Talk:List of sovereign states/Sandbox

"List of nations" redirects here. For other country lists, see Lists of countries and territories. For other national lists, see Lists of nations. For non-sovereign dependencies, see Dependent territory.

This is a list of sovereign states, giving an overview of states around the world with information on the status and recognition of their sovereignty.

The list is divided into three parts. It is arranged alphabetically, and contains 203 entries, as of 2010:

1. The United Nation member states section lists all 192 member states of the United Nations.
2. The Members of a United Nations specialized agency section lists two states which, while not member states of the UN, are member states of at least one of the UN's specialized agencies or of the International Atomic Energy Agency or are a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice. These are referred to as the Vienna formula organizations.
3. The No United Nations membership section lists nine states which are neither member states of the United Nations or any of the Vienna formula organizations listed above.

Compiling a list such as this can be a difficult and controversial process, as there is no definition that is binding on all the members of the community of nations concerning the criteria for statehood. For more information on the criteria used to determine the contents and sorting of this list, please see the "criteria for inclusion" section below.

States

Name in English, and the official, national, and other important languages of the state	Information on status and recognition of sovereignty
United Nation Member States:
A
Abkhazia → No United Nations Membership
Afghanistan – Islamic Republic of Afghanistan Dari/Persian: افغانستان – جمهوری اسلامی افغانستان Afgānestān – Jomhūrī-ye Eslāmī-ye Afgānestān Pashto: افغانستان – د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت Afghānistān – Afghānistān Islāmī Jumhūrīyat	UN member.
Albania – Republic of Albania Albanian: Shqipëria – Republika e Shqipërisë	UN member.
B
Bahamas – Commonwealth of The Bahamas English: The Bahamas – Commonwealth of The Bahamas	UN member. The Bahamas is a Commonwealth realm.
Bahrain – Kingdom of Bahrain Arabic: البحرين – مملكة البحرين Al Baḩrayn – Mamlakat al Baḩrayn	UN member.
Burma – Union of Myanmar Burmese: မန္မာ – ပည္ေထာင္စုမန္မာနုိင္ငံေတာ္ Myanma – Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw	UN member.
C
Côte d'Ivoire – Republic of Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) French: Côte d'Ivoire – République de Côte d'Ivoire	UN member.
G
Gabon – Gabonese Republic French: Gabon – République gabonaise	UN member.
Gambia, The – Republic of The Gambia English: The Gambia – Republic of The Gambia	UN member.
I
Italy – Italian Republic Italian: Italia – Repubblica Italiana	UN and EU member. Italy has 5 autonomous regions: Aosta Valley, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, Sardinia, Sicily and Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol.
Ivory Coast → Côte d'Ivoire
K
Korea, North – Democratic People's Republic of Korea Korean: 조선 – 조선민주주의인민공화국 Chosŏn – Chosŏn-minjujuŭi-inmin-konghwaguk	UN member. North Korea is not recognised by two UN members: Japan and South Korea.
Korea, South – Republic of Korea Korean: 한국 – 대한민국 Han’guk – Taehan Min’guk	Member of the UN. South Korea has one special autonomous province: Jeju-do. South Korea is not recognised by one UN member: North Korea.
Kosovo → Agency Members
M
Mozambique – Republic of Mozambique Portuguese: Moçambique – República de Moçambique	UN member.
Myanmar → Burma
N
Nagorno-Karabakh → No United Nations Membership
Namibia – Republic of Namibia English: Namibia – Republic of Namibia	UN member.
Niue → Agency Members
North Korea → Korea, North
Northern Cyprus → No United Nations Membership
Norway – Kingdom of Norway Bokmål: Norge – Kongeriket Norge Nynorsk: Noreg – Kongeriket Noreg	UN member. Svalbard is an integral part of Norway, but has a special status due to the Spitsbergen Treaty. The overseas uninhabited possessions of Bouvet Island and Jan Mayen are integral parts of Norway. Norway claims Peter I Island and Queen Maud Land as dependent territories of Norway, as part of the Norwegian Antarctic Territory.
O
Oman – Sultanate of Oman Arabic: عُمان – سلطنة عُمان ʿUmān – Salţanat ʿUmān	UN member.
P
Pakistan – Islamic Republic of Pakistan Urdu: پَاکِسْتَان – جَمْهُورْيَة إِسْلامِی پَاکِسْتَان Pākistān – Jamhūryat Islāmī Pākistān English: Pakistan – Islamic Republic of Pakistan	UN member. Pakistan is a federation composed of provinces and territories. Pakistan claims sovereignty over Kashmir (except the parts it has ceded to the People's Republic of China by treaty), and exercises control over parts of it, which have not been incorporated into Pakistan proper. These portions are divided into two polities, each of which is administered separately and possesses a local government of its own: Azad Kashmir Gilgit-Baltistan
