View source for List of states with limited recognition

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[[File:Limited Recognition States.svg|thumb|upright=1.8|
{{legend|#C74355|UN member states that at least one other UN member state does not recognise}}
{{legend|#F8CD44|Non-UN member states recognised by at least one UN member state}}
{{legend|#246788|Non-UN member states recognised only by other non-UN member states or not recognized by any other state}}
]]

A number of [[polity|polities]] have declared independence and sought [[diplomatic recognition]] from the [[international community]] as [[sovereign state]]s, but have not been universally recognized as such. These entities often have ''[[de facto]]'' control of their territory. [[List of historical unrecognized states|A number of such entities]] have existed in the past.

There are two traditional theories used to indicate how a sovereign state comes into being. The [[declarative theory]] (codified in the 1933 [[Montevideo Convention]]) defines a state as a [[public international law|person in international law]] if it meets the following criteria:

# a defined territory
# a permanent population
# a government, and
# 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, the [[constitutive 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.<ref>Grant, Thomas D., ''The recognition of states: law and practice in debate and evolution'' (Westport, Connecticut: Praeger, 1999), chapter 1.</ref><ref name="RecognitionofStates">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EWgEv1Qq2TwC&pg=PA64|title=Recognition in International Law|last1=Lauterpacht|first1=Hersch|page=64|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|isbn=9781107609433|year=2012|access-date=19 January 2018|archive-date=15 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230115130619/https://books.google.com/books?id=EWgEv1Qq2TwC&pg=PA64|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Quasi-state]]s often reference either or both doctrines in order to legitimise their claims to statehood. There are, for example, entities which meet the declarative criteria (with ''[[de 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.<ref name="Carnegie">{{cite web | title=Introduction: The Strange Endurance of De Facto States | website=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace | date=3 December 2018 | url=https://carnegieendowment.org/2018/12/03/introduction-strange-endurance-of-de-facto-states-pub-77841 | access-date=12 October 2023}}{{dead link|date=February 2025|bot=medic}}{{cbignore|bot=medic}}</ref> In other cases, two or more partially recognised states may claim the same territorial area, with each of them ''de facto'' in control of a portion of it (for example, [[North Korea]] and [[South Korea]], or the [[Taiwan|Republic of China]] (Taiwan) and the [[China|People'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.<ref name="Grzybowski 2017">{{cite journal | last=Grzybowski | first=Janis | title=To Be or Not to Be: The Ontological Predicament of State Creation in International Law | journal=European Journal of International Law | publisher=Oxford University Press (OUP) | volume=28 | issue=2 | year=2017 | issn=0938-5428 | doi=10.1093/ejil/chx031 | pages=409–432| doi-access=free }}</ref>

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's ''de facto'' status problematic. The international community can judge this military presence too intrusive, reducing the entity to a [[puppet state]] where effective [[sovereignty]] is retained by the foreign power.<ref name="Lemkin2008">
{{cite book
 | last = Lemkin|first= Raphaël|author-link= Raphael Lemkin
 | title = Axis Rule in Occupied Europe: Laws of Occupation, Analysis of Government, Proposals for Redress
 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=y0in2wOY-W0C&pg=PA11
 | access-date = 30 June 2019 |year= 2008
 | publisher= The Lawbook Exchange, Ltd.
 | isbn = 978-1-58477-901-8|page= 11 | orig-year = 1944
 | quote = 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.
}}
</ref> Historical cases in this sense can be seen in [[Empire of Japan|Japanese]]-led [[Manchukuo]]<ref name="Middlebush 1934 pp. 677–683">{{cite journal | last=Middlebush | first=Frederick A. | title=The Effect of the Non-Recognition of Manchukuo | journal=American Political Science Review | publisher=Cambridge University Press (CUP) | volume=28 | issue=4 | year=1934 | issn=0003-0554 | doi=10.2307/1947199 | pages=677–683| jstor=1947199 | s2cid=147030868 }}</ref> or the [[Nazi Germany|German]]-created [[Slovak Republic (1939–1945)|Slovak Republic]] and [[Independent State of Croatia]] before and during [[World War II]]. In the 1996 case ''[[Loizidou v. Turkey]]'', the [[European Court of Human Rights]] judged Turkey for having exercised authority in the territory of [[Northern Cyprus]].<ref name="Rudolf 1997 pp. 532–537">{{cite journal | last=Rudolf | first=Beate | title=Loizidou v. Turkey (Merits) | journal=American Journal of International Law | publisher=Cambridge University Press (CUP) | volume=91 | issue=3 | year=1997 | issn=0002-9300 | doi=10.2307/2954189 | pages=532–537| jstor=2954189 | s2cid=228739345 }}</ref>

There are also entities that do not have control over any territory or do not unequivocally meet the declarative criteria for statehood but have been recognised to exist as sovereign entities by at least one other state. Historically, this has happened in the case of the [[Holy See]] (1870–1929); [[Estonia]], [[Latvia]], and [[Lithuania]] (during [[Occupation of the Baltic states|Soviet annexation]]);<ref>{{cite book |title=Illegal annexation and state continuity: the case of the incorporation of the Baltic states by the USSR |last=Mälksoo |first=Lauri |year=2003 |publisher=M. Nijhoff Publishers |isbn=978-90-411-2177-6 |page=76 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=p5w6AQAAIAAJ |quote=incorporation into the Soviet Union in 1940 took place against the will of the population, and was never recognised de jure by most countries |access-date=12 October 2023 |archive-date=17 January 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230117153520/https://books.google.com/books?id=p5w6AQAAIAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Palestine]] at the time of its declaration of independence in 1988.<ref name="q044">{{cite web | last=Daraghmeh | first=Mohammed | title=Palestinian official suggests a Kosovo-like declaration of independence | website=Statesboro Herald | date=2018-05-21 | url=https://www.statesboroherald.com/local/associated-press/palestinian-official-suggests-a-kosovo-like-declaration-of-independence/ | access-date=2024-09-29}}</ref> The [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]] is [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta#International status|currently in this position]]. See [[list of governments in exile]] for unrecognised governments without control over the territory claimed.

