a capacity to enter into relations with other states.
According to the declarative theory, an entity's statehood is independent of its recognition by other states. By contrast, theconstitutive theory defines a state as a person of international law only if it is recognised as such by other states that are already a member of the international community.[1][2]
Quasi-states often reference either or both doctrines in order to legitimise their claims to statehood. There are, for example, entities which meet the declarative criteria (withde facto partial or complete control over their claimed territory, a government and a permanent population), but whose statehood is not recognised by any other states.Non-recognition is often a result of conflicts with other countries that claim those entities as integral parts of their territory.[3] In other cases, two or more partially recognised states may claim the same territorial area, with each of themde facto in control of a portion of it (for example,North Korea andSouth Korea, or theRepublic of China (Taiwan) and thePeople's Republic of China). Entities that are recognised by only a minority of the world's states usually reference the declarative doctrine to legitimise their claims.[4]
In many situations, international non-recognition is influenced by the presence of a foreign military force in the territory of the contested entity, making the description of the country'sde facto status problematic. The international community can judge this military presence too intrusive, reducing the entity to apuppet state where effectivesovereignty is retained by the foreign power.[5] Historical cases in this sense can be seen inJapanese-ledManchukuo[6] or theGerman-createdSlovak Republic andIndependent State of Croatia before and duringWorld War II. In the 1996 caseLoizidou v. Turkey, theEuropean Court of Human Rights judged Turkey for having exercised authority in the territory ofNorthern Cyprus.[7]
There are 193United Nations (UN)member states, while both theHoly See andPalestine haveobserver state status in the United Nations.[20] However, some countries that fulfill the declarative criteria, are recognised by the large majority of other states and are members of the United Nations are still included in the list here because one or more other states do not recognise their statehood, due to territorial claims or other conflicts.
Some states maintain informal (officially non-diplomatic) relations with states that do not officially recognise them.Taiwan (the Republic of China) is one such state, as it maintains unofficial relations with many other states through itsEconomic and Cultural Offices, which allow regular consular services. This allows Taiwan to have economic relations even with states that do not formally recognise it. A total of 56 states, including Germany,[21] Italy,[22] the United States,[23] and the United Kingdom,[24] maintain some form of unofficial mission in Taiwan.Kosovo,[25]Northern Cyprus,[26]Abkhazia,[27]Transnistria,[27] theSahrawi Republic,[28]Somaliland,[29] andPalestine[30] also host informal diplomatic missions, or maintain special delegations or other informal missions abroad.
United Nations member states
UN member states not recognised by at least one UN member state
The People's Republic of China (PRC), proclaimed in 1949,[31] is the more widely recognised of the two claimant governments ofChina, the other being Taiwan (the Republic of China). The United Nations recognised the ROC as the sole representative of China until 1971, when it decided to give this recognition to the PRC instead (seeUnited Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758). The PRC and the ROC do not recognise each other's statehood, and each enforces its own version of theOne China policy meaning that no state can recognise both of them at the same time.[a] The states that recognise the ROC (11 UN members and theHoly See as of 15 January 2024) regard it as the sole legitimate government of China and therefore do not recognise the PRC.
Taiwan (the Republic of China) considers itself to be the sole legitimate government of all of China, and therefore claims exclusive sovereignty over all territory controlled by the PRC.[34] See also:One China.
The Republic of Cyprus, independent since 1960, is not recognised by one UN member (Turkey) and one non-UN member (Northern Cyprus), due to the ongoingcivil dispute over the island. Turkey does not accept the Republic's rule over the whole island and refers to it as the "Greek Administration of Southern Cyprus".[35][36][37][38][39]
Northern Cyprus claims the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus.
North Korea (officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea), independent since 1948, is not recognised by two UN members,Japan[48] andSouth Korea[49][50].
