The following is a list providing an overview of sovereign states around the world with information on their status and recognition of their sovereignty.
The 205 listed states can be divided into three categories based on membership within the United Nations System: 193 UN member states, two UN General Assembly non-member observer states, and ten other states. The sovereignty dispute column indicates states having undisputed sovereignty (190 states, of which there are 189 UN member states and one UN General Assembly non-member observer state), states having disputed sovereignty (13 states, of which there are four UN member states, one UN General Assembly non-member observer state, and eight de facto states), and states having a special political status (two states, both in free association with New Zealand).
Compiling a list such as this can be complicated and controversial, 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 of this list, please see the criteria for inclusion section below. The list is intended to include entities that have been recognised as having de facto status as sovereign states, and inclusion should not be seen as an endorsement of any specific claim to statehood in legal terms.
Criteria for inclusion
The dominant customary international law standard of statehood is the declarative theory of statehood, which was codified by the Montevideo Convention of 1933. The Convention defines the state as a person of international law if it "possess[es] the following qualifications: (a) a permanent population; (b) a defined territory; (c) government; and (d) a capacity to enter into relations with the other states" so long as it was not "obtained by force whether this consists in the employment of arms, in threatening diplomatic representations, or in any other effective coercive measure".
Debate exists on the degree to which recognition should be included as a criterion of statehood. The declarative theory of statehood argues that statehood is purely objective and recognition of a state by other states is irrelevant. On the other end of the spectrum, the constitutive theory of statehood defines a state as a person under international law only if it is recognised as sovereign by other states. For the purposes of this list, included are all polities that consider themselves sovereign states (through a declaration of independence or some other means) and either: are often regarded as satisfying the declarative theory of statehood, or are recognised as a sovereign state by at least one UN member state
In some cases, there is a divergence of opinion over the interpretation of the first point, and whether an entity satisfies it is disputed. Unique political entities which fail to meet the classification of a sovereign state are considered proto-states.
On the basis of the above criteria, this list includes the following 205 entities: 204 states recognised by at least one UN member state One state (Transnistria) that satisfies the declarative theory of statehood and is recognised only by non-UN member states
The table includes bullets in the right-hand column representing entities that are either not sovereign states or have a close association to another sovereign state. It also includes subnational areas where the sovereignty of the titular state is limited by an international agreement. Taken together, these include: Entities that are in a free association relationship with another state Two entities controlled by Pakistan which are neither sovereign states, dependent territories, nor part of another state: Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan Dependent territories of another state, as well as areas that exhibit many characteristics of dependent territories according to the dependent territory page Subnational entities created by international agreements
List of states UN member states and General Assembly observer states
Short name and/orformal name Membership within the UN System Sovereignty dispute Further information on status and recognition of sovereignty A – Islamic Emirate of AfghanistanA UN member stateA None The ruling Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, in power since 2021, has not been recognised by the United Nations or any other state except Russia. The United Nations decided in 2022 that the defunct had stopped being the official representative of Afghanistan at the United Nations on 15 August 2021, when it ceased functioning, though has not recognised the Islamic Emirate or any other representative. Most countries still recognise the Islamic Republic. – Republic of AlbaniaA UN member stateA None – People's Democratic Republic of AlgeriaA UN member stateA None – Principality of AndorraA UN member stateA None Andorra is a co-principality in which the office of head of state is jointly held ex officio by the French president and the bishop of the Roman Catholic diocese of Urgell, who himself is appointed by the Pope. – Republic of AngolaA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None Antigua and Barbuda is a Commonwealth realm with one autonomous region, Barbuda. – Argentine RepublicA UN member stateA None Argentina is a federation of 23 provinces and one autonomous city. – Republic of ArmeniaA UN member stateA None – Commonwealth of AustraliaA UN member stateA None Australia is a Commonwealth realm and a federation of both states and territories. There are six states, three internal territories, six external territories and one claimed Antarctic external territory. The external territories of Australia are:
– Republic of AustriaA UN member stateA None Member of the European Union (EU). Austria is a federation of nine states. – Republic of AzerbaijanA UN member stateA None Azerbaijan contains one autonomous region, Nakhchivan. B – Commonwealth of The BahamasA UN member stateA None The Bahamas is a Commonwealth realm. – Kingdom of BahrainA UN member stateA None – People's Republic of BangladeshA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None – Republic of BelarusA UN member stateA None Many states rescinded their recognition of President Alexander Lukashenko following the disputed 2020 election. Lithuania currently recognises Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's Coordination Council as the legitimate government of Belarus. – Kingdom of BelgiumA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. Belgium is a federation of three linguistic communities and three regions.A UN member stateA None Belize is a Commonwealth realm. – Republic of BeninA UN member stateA None – Kingdom of BhutanA UN member stateA None – Plurinational State of BoliviaA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None Bosnia and Herzegovina has two constituent entities:
and Brčko District, a self-governing administrative district. – Republic of BotswanaA UN member stateA None – Federative Republic of BrazilA UN member stateA None Brazil is a federation of 26 states and one federal district. – Brunei DarussalamA UN member stateA None – Republic of BulgariaA UN member stateA None Member of the EU.A UN member stateA None – Republic of BurundiA UN member stateA None C – Kingdom of CambodiaA UN member stateA None – Republic of CameroonA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None Canada is a Commonwealth realm and a federation of 10 provinces and three territories. – Republic of Cabo VerdeA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None – Republic of ChadA UN member stateA None – Republic of ChileA UN member stateA None Chile has two special territories, Easter Island and Juan Fernández Islands. – People's Republic of ChinaA UN member statePartially unrecognised. . China contains five autonomous regions, Guangxi, Inner Mongolia, Ningxia, Tibet, and Xinjiang. Additionally, it has sovereignty over two Special Administrative Regions:
China claims, but does not control, Taiwan, which is governed by a rival administration (the Republic of China) that claims all of China as its territory.