==Criteria==
{{further|Country#Statehood}}

State practice relating to the recognition of a country typically falls somewhere between the ''[[Sovereign state#Declarative theory|declarative theory]]'' and ''[[Sovereign state#Constitutive theory|constitutive theory]]'' approaches.<ref>{{cite book |title=International law |url=https://archive.org/details/internationallaw00shaw_380 |url-access=limited |first1=Malcolm Nathan |last1=Shaw |year=2003 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |page=[https://archive.org/details/internationallaw00shaw_380/page/n511 369] |edition=5th |isbn=978-0-521-53183-2 }}</ref><ref name="Cohen 1961 p. 1127">{{cite journal | last=Cohen | first=Rosalyn | title=The Concept of Statehood in United Nations Practice | journal=University of Pennsylvania Law Review | volume=109 | issue=8 | date=1961 | pages=1127–1171 | doi=10.2307/3310588 | jstor=3310588 | s2cid=56273534 | url=https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/penn_law_review/vol109/iss8/4 | access-date=26 January 2024 | archive-date=19 January 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240119201855/https://scholarship.law.upenn.edu/penn_law_review/vol109/iss8/4/ | url-status=live  | issn=0041-9907| url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="Kelsen 1941 pp. 605–617">{{cite journal | last=Kelsen | first=Hans | title=Recognition in International Law: Theoretical Observations | journal=The American Journal of International Law | publisher=American Society of International Law | volume=35 | issue=4 | year=1941 | issn=0002-9300 | jstor=2192561 | pages=605–617 | doi=10.2307/2192561 | s2cid=147309779 | url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/2192561 | access-date=18 January 2024 | archive-date=18 January 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118213745/https://www.jstor.org/stable/2192561 | url-status=live | url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="Lauterpacht 1944 pp. 385–458">{{cite journal | last=Lauterpacht | first=H. | title=Recognition of States in International Law | journal=The Yale Law Journal | publisher=The Yale Law Journal Company, Inc. | volume=53 | issue=3 | year=1944 | issn=0044-0094 | jstor=792830 | pages=385–458 | doi=10.2307/792830 | url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/792830 | access-date=18 January 2024 | archive-date=18 January 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240118213745/https://www.jstor.org/stable/792830 | url-status=live | url-access=subscription }}</ref><ref name="Anon. x863">{{cite web
 | title=Principles of the Recognition of States
 | url=https://openyls.law.yale.edu/bitstream/handle/20.500.13051/13240/27_53YaleLJ385_1943_1944_.pdf?sequence=2
 | access-date=18 January 2024
| archive-date=18 March 2024
| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240318013739/https://openyls.law.yale.edu/bitstream/handle/20.500.13051/13240/27_53YaleLJ385_1943_1944_.pdf?sequence=2
 | url-status=live
 }}</ref>

The criteria for inclusion on this list are limited to [[polity|polities]] that claim [[sovereignty]], lack recognition from at least one [[member states of the United Nations|UN member state]], and either:<ref name="Bedjaoui 1991 p. 47]">{{cite book | last=Bedjaoui | first=M. | title=International Law: Achievements and Prospects | publisher=Springer Netherlands | series=Democracy and power | year=1991 | isbn=978-92-3-102716-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jrTsNTzcY7EC&pg=PA47 | access-date=23 January 2024 | page=47] | archive-date=14 November 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221114113127/https://books.google.com/books?id=jrTsNTzcY7EC&lpg=PA47&client&pg=PA47 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Seguin 2011 f032">{{cite web | last=Seguin | first=Denis | title=What makes a country? | website=The Globe and Mail | date=29 July 2011 | url=https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/what-makes-a-country/article595868/ | access-date=24 January 2024 | archive-date=24 January 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240124003740/https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/what-makes-a-country/article595868/ | url-status=live }}</ref>

* satisfy the declarative theory of statehood, ''or''<ref name="Anon. e743">{{cite web
 | title= Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States
 | url= https://www.ilsa.org/Jessup/Jessup15/Montevideo%20Convention.pdf
 | access-date= 18 January 2024
| archive-date= 14 January 2024
| archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20240114065544/https://www.ilsa.org/Jessup/Jessup15/Montevideo%20Convention.pdf
 | url-status= live
 }}</ref><ref name="Encyclopedia Britannica 1999 f033">{{cite web | title=States, Sovereignty, Treaties | website=Encyclopædia Britannica | date=26 July 1999 | url=https://www.britannica.com/topic/international-law/States-in-international-law | access-date=18 January 2024 | archive-date=30 April 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220430152154/https://www.britannica.com/topic/international-law/States-in-international-law | url-status=live }}</ref>
* are [[diplomatic recognition|recognized]] (constitutive theory) as a state by at least one UN member state.<ref name="academic.oup.com s696">{{Cite book| last1=Crawford | first1=James | title=The Creation of States in International Law | chapter=Statehood and Recognition | date=2007 | pages=3–36 | doi=10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199228423.003.0001 | isbn=978-0-19-922842-3 | chapter-url=https://doi.org/10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199228423.003.0001 }}</ref>

==Background==
[[File:Somaliland UCID elections rally.jpg|thumb|Women in [[Somaliland]] wearing the colors of the [[Flag of Somaliland|Somaliland flag]]]]

There are {{UNnum}} [[United Nations]] (UN) [[member states of the United Nations|member states]], while both the [[Holy See]] and [[Palestine]] have [[United Nations General Assembly observers|observer state status]] in the United Nations.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/members/nonmembers.shtml|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070209033633/http://www.un.org/members/nonmembers.shtml|archive-date=9 February 2007 |title=Non-member State |publisher=United Nations |access-date=25 June 2010}}</ref> 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 its [[Taipei Economic and Cultural Representative Office|Economic 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,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/en/Laenderinformationen/LaenderReiseinformationenA-Z.jsp |title=Germany – Countries A to Z |publisher=Auswaertiges-amt.de |access-date=25 June 2010 |archive-date=28 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100728191255/http://www.auswaertiges-amt.de/diplo/en/Laenderinformationen/LaenderReiseinformationenA-Z.jsp |url-status=live }}</ref> Italy,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.esteri.it/MAE/Templates/SediTemplate.aspx?NRMODE=Published&NRNODEGUID=|title=Ambasciate Consolati e Uffici di promozione|publisher=Esteri.it |access-date=29 April 2011}}{{Dead link|date=February 2016}}</ref> the United States,<ref>[[U.S. Department of State]] [http://www.usembassy.gov/#Taiwan Websites of U.S. Embassies, Consulates, and Diplomatic Missions] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210506050404/http://www.usembassy.gov/#Taiwan |date=6 May 2021 }} Retrieved 3 February 2011</ref> and the United Kingdom,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/find-an-embassy/?l=T |title=Find an Embassy |publisher=Fco.gov.uk |date=14 March 2008 |access-date=25 June 2010 |archive-date=26 July 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100726163107/http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/find-an-embassy/?l=T |url-status=live }}</ref> maintain some form of unofficial mission in Taiwan. [[Kosovo]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mfa-ks.net/?page=2,50 |title=Foreign Missions in Kosovo |publisher=Government of [[Kosovo]], Ministry of Foreign Affairs |access-date=4 November 2010 |archive-date=24 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180824122839/http://www.mfa-ks.net/?page=2,50 |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Northern Cyprus]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.trncpio.org/trncpio/en/index.asp?sayfa=cms&dmid=0&cmsid=170&ssid=256489879|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728130326/http://www.trncpio.org/trncpio/en/index.asp?sayfa=cms&dmid=0&cmsid=170&ssid=256489879|archive-date=28 July 2011 |title=Representative Offices Abroad |publisher=Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, Public Information Office |access-date=4 November 2010}}</ref> [[Abkhazia]],<ref name="AbkhazRepresentation">{{cite web|url=http://mfaapsny.org/en/foreign-policy/abkhazia/|title=Abkhazia in the system of international relations|publisher=Government of Abkhazia, Ministry of Foreign Affairs|access-date=12 December 2017|archive-date=24 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224062010/http://mfaapsny.org/en/foreign-policy/abkhazia/|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Transnistria]],<ref name="AbkhazRepresentation"/> the [[Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic|Sahrawi Republic]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://76.162.150.8/relaciones_dib.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810223605/http://76.162.150.8/relaciones_dib.htm|title=Pagina nueva 1|archive-date=10 August 2011}}</ref> [[Somaliland]],<ref>{{cite web |url=http://somalilandgov.com/country-profile/embasies/ |title=Contacts and addresses of the Somaliland Representative Offices around the world |publisher=Government of Somaliland |access-date=1 August 2015 |archive-date=24 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210224062031/https://somalilandgov.com/country-profile/embasies/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Palestinian National Authority|Palestine]]<ref name="WebGaza.net">{{cite web |url=http://www.webgaza.net/resources/Embassies_of_Palestine.htm |title=Embassies, Missions, General and Special Delegations of Palestine abroad |publisher=WebGaza.net |access-date=4 November 2010 |archive-date=26 June 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110626061410/http://www.webgaza.net/resources/Embassies_of_Palestine.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> also host informal diplomatic missions, or maintain special delegations or other informal missions abroad.