South Korea considers itself to be the sole legitimate government ofKorea, andclaims all territory controlled by North Korea.[49]
South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea), independent since 1948, is potentially not recognised by one UN member,North Korea.[51][52]
North Korea previously considered itself the sole legitimate government of Korea, however constitutional changes in 2024 reportedly abandoned peaceful reunification as a goal and declared South Korea a "hostile state".[53]
The Cook Islands became a state infree association withNew Zealand in 1965. Although the Cook Islands are fully self-governing and behave as a sovereign state ininternational law, their constitutional status is different from that of a fully independent state, considering that all Cook Islands nationals areNew Zealand citizens, and the country's head of state is theMonarch of New Zealand.[70][71][72] As of 2015, the Cook Islands had establisheddiplomatic relations with 43 states,[73] while the number as of May 2025 is at least65 UN member states, as well as theHoly See,Kosovo,Niue and theEuropean Union. Some countries establishing diplomatic relations such as the United States, have recognized the Cook Islands as a fully sovereign state, while some, such as France, have not.[74][75] The Cook Islands are a member of nineUnited Nations specialized agencies, and theUnited Nations currently classifies the Cook Islands as a "non-member state", a category unique only to it andNiue.[76][77][78][79]
Morocco invaded and annexed most ofWestern Sahara, forcing Spain to withdraw from the territory in 1975.[97] In 1976, thePolisario Front declared the independence of Western Sahara as theSahrawi Arab Democratic Republic (SADR).[98] The SADR is largely agovernment in exile located inAlgeria, which claims the entire territory of Western Sahara, but controls only asmall fraction of it. The SADR is recognised by46 UN member states andSouth Ossetia. 38 other UN member states have recognised the SADR but subsequently retracted or suspended recognition, pending the outcome of areferendum onself-determination.[99][100] The remaining UN member states, includingMorocco, have never recognised the SADR. The SADR is a member of theAfrican Union. United Nations General Assembly Resolution 34/37 recognised the right of the Western Sahara people to self-determination and recognised also the Polisario Front as the representative of the Western Sahara people.[101] Western Sahara is listed on theUnited Nations list of non-self-governing territories. Other than Morocco and theUnited States,[102] no state officially recognises Morocco's annexation of Western Sahara, but some states support theMoroccan autonomy plan. TheArab League supports Morocco's claim over the entire territory of Western Sahara.[103]
Taiwan (formally known as the Republic of China), enjoyed majority recognition as the sole government of China until roughly the late 1950s/1960s, when a majority of UN member states started to gradually switch recognition to thePeople's Republic of China (PRC).[105] The United Nations itself recognised the ROC as the sole representative of China until 1971, when it decided to give this recognition to the PRC instead (seeUnited Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758). The ROC and PRC do not recognise each other's statehood, and each enforces its own version of theOne China policy meaning that no state can recognise both of them at the same time.[a] The ROC is currently recognised by11 UN members and theHoly See. All remaining UN member states (except Bhutan), as well as theCook Islands andNiue, recognise the PRC instead of the ROC and either accept the PRC's territorial claim over Taiwan or take a non-committal position on Taiwan's status. A significant number of PRC-recognising UN member states, as well as theRepublic of Somaliland, nonetheless conduct officially non-diplomatic relations with the ROC, designating it as either "Taipei" or "Taiwan". Since the early 1990s, the ROC has sought separate United Nations membership under a variety of names, including "Taiwan".[106]
Transnistria (officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic) declared its independence in 1991. It is recognised by two non-UN members:Abkhazia andSouth Ossetia.[107]
Somaliland declared its independence in 1991. It claims to be the legal successor to theState of Somaliland, a short lived sovereign state that existed from 26 June 1960 (when theBritish Somaliland Protectorate gained full independence from the United Kingdom) to 1 July 1960 (when the State of Somaliland united with Somalia to form theSomali Republic).[108] It is not officially recognised by any state, though it maintains unofficial relations with several UN member states and theRepublic of China (Taiwan).[109][110][111] Taiwan and Somaliland havemutual representative offices in each other's countries, similarly to how Taiwan conducts relations with other countries that do not recognize it.[112][113] Since 2023 the state has beenpartially occupied by Pro-Somalia groups and administrations, including the autonomousSomali states ofPuntland and theNorth East State of Somalia.[114][115][116]
Those areas undergoing currentcivil wars and other situations with problems over government succession, regardless of temporary alignment withthe inclusion criteria (e.g. by receiving recognition as state or legitimate government), where the conflict is still in its active phase, the situation is too rapidly changing and no relatively stablequasi-states have emerged yet.
