly larger than the U.S. state of New Mexico. Highest mountain is Mount Kinabalu with 4,095 m on the island of Borneo. Mt. Kinabalu and the surrounding Kinabalu Park are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Malaysia has a population of 31.6 million people (in 2016). Largest city and the national capital is Kuala Lumpur. Spoken languages are Malay (official), English, Tamil, and Chinese (Cantonese).