==United Nations member and observer states==
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+UN member states not recognised by at least one UN member state
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|China}}<br><small>(PRC)</small>
| 1949
| The People's Republic of China (PRC), proclaimed in 1949,<ref>{{cite web|access-date=28 February 2008|url=http://www.hkhrm.org.hk/english/law/const01.html|title=Constitution of the People's Republic of China|publisher=International Human Rights Treaties and Documents Database|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20000116042442/http://hkhrm.org.hk/english/law/const01.html|archive-date=16 January 2000}}</ref> is the more widely recognised of the two claimant governments of [[China]], 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 (see [[United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758]]). The PRC and the ROC do not recognise each other's statehood, and each enforces its own version of the [[One China|One China policy]] meaning that no state can recognise both of them at the same time.{{efn|name=China|Both the Republic of China and the People's Republic of China [[1992 Consensus|officially claim to represent the whole of China]], stating [[Greater China|China]] 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.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.routledge.com/Routledge-Handbook-of-State-Recognition/Visoka-Doyle-Newman/p/book/9780815354871|title=Routledge Handbook of State Recognition|website=Routledge & CRC Press|access-date=19 July 2021|archive-date=19 July 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210719144319/https://www.routledge.com/Routledge-Handbook-of-State-Recognition/Visoka-Doyle-Newman/p/book/9780815354871|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/07/world/asia/07iht-costa.1.6036203.html?_r=0|title=Taiwan cuts ties with Costa Rica over recognition for China|newspaper=The New York Times|date=7 June 2007|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=18 July 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160718033818/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/07/world/asia/07iht-costa.1.6036203.html?_r=0|url-status=live}}</ref>}} The states that recognise the ROC ({{Numrec|ROC|alt=UN members and the [[Holy See]] as of|asof=E}}) regard it as the sole legitimate government of China and therefore do not recognise the PRC.
| {{flag|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.<ref name="Horton 2019">{{cite web | last=Horton | first=Chris | title=Taiwan's Status Is a Geopolitical Absurdity | website=The Atlantic | date=8 July 2019 | url=https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2019/07/taiwans-status-geopolitical-absurdity/593371/ | access-date=25 September 2023 | archive-date=16 June 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616061553/https://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2019/07/taiwans-status-geopolitical-absurdity/593371/ | url-status=live }}</ref> See also: [[One China]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of China|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of China|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in China|to]])<hr />[[Dates of establishment of diplomatic relations with the People's Republic of China|PRC's diplomatic relations dates of establishment]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Cyprus}}
| 1960
| 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 ongoing [[Cyprus problem|civil 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".<ref>European Parliament Directorate-General External Policies Policy Department [http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meetdocs/2004_2009/documents/nt/553/553930/553930en.pdf "Turkey and the problem of the recognition of Cyprus"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121019010705/http://www.europarl.europa.eu/meetdocs/2004_2009/documents/nt/553/553930/553930en.pdf |date=19 October 2012 }} 20 January 2005 Retrieved 3 February 2011</ref><ref>{{cite web|access-date=28 February 2008|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/cyprus/|date=28 February 2008|work=CIA World Factbook|title=Cyprus|publisher=[[Central Intelligence Agency]]|archive-date=9 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210109202203/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/cyprus/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=1 October 2005 |title=Cyprus exists without Turkey's recognition: president |url=http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-10/01/content_3570894.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060313165152/http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/2005-10/01/content_3570894.htm |archive-date=13 March 2006 |access-date=7 March 2008 |agency=Xinhua News Agency}}</ref><ref>European Parliament's Committee on Foreign
Affairs [http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2008/389024/EXPO-AFET_NT(2008)389024_EN.pdf "The influence of Turkish military forces on political agenda-setting in Turkey, analysed on the basis of the Cyprus question"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160222210404/http://www.europarl.europa.eu/RegData/etudes/note/join/2008/389024/EXPO-AFET_NT(2008)389024_EN.pdf |date=22 February 2016 }} 18 February 2008 Retrieved 3 February 2011</ref><ref name="x896">{{cite web | last=Stamouli | first=Nektaria | title=EU must accept there won’t be a united Cyprus, Turkish Cypriot leader says | website=POLITICO | date=2023-12-08 | url=https://www.politico.eu/article/ersin-tatar-cyprus-eu-united-turkish-cypriot/ | access-date=2025-08-31 | quote=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.}}</ref>
| {{flag|Northern Cyprus}} claims the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus.
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Cyprus|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Cyprus|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Cyprus|to]])
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Israel}}
| 1948
| Israel, founded in 1948, is [[International recognition of Israel|not recognized by 28 UN members]], mostly [[Arab world|Arab countries]] and [[Muslim world|Muslim countries]]. The majority of these states view the [[Palestine|State of Palestine]] as the sole legitimate government of the [[Palestine (region)|historic Palestinian territory]].