Encompassing a territory spread over roughly 90,000 square kilometres (35,000sqmi), Maldives is one of the world's most geographically dispersed countries. It is the smallest Asian country in both land area and in population. The archipelago is located atop the Chagos-Maldives-Laccadive Ridge, a vast submarine mountain range in the Indian Ocean, which also forms a terrestrial ecoregion, together with the Chagos and the Lakshadweep. With an average ground-level elevation of 1.5 metres (4ft 11in) above sea level, it is the planet's lowest country. It is also the country with the lowest natural highest point in the world, at 2.4 metres (7ft 10in). The government has pledged to make Maldives a carbon-neutral country by 2019 amid concerns about rising sea-levels.