Palestine → No United Nations Membership
R
Romania Romanian: România	UN and EU member.
S
Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic → No United Nations Membership
Saint Lucia English: Saint Lucia	UN member. Saint Lucia is a Commonwealth realm.
Somaliland → No United Nations Membership
South Korea → Korea, South
South Ossetia → No United Nations Membership
Syria – Syrian Arab Republic Arabic: سورية – الجمهوريّة العربيّة السّوريّة Sūrīyah – Al Jumhūrīyah al ‘Arabīyah as Sūrīyah	UN member. The Golan Heights are annexed by Israel. Syria disputed the Turkish sovereignty over Hatay Province.
T
Taiwan → No United Nations Membership
Tajikistan – Republic of Tajikistan Tajik: Тоҷикистон – Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон Tojikiston – Jumhurii Tojikiston	UN member. Tajikistan also has the Gorno-Badakhshan Autonomous Province.
Transnistria → No United Nations Membership
U
United Kingdom – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland English: United Kingdom – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland Irish: Ríocht Aontaithe na Breataine Móire agus Thuaisceart Éireann Scots: Unitit Kinrick o Great Breetain an Northren Ireland Scottish Gaelic: Rìoghachd Aonaichte na Breatainn Mòire agus Èireann a Tuath Welsh: Teyrnas Unedig Prydain Fawr a Gogledd Iwerddon	Member of the UN and the EU. The United Kingdom is a Commonwealth realm consisting of four countries: England, Northern Ireland, Scotland, and Wales. The United Kingdom has the following overseas territories: Akrotiri and Dhekelia Anguilla Bermuda British Indian Ocean Territory (disputed by Mauritius and Seychelles) British Virgin Islands Cayman Islands Falkland Islands (disputed by Argentina) Gibraltar (disputed by Spain) Montserrat Pitcairn Islands Saint Helena, Ascension and Tristan da Cunha South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands (disputed by Argentina) Turks and Caicos Islands British Antarctic Territory (disputed by Argentina and Chile) The British monarch has direct sovereignty over three self-governing Crown dependencies: Guernsey, with three dependencies: Alderney Herm Sark Isle of Man Jersey
United States – United States of America English: United States – United States of America French: États-Unis – États-Unis d'Amérique Hawaiian: ʻAmelika Hui – ‘Amelika Huipū‘ia Spanish: Estados Unidos – Estados Unidos de América	Member of the UN. The United States is a federation composed of 50 states, 1 federal district, and the incorporated territory of Palmyra Atoll. The United States has sovereignty over the following inhabited possessions and commonwealths: American Samoa (including Swains Island, disputed by Tokelau) Guam Northern Mariana Islands Puerto Rico U.S. Virgin Islands In addition, there are uninhabited possessions of the United States in the Pacific Ocean and the Caribbean Sea: Baker Island, Howland Island, Jarvis Island, Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Midway Atoll, Navassa Island (disputed by Haiti), and Wake Island (disputed by the Marshall Islands). According to some sources, the United States also claims Bajo Nuevo Bank and Serranilla Bank as territories.
V
Vatican City → Agency Members
Members of a United Nations specialized agency:
Kosovo – Republic of Kosovo Albanian: Kosova – Republika e Kosovës Serbian: Косово – Република Косово Kosovo – Republika Kosovo	Not a UN member, but a member of the IMF and WBG. Recognised by 114 UN member states and by Taiwan (Republic of China). Claimed in whole by the Republic of Serbia as part of its Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija. Republic of Kosovo has de facto control over most of the territory, with limited control in North Kosovo.
Niue – Niue Niuean: Niue English: Niue	Not a UN member, but a member of UNESCO, WHO, and the FAO. Niue is an associated state of New Zealand, and citizens of Niue hold New Zealand Passports. However, Niue is fully self-governing and conducts its own independent diplomatic and foreign relations, with New Zealand acting on Niue's behalf, for issues like defense, only at the request of the Niuean government.
Vatican City – State of the Vatican City Latin: Civitas Vaticana – Status Civitatis Vaticanæ Italian: Città del Vaticano – Stato della Città del Vaticano French: État de la Cité du Vatican	Administered by the Holy See, a sovereign entity with diplomatic ties to 178 states. The Holy See is a permanent observer of the UN in the category of "Non-member State" and a member of ITU, UPU, WIPO and IAEA. Vatican City is governed by officials appointed by the Pope, who is the Bishop of the Archdiocese of Rome and therefore ex officio sovereign of Vatican City. The Holy See also administers a number of extraterritorial properties in Italy and in many other countries (Apostolic Nunciatures).
No United Nations Membership:
Abkhazia – Republic of Abkhazia Abkhaz: Аҧсны – Аҧсны АҳәынҭқарраApsny – Apsny Akheyntkarra Russian: Aбхазия – Республика АбхазияAbkhaziya – Respublika Abkhaziya	Not a UN member. Recognised by Russia, Nauru, Nicaragua, Venezuela, South Ossetia and Transnistria. Claimed in whole by Georgia as the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia.
Nagorno-Karabakh – Nagorno-Karabakh Republic Armenian: Լեռնային Ղարաբաղ – Լեռնային Ղարաբաղի ՀանրապետությունLeṙnalin Ġarabaġ – Leṙnayin Ġarabaġi Hanrapetut‘yun	Not a UN member. Recognised only by Transnistria. Claimed in whole by the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Northern Cyprus – Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus Turkish: Kuzey Kıbrıs – Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti	Not a UN member. Recognised only by Turkey. It was accepted as an observer state of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference under the name of the Turkish Cypriot State since 1979. In addition, the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic regards TRNC as sovereign but Azerbaijan (the sovereign state that Nakhichevan belongs to) has not followed suit. Northern Cyprus is claimed in whole by the Republic of Cyprus.
Palestine – Palestine Arabic: فلسطين Filastīn	Palestine, categorized under "other entities", has observer status at United Nations General Assembly and maintains a permanent observer mission at the UN Headquarters. The unilaterally declared State of Palestine received diplomatic recognition from around 100 countries (exact number unknown due to the equivocal nature of many declarations of acknowledgment). The proclaimed state has no agreed territorial borders, nor effective control on the territory which it proclaimed (unless considering the partially autonomous Palestinian Authority as a realization of the 1988 proclamation). In foreign relations, the State of Palestine is represented by the Palestine Liberation Organization. The Palestinian National Authority is an interim administrative body formed as a result of the Oslo Accords that exercises limited jurisdiction over parts of the West Bank, while the Gaza Strip is controlled by Hamas.
SADR – Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic Arabic: الجمهورية العربية الصحراوية الديمقراطية Al-Jumhūrīya al-`Arabīya as-Sahrāwīya ad-Dīmuqrātīya	Not a UN member. Recognized by 81 other states. It is a founding member of the African Union and the Asian-African Strategic Partnership formed at the 2005 Asian-African Conference. The territories under its control, the so-called Free Zone, are claimed in whole by Morocco as part of its Southern Provinces. In turn, the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic claims the part of the Western Sahara to the west of the Moroccan Wall controlled by Morocco. Its government resides in exile in Tindouf, Algeria.
Somaliland – Republic of Somaliland Somali: Soomaaliland – Jamhuuriyadda Soomaaliland Arabic: ارض الصومال – جمهورية ارض الصومال Ard as-Sūmāl – Jumhūrīyat Ard as-Sūmāl	Not a UN member. Not diplomatically recognized by any other state, claimed in whole by the Somali Republic.
South Ossetia – Republic of South Ossetia Ossetian: Хуссар Ирыстон – Республикæ Хуссар ИрыстонKhussar Iryston – Respublikæ Khussar Iryston Russian: Южная Осетия – Республика Южная ОсетияYuzhnaya Osetiya – Respublika Yuzhnaya Osetiya	Not a UN member. Recognised by Russia, Nicaragua, Nauru, Venezuela, Abkhazia and Transnistria. Claimed in whole by the Republic of Georgia as the Provisional Administrative Entity of South Ossetia.
Taiwan – Republic of China Chinese: 中華民國 Zhōnghuá Mínguó	Not a UN member. UN member prior to 25 October 1971. A state competing for recognition with the People's Republic of China as the government of China since 1949. The Republic of China controls the island of Taiwan and associated islands, Quemoy, Matsu, the Pratas and part of the Spratly Islands, and has not renounced claims over the territory of the PRC and Mongolia. The Republic of China is currently recognised by including the Holy See. The territory of the Republic of China is claimed in whole by the People's Republic of China. The Republic of China participates in the World Health Organization and a number of non-UN international organizations such as the World Trade Organization, International Olympic Committee and others under a variety of pseudonyms, most commonly Chinese Taipei.
Transnistria – Transnistrian Moldovan Republic (Pridnestrovie, Trans-Dniester) Russian: Приднестровье: Приднестровская Молдавская РеспубликаPridnestrovye – Pridnestrovskaya Moldavskaya Respublika Ukrainian: Придністров'я: Придністровська Молдавська РеспублікаPridnistrov'ya – Pridnistrovs'ka Moldavs'ka Respublika Moldovan: Транснистрия – Република Молдовеняскэ НистрянэTransnistria – Republica Moldovenească Nistreană	Not a UN member. Not recognized by any UN-member, but by Abkhazia and South Ossetia. Claimed in whole by the Republic of Moldova as the Territorial Unit of Transnistria.