<ref>{{cite web|access-date=28 February 2008|url=http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/israel.asp|date=14 May 1948|author=Government of Israel|title=Declaration of Israel's Independence 1948|publisher=[[Yale University]]|archive-date=7 January 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190107092242/http://avalon.law.yale.edu/20th_century/israel.asp|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=United States Congress|title=H. RES. 1249|url=http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-110hres1249ih/pdf/BILLS-110hres1249ih.pdf|date=5 June 2008|access-date=2 November 2011|archive-date=16 March 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316022934/https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-110hres1249ih/pdf/BILLS-110hres1249ih.pdf|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mythsandfacts.org/ReplyOnlineEdition/chapter-1.html |title='Reply' Online Book Chapter 1 |publisher=Mythsandfacts.org |access-date=25 June 2010 |archive-date=27 July 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727104815/http://www.mythsandfacts.org/ReplyOnlineEdition/chapter-1.html |url-status=usurped }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cfr.org/world/khartoum-resolution/p14841?breadcrumb=%2Fpublication%2Fpublication_list%3Ftype%3Dessential_document%26page%3D69 |title=Khartoum Resolution |publisher=[[Council on Foreign Relations]] |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305134850/http://www.cfr.org/world/khartoum-resolution/p14841?breadcrumb=%2Fpublication%2Fpublication_list%3Ftype%3Dessential_document%26page%3D69 |archive-date=5 March 2016 }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Government of Israel|title=Israel's Diplomatic Missions Abroad: Status of relations|url=http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/abouttheministry/pages/israel-s%20diplomatic%20missions%20abroad.aspx#note|publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs|access-date=4 April 2011|archive-date=5 May 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170505112815/http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/AboutTheMinistry/Pages/Israel-s%20Diplomatic%20Missions%20Abroad.aspx#note|url-status=live}}</ref> The [[Palestine Liberation Organization]] (PLO), which enjoys majority international recognition as sole representative of the Palestinian people, recognised Israel in 1993. In January 2018 and October 2018,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.timesofisrael.com/top-palestinian-body-calls-for-revoking-recognition-of-israel-nixing-agreements/|title=Top Palestinian body calls for revoking recognition of Israel, nixing agreements|first=Michael|last=Bachner|website=The Times of Israel|date=29 October 2018 |access-date=20 August 2021|archive-date=20 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210820141656/https://www.timesofisrael.com/top-palestinian-body-calls-for-revoking-recognition-of-israel-nixing-agreements/|url-status=live}}</ref> the Palestinian Central Council voted to suspend recognition of Israel, but this position has yet to be acted upon by Palestinian President [[Mahmoud Abbas]].<ref>{{cite web|url= https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/07/pa-mahmoud-abbas-declares-suspension-deals-israel-190726070533729.html|title= PA's Mahmoud Abbas declares suspension of all deals with Israel|date= 26 July 2019|publisher= Al Jazeera|access-date= 25 November 2019|archive-date= 15 October 2019|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20191015145807/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2019/07/pa-mahmoud-abbas-declares-suspension-deals-israel-190726070533729.html|url-status= live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20181030-plo-suspends-recognition-of-israel/|title=PLO suspends recognition of Israel|date=30 October 2018|website=Middle East Monitor|access-date=9 April 2019|archive-date=25 April 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190425154808/https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20181030-plo-suspends-recognition-of-israel/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| {{flag|Palestine}} considers itself to be the legitimate government of the [[West Bank]], which is under [[Israeli occupation of the West Bank|Israeli occupation]], and the [[Gaza Strip]].<br /> {{flag|Syria}} considers itself to be the legitimate government of the [[Golan Heights]], which is under [[Israeli occupation of the Golan Heights|Israeli occupation with limited recognition]].<br /> {{flag|Lebanon}} considers itself to be the legitimate government of the [[Shebaa Farms]], which is under Israeli occupation.
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Israel|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Israel|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Israel|to]])<hr />[[International recognition of Israel|International recognition]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|North Korea}}<br><small>(DPRK)</small>
| 1948
| North Korea (officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea), independent since 1948, is not recognised by one UN member, [[South Korea]].<ref name="atimes">{{cite web|access-date=29 February 2008|url=http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Korea/GA04Dg01.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050104171505/http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Korea/GA04Dg01.html|url-status=unfit|archive-date=4 January 2005|title=Seoul's double-talk on reunification  |work=[[Asia Times]]|date=4 January 2005 |last=Scofield |first=David }}</ref><ref name="Korea Herald">{{cite web | last1=Da-gyum | first1=Ji | last2=Ji-hyoung | first2=Son | title=Kim Yo-jong's reference to South as 'Republic of Korea' may indicate change | website=The Korea Herald | date=11 July 2023 | url=https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20230711000640 | access-date=23 February 2024 | archive-date=23 February 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240223172557/https://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20230711000640 | url-status=live }}</ref>
| {{flag|South Korea}} considers itself to be the sole legitimate government of [[Korea]], and [[Committee for the Five Northern Korean Provinces|claims]] all territory controlled by North Korea.<ref name="atimes"/>
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of North Korea|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of North Korea|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in North Korea|to]])
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|South Korea}}<br><small>(ROK)</small>
| 1948
| South Korea (officially the Republic of Korea), independent since 1948, is potentially not recognised by one UN member, [[North Korea]].<ref>{{cite web|access-date=28 February 2008|url=http://countrystudies.us/south-korea/8.htm|date=7 October 2000|author=US Library of Congress|title=World War II and Korea|publisher=Country Studies|archive-date=10 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310082139/http://countrystudies.us/south-korea/8.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|access-date=29 February 2008|url=https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F01EFD71538F930A3575AC0A962958260|title=China, Backing North Korea, Quits Armistice Commission|newspaper=The New York Times|date=3 September 1994|author=Sterngold, James|archive-date=5 March 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080305171415/http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F01EFD71538F930A3575AC0A962958260|url-status=live}}</ref>
| {{flag|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".<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c1wnxlxxwq2o |title=N Korean constitution now calls South 'hostile state' |author=Kelly Ng |work=BBC News |date=17 October 2024 |access-date=16 July 2025}}</ref>
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of South Korea|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of South Korea|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in South Korea|to]])
|}

