{ "Introduction": { "Background": { "text": "
The Spanish founded the city of Montevideo in modern-day Uruguay in 1726 as a military stronghold, and it soon became an important commercial center due to its natural harbor. Argentina initially claimed Uruguay, but Brazil annexed the country in 1821. Uruguay declared its independence in 1825 and secured its freedom in 1828 after a three-year struggle. The administrations of President Jose BATLLE in the early 20th century launched widespread political, social, and economic reforms that established a statist tradition. A violent Marxist urban guerrilla movement named the Tupamaros (or Movimiento de Liberación Nacional-Tupamaros) launched in the late 1960s and pushed Uruguay's president to cede control of the government to the military in 1973. By year-end, the rebels had been crushed, but the military continued to expand its hold over the government. Civilian rule was restored in 1985. In 2004, the left-of-center Frente Amplio (FA) Coalition won national elections that effectively ended 170 years of political control by the Colorado and National (Blanco) parties. The left-of-center coalition retained the presidency and control of both chambers of congress until 2019. Uruguay's political and labor conditions are among the freest on the South American continent.
" } }, "Geography": { "Location": { "text": "Southern South America, bordering the South Atlantic Ocean, between Argentina and Brazil" }, "Geographic coordinates": { "text": "33 00 S, 56 00 W" }, "Map references": { "text": "South America" }, "Area": { "total ": { "text": "176,215 sq km" }, "land": { "text": "175,015 sq km" }, "water": { "text": "1,200 sq km" } }, "Area - comparative": { "text": "about the size of Virginia and West Virginia combined; slightly smaller than the state of Washington" }, "Land boundaries": { "total": { "text": "1,591 km" }, "border countries": { "text": "Argentina 541 km; Brazil 1,050 km" } }, "Coastline": { "text": "660 km" }, "Maritime claims": { "territorial sea": { "text": "12 nm" }, "contiguous zone": { "text": "24 nm" }, "exclusive economic zone": { "text": "200 nm" }, "continental shelf": { "text": "200 nm or the edge of continental margin" } }, "Climate": { "text": "warm temperate; freezing temperatures almost unknown" }, "Terrain": { "text": "mostly rolling plains and low hills; fertile coastal lowland" }, "Elevation": { "highest point": { "text": "Cerro Catedral 514 m" }, "lowest point": { "text": "Atlantic Ocean 0 m" }, "mean elevation": { "text": "109 m" } }, "Natural resources": { "text": "arable land, hydropower, minor minerals, fish" }, "Land use": { "agricultural land": { "text": "81.4% (2023 est.)" }, "agricultural land: arable land": { "text": "arable land: 12.6% (2023 est.)" }, "agricultural land: permanent crops": { "text": "permanent crops: 0.2% (2023 est.)" }, "agricultural land: permanent pasture": { "text": "permanent pasture: 68.6% (2023 est.)" }, "forest": { "text": "11.4% (2023 est.)" }, "other": { "text": "7.3% (2023 est.)" } }, "Irrigated land": { "text": "2,230 sq km (2018)" }, "Major lakes (area sq km)": { "salt water lake(s)": { "text": "Lagoa Mirim (shared with Brazil) - 2,970 sq km" } }, "Major rivers (by length in km)": { "text": "Rio de la Plata/Parana river mouth (shared with Brazil [s], Argentina, Paraguay) - 4,880 km; Uruguay river mouth (shared with Brazil [s] and Argentina) - 1,610 km