China is not recognised by UN member states and Vatican City, which all recognise the Republic of China (Taiwan) instead. – Republic of ColombiaA UN member stateA None – Union of the ComorosA UN member stateA None Comoros is a federation of three islands.A UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None – Republic of Costa RicaA UN member stateA None – Republic of CroatiaA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. – Republic of CubaA UN member stateA None – Republic of CyprusA UN member stateNot recognised by Turkey. Member of the EU. The northeastern part of the island is the de facto state of Northern Cyprus.
Cyprus is not recognised by Turkey due to the Cyprus problem, with Turkey recognising Northern Cyprus.A UN member stateA None Member of the EU. D – Kingdom of DenmarkA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. The Kingdom of Denmark includes two self-governing territories:
The metropolitan territory of Denmark, the Faroe Islands and Greenland form the three constituent countries of the Kingdom. The Kingdom of Denmark as a whole is a member of the EU, but EU law (in most cases) does not apply to the Faroe Islands and Greenland. See Greenland and the European Union, and Faroe Islands and the European Union. – Republic of DjiboutiA UN member stateA None – Commonwealth of DominicaA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None E – Republic of EcuadorA UN member stateA None – Arab Republic of EgyptA UN member stateA None – Republic of El SalvadorA UN member stateA None – Republic of Equatorial GuineaA UN member stateA None – State of EritreaA UN member stateA None – Republic of EstoniaA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. – Kingdom of EswatiniA UN member stateA None – Federal Democratic Republic of EthiopiaA UN member stateA None Ethiopia is a federation of 12 regions and two chartered cities. F – Republic of FijiA UN member stateA None Fiji contains one autonomous region, Rotuma. – Republic of FinlandA UN member stateA None Member of the EU.
is a neutral and demilitarised autonomous region of Finland. – French RepublicA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. France contains five overseas regions/departments; French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Mayotte, and Réunion. France also includes eight overseas territories:
G – Gabonese RepublicA UN member stateA None – Republic of The GambiaA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None Georgia contains two autonomous republics, Adjara and Abkhazia. In Abkhazia and South Ossetia, de facto states have been formed. – Federal Republic of GermanyA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. Germany is a federation of 16 states. – Republic of GhanaA UN member stateA None – Hellenic RepublicA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. Greece contains one autonomous area, Mount Athos.Constitution of Greece, Art. 105.A UN member stateA None Grenada is a Commonwealth realm. – Republic of GuatemalaA UN member stateA None – Republic of GuineaA UN member stateA None – Republic of Guinea-BissauA UN member stateA None – Co-operative Republic of GuyanaA UN member stateA None H – Republic of HaitiA UN member stateA None – Republic of HondurasA UN member stateA NoneA UN member stateA None Member of the EU. I A UN member stateA None – Republic of IndiaA UN member stateA None India is a federation of 28 states and eight union territories. – Republic of IndonesiaA UN member stateA None Indonesia has nine autonomous provinces: Aceh, Central Papua, Highland Papua, Jakarta, Papua, South Papua, Southwest Papua, West Papua, and Yogyakarta. – Islamic Republic of IranA UN member stateA None – Republic of IraqA UN member stateA None Iraq is a federation of 19 governorates, four of which make up the autonomous Kurdistan Region.A UN member stateA None Member of the EU. – State of IsraelA UN member statePartially unrecognised.