Criteria for inclusion

This list derives its definition of a state from Article 1 of the Montevideo Convention of 1933. According to the Convention, a state should possess the following qualifications:

• (a) a permanent population
• (b) a defined territory
• (c) government
• (d) capacity to enter into relations with the other states.

In respect of the last qualification, the role of recognition by other states can often be crucial since it implies acceptance into the international community. The list includes all states which are often regarded as satisfying these criteria and claim to be sovereign and independent. However, in many cases, whether an entity satisfies the Montevideo Convention criteria is disputed. It is also important to note that there is a divergence of opinion in international law on whether the Montevideo Convention criteria alone are sufficient qualities of statehood. Links to different theories on this question are provided below.

On the basis of the above criteria, this list includes the following 203 entities:

• 192 member states of the United Nations
• 2 states which are not member states of the United Nations, but are member states of at least one of the UN specialized agencies or of the International Atomic Energy Agency or are a party to the Statute of the International Court of Justice (the Vienna formula organizations):
  • One state, governed by the Holy See (a United Nations permanent observer in the category "Non-member states") and a member of ITU, UPU, WIPO and IAEA: Vatican City
  • One state, a member of IMF, WBG: Kosovo
• 9 states which are neither member states of the United Nations or any of the Vienna formula organizations listed above:
  • One state with diplomatic relations with more than 100 states and informal relations with 25 others, governed by the Palestinian National Authority and the Palestine Liberation Organization (a United Nations permanent observer): Palestine
  • One state, recognized by 81 UN member states, member of the African Union, in partial control of the Western Sahara (listed by the United Nations as a non self-governing territory): the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
  • One state, recognized by 114 United Nations member states and by the ROC, informal relations with six others: Kosovo
  • One state, competing for recognition with another state, currently as the state representing China, but no longer recognised by the United Nations as of 25 October 1971: the Republic of China (ROC; Taiwan)
  • Two states, recognized by four United Nations member states, by Transnistria and by each other: Abkhazia and South Ossetia
  • One state, recognized by one United Nations member state and having informal relations with 19 more: Northern Cyprus
  • One state, recognized by Abkhazia and South Ossetia: Transnistria
  • One state recognized by Transnistria: Nagorno-Karabakh
  • One state not recognized by any other state: Somaliland

Excluded from the list above are the following noteworthy entities that do not satisfy all the qualifications in the Montevideo Convention or which do not claim to be sovereign and independent:

• Antarctica as a whole has no government and no permanent population. Seven states claim portions of Antarctica and five of these have reciprocally recognised one another's claims. These claims, which are regulated by the Antarctic Treaty System, are neither recognised nor disputed by any other signatory state.
• The European Union, a sui generis supranational organisation which currently has 27 member states. The member states have transferred a measure of their legislative, executive, and judicial powers to the institutions of the EU, and as such the EU has some elements of sovereignty, without generally being considered a sovereign state. The European Union does not claim to be a sovereign state and has only limited capacity for relations with other states.
• The Sovereign Military Order of Malta is a United Nations observer in the category "Other entities having received a standing invitation to participate as observers in the sessions and the work of the General Assembly and maintaining permanent offices at Headquarters." The order has bi-lateral diplomatic relations with 104 states, but has no territory other than extraterritorial areas within Rome. Its website asserts that "it has always been recognised by nations as an independent subject of international law." The order's Constitution states: "The Order is a subject of international law and exercises sovereign functions." Although the order frequently asserts its sovereignty, including in its name, it does not claim to be a sovereign state. It lacks a defined territory. As with other embassies, Italy could theoretically break diplomatic relations with the order and oblige the non-Italian members to leave Italian territory. Since all its members are citizens of other states, almost all of them live in their native countries, and those who reside in the order's extraterritorial properites in Rome do so only in connection with their official duties, the order lacks the characteristic of having a permanent population.
• States forming part of a federal union, for which, see: federated state. Such entities do not claim to be independent, as their respective governments have surrendered sovereignty to a federal government.
• Dependent territories that are under the sovereignty of states from the above lists.
• The International Committee of the Red Cross is a nongovernmental organization incorporated under Swiss law with a unique status. Although not a subject of international law, it plays a formal role under the Geneva Conventions as an impartial humanitarian body, and may serve in the same role as a protecting power in times of war.
• Uncontacted peoples who exercise varying degrees of de facto sovereignty over the areas under their control, but either live in societies that cannot be defined as states or whose statuses as such are currently too data deficient to be definitively known.
• Entities considered to be micronations are not included, even though they generally claim to be sovereign and independent, and try to enter into diplomatic relations with states that are listed. It is often up to debate whether a micronation truly controls its claimed territory. The permanent populations of micronations are generally small.

See also

• Constitutive theory of statehood
• Declarative theory of statehood
• List of states with limited recognition
• Gallery of sovereign-state flags
• List of governments-in-exile
• List of international rankings
• List of micronations
• List of statistically superlative countries
• List of territorial disputes
• Lists of sovereign states by year
• Terra nullius
• List of autonomous areas by country
• Table of administrative divisions by country
• Federation
• Federated state
• Associated state

References

• Federal Foreign Office of Germany (22 April 2009). "Amtliche Bezeichnungen ausländischer Staaten in den Landessprachen" (pdf). Government of Germany. Retrieved 2010-07-14.
• "Average Latitude & Longitude of Countries". Mobilgistix, Ltd. 15 June 2008.
• Bissio, Roberto Remo, ed. (1995). The World: A Third World Guide: 1995/96. Montevideo: Instituto del Tercer Mundo. ISBN 9780855982911. OCLC 476299738.
• "Countries or areas, codes and abbreviations". Statistics Division, United Nations. 1 April 2010.
• Davis, Tim (19 February 2009). "World Countries and States List". Timdavis.com.au.
• "Geographic Names" (PDF). Department of Public Information, Cartographic Section, United Nations. 7 September 2000.
• "ISO 3166-1 Country names and code elements". International Organization for Standardization. 2010.
• "List of countries, territories and currencies". Publications Office of the European Union. 4 May 2010.
• Madore, David (3 August 2003). "How many countries are there in the world?". Madore.org.
• "The World Factbook". United States: Central Intelligence Agency. 2010.
• World of Information (Firm), and International Chamber of Commerce (2003). Middle East Review 2003/04: The Economic and Business Report (27th ed.). London: Kogan Page. p. 161. ISBN 9780749440664. OCLC 51992589.

τ *Sovereign states Sovereign states