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+UN General Assembly observer states not recognised by at least one UN member state
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Palestine}}
| 1988
| Israel took control of the [[Jordanian annexation of the West Bank|West Bank]] and [[Occupation of the Gaza Strip by the United Arab Republic|Gaza Strip]], which were controlled by [[Jordan]] and [[Egypt]] respectively and are internationally recognized as [[occupied Palestinian territories]], as a result of the [[Six-Day War]] in 1967, but has never formally annexed them. The State of Palestine (commonly known as Palestine) was [[Palestinian Declaration of Independence|declared]] in 1988 by the [[Palestine Liberation Organization]] (PLO), which is recognised by a majority of UN member states and the UN itself as the sole representative of the Palestinian people. Since the end of the [[first Intifada|first Palestinian Intifada against Israel]] the Israeli government has gradually moved its armed forces and settlers out of certain parts of Palestine's claimed territory, while still maintaining varying degrees of control over most of it.<ref name="saeb">{{Cite news|author=Staff writers|title=Palestinians 'may declare state'|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7254434.stm|publisher=BBC News|date=20 February 2008|access-date=22 January 2011|archive-date=25 August 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110825044716/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7254434.stm|url-status=live}}:"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".</ref> The [[Palestinian National Authority]] (PNA), which performs limited internal government functions over certain areas of Palestine, was established in 1994. The 2007 [[Fatah–Hamas conflict|split between the Fatah and Hamas political parties]] resulted in competing governments claiming to represent the PNA and Palestine, with Fatah exercising authority exclusively over the West Bank and enjoying majority recognition from UN member states, and a separate Hamas leadership [[Governance of the Gaza Strip|exercising authority]] exclusively over the Gaza area (except for a short period from 2014 to 2016).{{efn|name=Israel}} Palestine is currently {{Numrec|Pal|officially recognised as a state by}} UN member states,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.pna.gov.ps/Government/gov/recognition_of_the_State_of_Palestine.asp|title=International Recognition of the State of Palestine|work=Official website of the Palestinian National Authority|date=November 1988|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20031010182914/http://www.pna.gov.ps/Government/gov/recognition_of_the_State_of_Palestine.asp|archive-date=10 October 2003}}. The PNA has publicly acknowledged recognition from 94 states, including the former [[Yugoslavia]].</ref><ref name="WebGaza.net"/> the Holy See,<ref>{{Cite news|author=Bannoura, Saed|title=124 Out of 193 Countries Recognize Palestinian Independence|url=http://www.imemc.org/article/61902|newspaper=IMEMC News|publisher=International Middle East Media Center|date=28 August 2011|access-date=28 August 2011|archive-date=15 October 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111015052850/http://www.imemc.org/article/61902|url-status=live}}</ref> and the [[Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic]].<ref>{{Cite journal|author=Shelley, Toby|title=Spotlight on Morocco|journal=West Africa|year=1988|location=London|issue=3712–3723: 5–31 December|publisher=West Africa Publishing Company Ltd|page=2282}} "...&nbsp;the SADR was one of the first countries to recognise the state of Palestine."</ref> The remaining UN member states, including Israel, do not recognise the State of Palestine. The [[United Nations]] designates the claimed Palestinian territories as "occupied" by Israel,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.un.org/unispal/document/committee-on-exercise-of-inalienable-rights-of-palestinian-people-ga-resolution-ares7318/|title=Committee on Exercise of Inalienable Rights of Palestinian People – GA Resolution (A/RES/73/18)|first=Christopher|last=Heaney|access-date=30 March 2019|archive-date=21 September 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200921183023/https://www.un.org/unispal/document/committee-on-exercise-of-inalienable-rights-of-palestinian-people-ga-resolution-ares7318/|url-status=live}}</ref> and accorded Palestine [[United Nations General Assembly observers#Palestine|non-member observer state]] status in 2012<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20550864 |title=Palestinians win upgraded UN status by wide margin |publisher=BBC News |date=29 November 2012 |access-date=29 November 2012 |archive-date=30 November 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121130032235/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-20550864 |url-status=live }}</ref> (see [[United Nations General Assembly resolution 67/19]]). Palestine also has membership in the [[Arab League]], the [[Organisation of Islamic Cooperation]] and [[UNESCO]].<ref>{{cite web|publisher=United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization|title=Arab States: Palestine|url=http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/worldwide/arab-states/palestine/|access-date=3 December 2011|archive-date=4 January 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120104131813/http://www.unesco.org/new/en/unesco/worldwide/arab-states/palestine/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| {{flag|Israel}} regards the area claimed by Palestine as "disputed" territory (that is, territory not legally belonging to any state).<ref>{{cite web |url=https://mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFA-archive/2003/Pages/DISPUTED%20TERRITORIES-%20Forgotten%20Facts%20About%20the%20We.aspx |title=Disputed Territories- Forgotten Facts About the West Bank and Gaza Strip |publisher=Israel Ministry of Foreign Affairs |date=1 February 2003 |access-date=30 July 2021 |archive-date=27 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190227111213/http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/MFA-Archive/2003/Pages/DISPUTED%20TERRITORIES-%20Forgotten%20Facts%20About%20the%20We.aspx |url-status=live }}</ref>{{efn|name=Israel|Israel allows the PNA to execute some functions in the [[Palestinian territories]], depending on [[West Bank Areas in the Oslo II Accord|special area classification]]. Israel maintains [[Israel's unilateral disengagement plan|minimal interference]] (retaining control of borders: [[National airspace|air]],<ref name="GazaSeaAir">{{cite web|url=http://www.btselem.org/gaza_strip/control_on_air_space_and_territorial_waters|title=Israel's control of the airspace and the territorial waters of the Gaza Strip|work=btselem.org|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=28 June 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140628105536/http://www.btselem.org/gaza_strip/control_on_air_space_and_territorial_waters|url-status=live}}</ref> sea [[Third United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea|beyond internal waters]],<ref name="GazaSeaAir"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://dissidentvoice.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Gaza-map-08s-fishing-limits-20090119.jpg|title=Map of Gaza fishing limits, "security zones"|work=dissidentvoice.org|date=December 2009|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=26 July 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110726000805/http://dissidentvoice.org/wp-content/uploads/2009/12/Gaza-map-08s-fishing-limits-20090119.jpg|url-status=live}}</ref> [[European Union Border Assistance Mission Rafah|land]]<ref>[http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/foreignpolicy/peace/guide/pages/israels%20disengagement%20plan-%20renewing%20the%20peace%20process%20apr%202005.aspx Israel's Disengagement Plan: Renewing the Peace Process] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160203102430/http://www.mfa.gov.il/mfa/foreignpolicy/peace/guide/pages/israels%20disengagement%20plan-%20renewing%20the%20peace%20process%20apr%202005.aspx |date=3 February 2016 }}: "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."</ref>) in the [[Gaza Strip]] (its interior and Egypt portion of the land border are under [[Governance of the Gaza Strip|Hamas control]]), maximum in "[[Area C (West Bank)|Area C]]" and varying degrees of interference elsewhere.<ref name="DoreGold">{{cite web|author=Dore Gold|url=http://www.jcpa.org/brief/brief005-3.htm|title=Legal Acrobatics: The Palestinian Claim that Gaza is Still "Occupied" Even After Israel Withdraws|work=Jerusalem Issue Brief|volume=5|issue=3|publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs|date=26 August 2005|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=21 June 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100621082606/http://jcpa.org/brief/brief005-3.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="AbrahamBell">{{cite web|last=Bell|first=Abraham|url=http://jcpa.org/article/international-law-and-gaza-the-assault-on-israel%E2%80%99s-right-to-self-defense/|title=International Law and Gaza: The Assault on Israel's Right to Self-Defense|work=Jerusalem Issue Brief|volume=7|issue=29|publisher=Jerusalem Center for Public Affairs|date=28 January 2008|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=16 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216092227/http://jcpa.org/article/international-law-and-gaza-the-assault-on-israel%E2%80%99s-right-to-self-defense/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="HerzliyaCon">{{cite press release|url=http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2008/Pages/Address%20by%20FM%20Livni%20to%20the%208th%20Herzliya%20Conference%2022-Jan-2008.aspx|title=Address by Foreign Minister Livni to the 8th Herzliya Conference|publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Israel|date=22 January 2008|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=5 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305164344/http://mfa.gov.il/MFA/PressRoom/2008/Pages/Address%20by%20FM%20Livni%20to%20the%208th%20Herzliya%20Conference%2022-Jan-2008.aspx|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="ZakSalih">{{cite web|author=Zak M. Salih|url=http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2005_fall/gaza.htm|title=Panelists Disagree Over Gaza's Occupation Status|publisher=University of Virginia School of Law|date=17 November 2005|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303200844/http://www.law.virginia.edu/html/news/2005_fall/gaza.htm|archive-date=3 March 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="IsDisengagement">{{cite web|url=https://www.hrw.org/news/2004/10/28/israel-disengagement-will-not-end-gaza-occupation|title=Israel: "Disengagement" Will Not End Gaza Occupation|work=Human Rights Watch|date=28 October 2004|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=23 January 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160123112518/https://www.hrw.org/news/2004/10/28/israel-disengagement-will-not-end-gaza-occupation|url-status=live}}</ref> See also [[Israeli-occupied territories]].<br /><ref name="saeb"/><ref name="DoreGold"/><ref name="AbrahamBell"/><ref name="HerzliyaCon"/><ref name="ZakSalih"/><ref name="IsDisengagement"/> }}
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of the State of Palestine|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of the State of Palestine|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Palestine|to]]) <hr /> [[International recognition of the State of Palestine|International recognition]], [[Israeli–Palestinian peace process]], [[History of the State of Palestine]]
|}

