楼主例子中,比较的都是land area,从逻辑意思上看本身是没有问题的。
曼哈顿里也有比较“宾语”和“than后的名词”的例子:He eats more carrots than donuts.
但是Ron认为,如果两个比较对象中,其中一个有定语,另一个最好也有定语和它对应。
在楼主的例子里,后面有of Country X,前面并没有of Laos,形式不对应。
同样是Ron帖子里的例子:
错误:Gas prices were higher in 2007 than those in 1997.
正确:Gas prices in 2007 were higher than those in 1997.