Entities considered to bemicronations, even if they are recognised by another micronation. Even though micronations generally claim to be sovereign and independent, it is often debatable whether a micronation truly controls its claimed territory.[c] For this reason, micronations are usually not considered of geopolitical relevance. For a list of micronations, seelist of micronations.
Some states can be slow to establish relations with new UN member states and thus do not explicitly recognise them, despite having no dispute and sometimes favorable relations. These are excluded from the list. Examples includeCroatia[135] andMontenegro.[136]
^abBoth the Republic of China and the People's Republic of Chinaofficially claim to represent the whole of China, statingChina is a single sovereign entity encompassing both the area controlled by the PRC and the area controlled by the ROC. Neither the PRC nor the ROC officially recognise each other's claim to statehood, and they compete for diplomatic recognition as the only legitimate representative of China among other states. Historically, both the PRC and the ROC have broken off diplomatic relations with any state engaging in diplomatic relations or claiming to recognise the other, though the ROC has in some instances accepted dual recognition since it transitioned to democracy in the 1990s. However, as of 2021 no state officially recognises both the ROC and the PRC.[32][33]
^It is far from certain that micronations, which are generally of minuscule size, have sovereign control over their claimed territories, contrasted with the mere disregard and indifference toward micronations' assertions by the states from which they allege to have seceded. By not deeming such declarations (and other acts of the micronation) important enough to react in any way, these states generally consider micronations to be private property and their claims as unofficial private announcements of individuals, who remain subject to the laws of the states in which their properties are located.[134]
References
^Grant, Thomas D.,The recognition of states: law and practice in debate and evolution (Westport, Connecticut: Praeger, 1999), chapter 1.
^Lemkin, Raphaël (2008) [1944].Axis Rule in Occupied Europe: Laws of Occupation, Analysis of Government, Proposals for Redress. The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd. p. 11.ISBN978-1-58477-901-8. Retrieved30 June 2019.The creation of puppet states or of puppet governments does not give them any special status under international law in the occupied territory. Therefore the puppet governments and puppet states have no greater rights in the occupied territory than the occupant himself. Their actions should be considered as actions of the occupant and hence subject to the limitations of the Hague Regulations.
^Stamouli, Nektaria (8 December 2023)."EU must accept there won't be a united Cyprus, Turkish Cypriot leader says".POLITICO. Retrieved31 August 2025.Ankara does not recognize the Republic of Cyprus, an EU member state that is otherwise recognized internationally as the sole sovereign authority over the whole island.
^US Library of Congress (7 October 2000)."World War II and Korea". Country Studies.Archived from the original on 10 March 2016. Retrieved28 February 2008.
^abStaff writers (20 February 2008)."Palestinians 'may declare state'". BBC News.Archived from the original on 25 August 2011. Retrieved22 January 2011.:"Saeb Erekat, disagreed arguing that the Palestine Liberation Organisation had already declared independence in 1988. "Now we need real independence, not a declaration. We need real independence by ending the occupation. We are not Kosovo. We are under Israeli occupation and for independence we need to acquire independence".
^Shelley, Toby (1988). "Spotlight on Morocco".West Africa (3712–3723: 5–31 December). London: West Africa Publishing Company Ltd: 2282. "... the SADR was one of the first countries to recognise the state of Palestine."
^"Arab States: Palestine". United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization.Archived from the original on 4 January 2012. Retrieved3 December 2011.
^Israel's Disengagement Plan: Renewing the Peace ProcessArchived 3 February 2016 at theWayback Machine: "Israel will guard the perimeter of the Gaza Strip, continue to control Gaza air space, and continue to patrol the sea off the Gaza coast. ... Israel will continue to maintain its essential military presence to prevent arms smuggling along the border between the Gaza Strip and Egypt (Philadelphi Route), until the security situation and cooperation with Egypt permit an alternative security arrangement."
^"About Cook Islands".New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade. 11 February 2021.Archived from the original on 25 April 2023. Retrieved21 April 2023.
^"Kosovo"(PDF). Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 16 February 2008. Retrieved25 June 2010.
^Affairs, New Zealand Ministry of Foreign (7 November 2022)."Niue".New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.Archived from the original on 21 April 2023. Retrieved21 April 2023.