==United Nations non-member states==
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+UN specialized agency member states not recognized by at least one UN member state
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Cook Islands}}
| 1965
| The Cook Islands became a state in [[associated state|free association]] with [[New Zealand]] in 1965. Although the Cook Islands are fully self-governing and behave as a sovereign state in [[international law]], their constitutional status is different from that of a fully independent state, considering that all Cook Islands nationals are [[New Zealand nationality law|New Zealand citizens]], and the country's head of state is the [[Monarchy of New Zealand|Monarch of New Zealand]].<ref>{{cite web | title=About Cook Islands | website=New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade | date=11 February 2021 | url=https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/australia-and-pacific/cook-islands/new-zealand-high-commission-to-the-cook-islands/about-cook-islands/ | access-date=21 April 2023 | archive-date=25 April 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230425043511/https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/australia-and-pacific/cook-islands/new-zealand-high-commission-to-the-cook-islands/about-cook-islands/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="auto1">{{cite web|url=http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2015/September/09-10-03.htm|title=Home Page – Pacific Islands Report|website=pidp.eastwestcenter.org|access-date=30 July 2017|archive-date=19 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151019062945/http://pidp.eastwestcenter.org/pireport/2015/September/09-10-03.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal |url=https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10523/9050/Uncharted%20Waters.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |title=Uncharted Waters: Has the Cook Islands become Eligible for Membership in the United Nations |last=Smith |first=Stephen Eliot |journal=New Zealand Journal of Public and International Law |volume=8 |pages=169–215 |access-date=30 July 2017 |archive-date=26 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210626034320/https://ourarchive.otago.ac.nz/bitstream/handle/10523/9050/Uncharted%20Waters.pdf?sequence=1&isAllowed=y |url-status=live }}</ref> As of 2015, the Cook Islands had established [[diplomacy|diplomatic relations]] with 43 states,<ref name="intaff.gov.ck 2019">{{cite web | title=Cook Islands' application for membership | website=intaff.gov.ck | date=13 November 2019 | url=http://www.intaff.gov.ck/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Cook-Islands-Application-for-ILO-Membership.pdf | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191113231136/http://www.intaff.gov.ck/wp-content/uploads/2014/04/Cook-Islands-Application-for-ILO-Membership.pdf | archive-date=13 November 2019 | url-status=live| access-date=21 April 2023}}</ref> while the number as of May 2025 is at least [[Foreign relations of the Cook Islands#Diplomatic relations|65 UN member states]], as well as the [[Holy See]], [[Kosovo]], [[Niue]] and the [[European 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.<ref>{{cite web | title=U.S confirms recognition of the Cook Islands as a sovereign state | website=PINA | date=30 September 2022 | url=https://pina.com.fj/2022/09/30/u-s-confirms-recognition-of-the-cook-islands-as-a-sovereign-state/ | access-date=21 April 2023 | archive-date=14 April 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230414215742/https://pina.com.fj/2022/09/30/u-s-confirms-recognition-of-the-cook-islands-as-a-sovereign-state/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web | title=Cook Islands | website=La France en Nouvelle Zélande | date=21 December 2018 | url=https://nz.ambafrance.org/Cook-Islands | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230407044706/https://nz.ambafrance.org/Cook-Islands | archive-date=7 April 2023 | url-status=live | access-date=21 April 2023}}</ref> The Cook Islands are a member of nine [[List of specialized agencies of the United Nations|United Nations specialized agencies]], and the [[United Nations]] currently classifies the Cook Islands as a "non-member state", a category unique only to it and [[Niue]].<ref name="auto4">{{Cite web |url =https://www.un.org/geospatial/content/world-today |title =United Nations – The World Today |date =1 September 2019 |access-date =21 April 2023 |publisher =United Nations |archive-date =3 December 2022 |archive-url =https://web.archive.org/web/20221203170009/https://www.un.org/geospatial/content/world-today |url-status =live }}</ref><ref name="auto3">{{Cite web|url = https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/policy/WPP2013/Chapters/a_Preface.pdf|title = UN: "data for 197 countries: all 193 member states, two observer states (the Holy See and Palestine) and two non-member states (Cook Islands and Niue)"|access-date = 30 July 2017|publisher = United Nations|archive-date = 16 November 2022|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221116025049/https://www.un.org/en/development/desa/population/publications/pdf/policy/WPP2013/Chapters/a_Preface.pdf|url-status = live}}</ref><ref name="auto2">{{Cite web|title = A World Tour of the States not recognized by the UN|url = http://www.lejournalinternational.fr/A-World-Tour-of-the-States-not-recognized-by-the-UN_a2998.html|access-date = 5 September 2015|first = Marine |last = Mulcey |translator-first = Lucie |translator-last = Perrier|archive-date = 6 December 2022|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221206041508/https://www.lejournalinternational.fr/A-World-Tour-of-the-States-not-recognized-by-the-UN_a2998.html|url-status = live}}</ref><ref name="auto">{{cite web|url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/HistoricalInfo.aspx#CookIslands|title=United Nations Treaty Collection|publisher=United Nations|access-date=30 July 2017|archive-date=10 June 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200610022419/https://treaties.un.org/Pages/HistoricalInfo.aspx#CookIslands|url-status=live}}</ref>
| State in [[associated state|free association]] with {{flag|New Zealand}}.
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of the Cook Islands|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of the Cook Islands|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in the Cook Islands|to]]) <hr /> [[Political status of the Cook Islands and Niue|Political status]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Kosovo}}
| 2008
| Kosovo [[2008 Kosovo declaration of independence|declared its independence]] in 2008.<ref>{{cite news|access-date=28 February 2008|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7249034.stm|date=17 February 2008|title=Kosovo MPs proclaim independence|publisher=BBC News|archive-date=15 February 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090215131649/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/7249034.stm|url-status=live}}</ref> It is currently recognised by [[International recognition of Kosovo#Member states of the United Nations|{{#expr:{{Numrec/Kos|N}}-{{Numrec/Kos|W}}}}]] UN members, [[Taiwan]], the [[Cook Islands]] and [[Niue]]. {{Numrec/Kos|W}} other UN members have recognised Kosovo and subsequently withdrawn recognition. The [[United Nations]], as stipulated in [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 1244|Security Council Resolution 1244]], has administered the territory since 1999 through the [[United Nations Interim Administration Mission in Kosovo]],<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.unmikonline.org/press/reports/N9917289.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080216011030/http://www.unmikonline.org/press/reports/N9917289.pdf|archive-date=16 February 2008 |title=Kosovo  |access-date=25 June 2010}}</ref> with cooperation from the [[European Union Rule of Law Mission in Kosovo|European Union]] since 2008. Kosovo is a member of two [[list of specialized agencies of the United Nations|United Nations specialized agencies]] (the [[International Monetary Fund]] and the [[World Bank Group]]), as well as the [[Venice Commission]], [[European Bank for Reconstruction and Development]], and the [[International Olympic Committee]], among others.
| {{flag|Serbia}} claims [[Autonomous Province of Kosovo and Metohija|Kosovo as part of its sovereign territory]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Kosovo|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Kosovo|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Kosovo|to]])<hr /> [[International recognition of Kosovo|International recognition]]; [[Political status of Kosovo|Political status]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Niue}}
| 1974
| Niue became a state in [[associated state|free association]] with [[New Zealand]] in 1974 after a [[1974 Niuean constitutional referendum|constitutional referendum]]. Although Niue is fully self-governing and behaves as a sovereign state in [[international law]], its constitutional status is different from that of a fully independent state, considering that all Niue nationals are [[New Zealand nationality law|New Zealand citizens]], and the country's head of state is the [[Monarchy of New Zealand|Monarch of New Zealand]].<ref>{{cite web | last=Affairs | first=New Zealand Ministry of Foreign | title=Niue | website=New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade | date=7 November 2022 | url=https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/australia-and-pacific/niue/ | access-date=21 April 2023 | archive-date=21 April 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230421185603/https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/australia-and-pacific/niue/ | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="auto1"/> As of August 2024, Niue has established [[diplomacy|diplomatic relations]] with at least [[Foreign relations of Niue#Diplomatic relations|28 UN member states]], as well as the [[Cook Islands]], [[Kosovo]], and the [[European Union]]. Niue is a member of eight [[list of specialized agencies of the United Nations|United Nations specialized agencies]], and the [[United Nations]] currently classifies Niue as a "non-member state", a category unique only to it and the [[Cook Islands]].<ref name="auto4"/><ref name="auto3"/><ref name="auto2"/><ref name="auto"/>
| State in [[associated state|free association]] with {{flag|New Zealand}}.
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Niue|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Niue|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Niue|to]]) <hr /> [[Political status of the Cook Islands and Niue|Political status]]
|}

