Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia consisting of thirteen states and three Federal Territories, with a total landmass of 329,845 square kilometres (127,354 sq mi). The capital city is Kuala Lumpur, while Putrajaya is the seat of the federal government. The population stands at over 28 million. The country is separated by the South China Sea into two regions, Peninsular Malaysia and Malaysian Borneo (also known as East Malaysia). Malaysia borders Thailand, Indonesia, and Brunei. It is near the equator and has a tropical climate. Malaysia's head of state is the Yang di-Pertuan Agong, an elected monarch, and the head of government is the Prime Minister.
The two distinct parts of Malaysia, separated from each other by the South China Sea, share a largely similar landscape in that both West and East Malaysia feature coastal plains rising to often densely forested hills and mountains, the highest of which is Mount Kinabalu at 4,095.2 metres (13,436 ft) on the island of Borneo. East Malaysia, like most of the island of Borneo was traditionally covered with Borneo lowland rain forests although much has been cleared with wildlife retreating to the upland rain forests inland. The local climate is equatorial and characterized by the annual southwest (April to October) and northeast (October to February) monsoons.
Kota Kinabalu, capital of East Malaysian state of Sabah is located 1,600 kilometres (990 mi) east across the South China Sea from Kuala Lumpur. Tanjung Piai, located in the southern state of Johor, is the southernmost tip of continental Asia. The Strait of Malacca, lying between Sumatra and Peninsular Malaysia, is arguably the most important shipping lane in the world.
Kuala Lumpuris the official capital and largest city of Malaysia. Putrajaya is the federal administrative capital. Although many executive and judicial branches of the federal government have moved there (to ease growing congestion within Kuala Lumpur), Kuala Lumpur is still recognised as the legislative capital of Malaysia since it houses the seat of the Parliament of Malaysia. It is also the main commercial and financial centre of the country.
Other major cities include George Town, Ipoh, Johor Bahru, Kuching, Kota Kinabalu, Miri, Alor Star, Malacca Town, Kuala Terengganu, Kota Bharu, Kuantan and Petaling Jaya
