The shortest distance in the world between two country capitals is between Vienna, Austria and Bratislava, Slovakia. i believe the distance is about 58km.
Source: Personal Experience
If you mean by the words "direct route" the shortest distance between two places, distances between two places are shortest at the equator, because of the shape of the planet. If you mean which direction should be traveled to minimize distance, the route taken should be as straight a line as possible.
It is not possible to drive around the world.
Infinity Incorrect ! The longest distance between those two points is a straight line from one point , running all the way around the world to the second point. Thus the shortest distance together with the longest distance is a full circle around the world with both points on the circle.
since air travel can fly a more direct route, not having to circumnavigate land mass, it would be the shortest distance.
I think it's around 4500 - 5000 miles
The shortest driving distance is 63.5 miles.
The road distance between the places is 1082 miles. This is the distance when the shortest route is chosen. Also it should be noted that various traffic rules like 'one ways' and 'no entries' have Not been considered when calculating this distance.
Drake Passage, the wildest water on earth that separates these two land masses, is about 800-kilometre (500 mi) wide. This distance between Cape Horn and Livingston Island is the shortest crossing between Antarctica and any other landmass.
The road distance between the places is 2550 miles. This is the distance when the shortest route is chosen. Also it should be noted that various traffic rules like 'one ways' and 'no entries' have Not been considered when calculating this distance.
The United States constitution is the shortest in the world.
The shortest distance between them (from Kennedy Intl airport to Jorge Chavez Intl airport in Lima, Peru) is 3,629 miles or 5,840 km. Source: http://gc.kls2.com/ There you can calculate the distance between any two airports in the world. have fun !
*See the related link below for an updated list of the countries of the world (recognized and unrecognized) and their capitals.