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+Non-UN member states recognised by at least one UN member state
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Abkhazia}}
| 1999
| Abkhazia declared its independence in 1999.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3261059.stm |title=Regions and territories: Abkhazia |publisher=BBC News |access-date=31 March 2011 |date=8 February 2011 |archive-date=5 November 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191105235542/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/3261059.stm |url-status=live }}</ref> It is currently recognised by 5 UN member states ([[Russia]], [[Syria]], [[Nicaragua]], [[Venezuela]], and [[Nauru]]), and two non-UN member states ([[South Ossetia]] and [[Transnistria]]).<ref name="Medvedev">{{Cite news|url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7582181.stm|title=Russia recognises Georgian rebels|date=26 August 2008|publisher=BBC News|access-date=11 February 2016|archive-date=10 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160310145010/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7582181.stm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Venezuela-Georgia">{{cite news | url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-russia-chavez-idUSTRE5895PF20090910 | title=Venezuela's Chavez draws closer to Moscow | date=10 September 2009 | work=[[Reuters]] | access-date=20 October 2009 | archive-date=13 January 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160113122314/http://www.reuters.com/article/us-venezuela-russia-chavez-idUSTRE5895PF20090910 | url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":0" /><ref>{{cite web|access-date=26 February 2008|url=http://www.c-r.org/downloads/Abkhazia_TenYearsOn_2001_ENG.pdf|title=Abkhazia: Ten Years On|publisher=Conciliation Resources|year=2001|author=Clogg, Rachel|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160216052312/http://www.c-r.org/downloads/Abkhazia_TenYearsOn_2001_ENG.pdf|archive-date=16 February 2016|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="tiraspoltimes.com">{{cite web |url=http://www.tiraspoltimes.com/news/south_ossetia_opens_embassy_in_abkhazia.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080422030914/http://www.tiraspoltimes.com/news/south_ossetia_opens_embassy_in_abkhazia.html |archive-date=22 April 2008 |title=South Ossetia opens embassy in Abkhazia |work=The Tiraspol Times}}</ref> Two additional UN member states ([[Tuvalu]] and [[Vanuatu]]) had recognised Abkhazia, but subsequently withdrew their recognition.<ref>{{cite web|author=Government of Tuvalu|title=On the establishment of diplomatic relations between Republic of Abkhazia and Tuvalu|url=http://www.mfaabkhazia.net/en/node/1082|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111111113856/http://www.mfaabkhazia.net/en/node/1082|archive-date=11 November 2011|date=20 September 2011|publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs|access-date=24 September 2011}}</ref><ref name="interpressnews.ge">{{cite web|url=http://www.interpressnews.ge/en/politicss/56198-tuvalu-takes-back-recognition-of-independence-of-abkhazia-and-so-called-south-ossetia.html|title=Tuvalu takes back recognition of independence of Abkhazia and so-called South Ossetia|date=31 March 2014|access-date=31 March 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140331143130/http://www.interpressnews.ge/en/politicss/56198-tuvalu-takes-back-recognition-of-independence-of-abkhazia-and-so-called-south-ossetia.html|archive-date=31 March 2014|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref name="mfa.gov.ge">{{cite web|url=http://mfa.gov.ge/index.php?lang_id=ENG&sec_id=59&info_id=17401|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141006191232/http://mfa.gov.ge/index.php?lang_id=ENG&sec_id=59&info_id=17401|archive-date=6 October 2014|title=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Georgia – Ministry's Statements|access-date=30 September 2014}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Government of Vanuatu|title=Vanuatu's recognition to the Republic of Abkhazia|url=http://www.governmentofvanuatu.gov.vu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=95&Itemid=65|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110624160025/http://www.governmentofvanuatu.gov.vu/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=95&Itemid=65|archive-date=24 June 2011|date=17 June 2011|access-date=24 September 2011}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=21 January 2012 |title=Natapei withdraws recognition of Abkhazia {{!}} Vanuatu Daily Post |url=http://www.dailypost.vu/content/natapei-withdraws-recognition-abkhazia |access-date=8 December 2023 |archive-date=21 January 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120121080902/http://www.dailypost.vu/content/natapei-withdraws-recognition-abkhazia |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-05-20/georgia-says-vanuatu-has-withdrawn-recognition-of-abkhazia|title=Georgia Says Vanuatu Has Withdrawn Recognition of Abkhazia|date=20 May 2013|publisher=Bloomberg News|access-date=30 September 2014|archive-date=3 November 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151103211400/http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-05-20/georgia-says-vanuatu-has-withdrawn-recognition-of-abkhazia|url-status=live}}</ref>
| {{flag|Georgia}} claims Abkhazia as [[Government of the Autonomous Republic of Abkhazia|part of its sovereign territory]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Abkhazia|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Abkhazia|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Abkhazia|to]])<hr /> [[International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia|International recognition]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Northern Cyprus}}<br><small>(TRNC)</small>
| 1983
| Northern Cyprus [[Declaration of Independence of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus|declared its independence]] in 1983 with its official name being the "Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus" (TRNC). It is recognised by one UN member, [[Turkey]]. The [[Organisation of Islamic Cooperation]] and the [[Economic Cooperation Organization]] have granted Northern Cyprus observer status under the name "Turkish Cypriot State". [[United Nations Security Council Resolution 541]] defines the declaration of independence of Northern Cyprus as legally invalid.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.un.int/cyprus/scr541.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20030828074921/http://www.un.int/cyprus/scr541.htm|archive-date=28 August 2003|title=Security Council resolution 541 (1983) on Cyprus|publisher=United Nations|access-date=25 June 2010}}</ref> The [[International Court of Justice]] stated [[Advisory opinion on Kosovo's declaration of independence|in its advisory opinion on Kosovo's declaration of independence in 2010]] that "the Security Council in an exceptional character attached illegality to the DOI of TRNC because it was, or would have been connected with the unlawful use of force".<ref name="International Court of Justice">{{cite web  |url=http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/141/15987.pdf |title=Accordance with International Law of the Unilateral Declaration of Independence in Respect of Kosovo, Paragraph 81 |work=International Court of Justice |date=22 July 2010 |access-date=11 February 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100821055950/http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/141/15987.pdf |archive-date=21 August 2010 }}</ref>
| {{flag|Cyprus}} claims the TRNC as part of its sovereign territory.
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Northern Cyprus|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Northern Cyprus|to]])<hr /> [[Cyprus problem|Cyprus dispute]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic}}<br><small>(SADR)</small>
| 1976