^Clogg, Rachel (2001)."Abkhazia: Ten Years On"(PDF). Conciliation Resources. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 16 February 2016. Retrieved26 February 2008.
^"Somaliland profile". BBC News. 11 July 2011.Archived from the original on 16 December 2020. Retrieved8 December 2023.
^Hagi, Mohamed (1 May 2024)."A Future Outlook: Prospects for Somaliland-Taiwan Relations".Global Taiwan Institute. Retrieved25 July 2024.It is an official relationship in numerous respects, but not diplomatic. Put another way, the bilateral partnership is deemed official due to the signatures of two foreign ministers. On the other hand, it differs from Taiwan's relationships with its more formal diplomatic allies.
^Asia West and Africa Department."Republic of Somaliland". Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China. Archived fromthe original on 10 December 2022. Retrieved28 February 2023.
^"La Orden de Malta y su Naturaleza Jurídica".Venezuela Analitica. 1 May 1999.Archived from the original on 1 August 2015. Retrieved1 August 2015.English language translation "The Order of Malta, within the limits that are compatible with its actual position as a subject deprived of territory, is in the international community, a sovereign entity on par with the States, and the Prince Grand Master is comparable, from the point of view of international law, to the Heads of State."
^Shaw, Malcolm NathanInternational Law Fifth Edition Cambridge University Press 2003ISBN0-521-82473-7 p. 218Searchable textArchived 13 April 2023 at theWayback Machine, "The Italian Court of Cassation in 1935 recognised the international personality of the Order, noting that 'the modern theory of the subjects of international law recognises a number of collective units whose composition is independent of the nationality of their constituent members and whose scope transcends by virtue of their universal character the territorial confines of any single state.' (Nanni v. Pace and the Sovereign Order of Malta 8 AD, p. 2.)"
^"Reconócese a la Soberana Orden Militar de Malta como Entidad Internacionál Independiente".Boletín Oficiál de la República Argentina, Año LIX, Número 16.92. Buenos Aires. 19 June 1951. p. 1.Archived from the original on 12 March 2016. Retrieved11 February 2016. "The Senate and Chamber of Deputies of Argentina, in Congress assembled, enact as LAW: Article 1 – The Sovereign Military Order of Malta is hereby recognized as an international independent entity."
^abArocha, Magaly (May 1999)."La Orden de Malta y su Naturaleza Jurídica (The Order of Malta and Its Legal Nature)". Caracas, Distrito Capital, Venezuela: Analítica.com.Archived from the original on 1 August 2015. Retrieved1 October 2012.English language translation "[T]he clear territorial separation of sovereign areas that exists between the Italian State and the State of Vatican City does not exist between the Order of Malta and the Italian State, but neither can it be said that the treatment given to the headquarters of the Order (Aventine, Via Condotti) is, simply, that reserved for the headquarters of diplomatic missions accredited to the Italian State. In fact, the headquarters of the Order have diplomatic extraterritoriality (authoritarian acts of any kind – executive, acts of inspection, judicial – cannot take place inside), but in addition, the Italian State recognizes the exercise, in the headquarters, of the prerogatives of sovereignty. This means that Italian sovereignty and Maltese sovereignty coexist without overlapping, because the Order exercises sovereign functions in a wider area than occurs in the diplomatic missions of the States for, although [those diplomatic missions] enjoy extraterritoriality, the guarantees deriving from the privilege of immunity are constrained to a purely administrative area; the Order, instead, makes use of extraterritoriality to meet the very acts of sovereign self-determination that are the same as the States (legislative, judicial, administrative, financial acts)."
^Jüde, Johannes (2017). "Contesting borders? The formation of Iraqi Kurdistan's de facto state".International Affairs.93 (4):847–863.doi:10.1093/ia/iix125.ISSN0020-5850.
^Court, Mireille; Den Hond, Chris (1 September 2017)."Experiment in self-rule in Rojava".Le Monde diplomatique.Archived from the original on 18 December 2023. Retrieved18 December 2023.
Wertz, Daniel; Oh, JJ; Kim, Insung (August 2016).Issue Brief: DPRK Diplomatic Relations(PDF). The National Committee on North Korea. Archived fromthe original(PDF) on 28 December 2016. Retrieved19 January 2017.