| [[Morocco]] invaded and annexed most of [[Western Sahara]], forcing Spain to withdraw from the territory in 1975.<ref name="Mundy">{{cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6XzuIbQAXUIC|title=Western Sahara: War, Nationalism, and Conflict Irresolution|last1=Zunes|first1=Stephen|last2=Mundy|first2=Jacob|pages=5–6|publisher=[[Syracuse University Press]]|isbn=978-0-8156-3219-1|date=4 August 2010|access-date=3 November 2020}}</ref> In 1976, the [[Polisario Front]] declared the independence of Western Sahara as the [[Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic]] (SADR).<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.wsahara.net/sadr.html|title=Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic|date=27 February 1976|access-date=28 February 2008|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080502035045/http://www.wsahara.net/sadr.html|archive-date=2 May 2008}}</ref> The SADR is largely a [[government in exile]] located in [[Algeria]], which claims the entire territory of Western Sahara, but controls only a [[Free Zone (region)|small fraction]] of it. The SADR is recognised by [[International recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic#States that have recognized the SADR|{{#expr:{{Numrec/SADR|N}}-{{Numrec/SADR|W}}}}]] UN member states and [[South Ossetia]]. {{Numrec|SADR|W=Y|link=N}} other UN member states have recognised the SADR but subsequently retracted or suspended recognition, pending the outcome of a [[referendum]] on [[self-determination]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.arso.org/03-2.htm|title=Here the states which recognize the SADR. It is a non-official list, with dates of recognition and cancellation|publisher=ARSO|access-date=7 February 2011|archive-date=16 July 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120716183754/http://www.arso.org/03-2.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://awsa.org.au/background/|title=About Western Sahara|publisher=Australia Western Sahara Association|date=November 2006|access-date=4 January 2010|archive-date=6 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150906073206/http://awsa.org.au/background/|url-status=live}}</ref> The remaining UN member states, including [[Morocco]], have never recognised the SADR. The SADR is a member of the [[African 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.<ref>{{Cite web |date=10 October 2011 |title=Resolutions : General Assembly (GA), 34th session : United Nations (UN) |url=http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/r34.htm |access-date=8 December 2023 |archive-date=10 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111010102815/http://www.un.org/Depts/dhl/resguide/r34.htm |url-status=dead }}</ref> Western Sahara is listed on the [[United Nations list of non-self-governing territories]]. Other than Morocco and the [[United States]],<ref>{{cite web|url=https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-recognizing-sovereignty-kingdom-morocco-western-sahara/|title=Proclamation on Recognizing The Sovereignty of the Kingdom of Morocco Over The Western Sahara|date=10 December 2020|via=[[NARA|National Archives]]|work=[[whitehouse.gov]]|access-date=13 January 2021|archive-date=13 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210213233131/https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/presidential-actions/proclamation-recognizing-sovereignty-kingdom-morocco-western-sahara/|url-status=live}}</ref> no state officially recognises Morocco's annexation of Western Sahara, but some states support the [[Western Sahara Autonomy Proposal|Moroccan autonomy plan]]. The [[Arab League]] supports Morocco's claim over the entire territory of Western Sahara.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.arabnews.com/node/1189656/middle-east|title=Morocco king rejects independence for Western Sahara|date=7 November 2017|website=Arab News|access-date=19 November 2019|archive-date=10 June 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220610171838/https://www.arabnews.com/node/1189656/middle-east|url-status=live}}</ref>
| {{flag|Morocco}} claims Western Sahara (including the area controlled by the SADR) as [[Moroccan-occupied Western Sahara|part of its sovereign territory]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions to the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic|to]])<hr /> [[International recognition of the Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic|International recognition]]; [[Political status of Western Sahara|Political status]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|South Ossetia}}
| 1992
| South Ossetia declared its independence in 1992.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://mfa.rsogov.org/en/node/80 |title=A reply of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of South Ossetia to IA "Res" Question Concerning the Act of Adoption of RSO State Independence on 29 of May 1992 |publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of South Ossetia |date=29 May 2010 |access-date=26 May 2022 |archive-date=24 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220124174804/https://mfa.rsogov.org/en/node/80 |url-status=live }}</ref> It is currently recognised by [[International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia|{{#expr:{{Numrec/South Ossetia|N}}-{{Numrec/South Ossetia|W}}}}]] UN member states ([[Russia]], [[Syria]], [[Nicaragua]], [[Venezuela]], and [[Nauru]]), and three non-UN member states ([[Abkhazia]], [[Transnistria]] and [[Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic]]).<ref name="Medvedev"/><ref name="Venezuela-Georgia"/><ref name=":0">{{cite web|url=https://eurasianet.org/s/syria-formally-recognizes-abkhazia-and-south-ossetia|title=Syria formally recognizes Abkhazia and South Ossetia|date=29 May 2018|website=Eurasianet|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180529152044/https://eurasianet.org/s/syria-formally-recognizes-abkhazia-and-south-ossetia|archive-date=29 May 2018|access-date=30 May 2018}}</ref><ref name="tiraspoltimes.com"/> One additional UN member state ([[Tuvalu]]) had recognised South Ossetia, but subsequently withdrew its recognition.<ref name="interpressnews.ge" /><ref name="mfa.gov.ge" />
| {{flag|Georgia}} claims South Ossetia as [[Administration of South Ossetia|part of its sovereign territory]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of South Ossetia|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of South Ossetia|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in South Ossetia|to]])<hr /> [[International recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia|International recognition]]
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Taiwan}}<br><small>(ROC)</small>
| 1912/1949
| 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 the [[China|People's Republic of China]] (PRC).<ref>Global Investment and Business Center, Inc. Staff ''Taiwan Foreign Policy and National Security Yearbook'' 2011 Second Edition International Business Publications, USA {{ISBN|0-7397-3660-4}} [https://books.google.com/books?id=4G9nj0LDk5UC&dq=Taiwan+Foreign+Policy+and+National+Security+Yearbook+Volume+1&pg=PA3 Online version]{{Dead link|date=August 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }} available at [[Google Books]]</ref> 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 (see [[United Nations General Assembly Resolution 2758]]). The ROC and PRC do not recognise each other's statehood, and each enforces its own version of the [[One China|One China policy]] meaning that no state can recognise both of them at the same time.{{efn|name=China}} The ROC is currently recognised by {{numrec|ROC}} UN members and the [[Holy See]]. All remaining UN member states (except Bhutan), as well as the [[Cook Islands]] and [[Niue]], 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 the [[Somaliland|Republic 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".<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/taiwans-un-dilemma-to-be-or-not-to-be/|title=Taiwan's UN Dilemma: To Be or Not To Be|first=Sigrid|last=Winkler|date=20 June 2012|access-date=29 March 2019|archive-date=31 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200331180632/https://www.brookings.edu/opinions/taiwans-un-dilemma-to-be-or-not-to-be/|url-status=live}}</ref>
| The {{flag|People's Republic of China}} [[One China principle|considers itself to be the sole legitimate government of all of China]], and therefore [[Taiwan Province, People's Republic of China|claims exclusive sovereignty over all territory controlled by Taiwan]].<ref name="Horton 2019"/> See also: [[One China]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Taiwan|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Taiwan|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Taiwan|to]])<hr />[[International recognition of Taiwan|International recognition]], [[Political status of Taiwan|Political status]]
|}

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+Non-UN member states recognised only by other non-UN member states
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Transnistria}}<br><small>(PMR)</small>
| 1991
| Transnistria (officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic) declared its independence in 1991. It is recognised by two non-UN members: [[Abkhazia]] and [[South Ossetia]].<ref>{{cite web|access-date=16 June 2008|url=http://video.acasa.ro/documentare/transnistria---europe-s-black-hole-2-4--1cbc0583298a23831612.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091221144730/http://video.acasa.ro/documentare/transnistria---europe-s-black-hole-2-4--1cbc0583298a23831612.html|archive-date=21 December 2009|title=Abkhazia: Ten Years On |publisher=BBC 2|year=2001}}</ref>
| {{flag|Moldova}} claims Transnistria as [[Administrative-Territorial Units of the Left Bank of the Dniester|part of its sovereign territory]].
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Transnistria|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Transnistria|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Transnistria|to]]) <hr /> [[International recognition of Transnistria|International recognition]], [[Political status of Transnistria|Political status]]
|}

{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+Non-UN member states not recognized by any other state
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Somaliland}}
| 1991
| Somaliland declared its independence in 1991. It claims to be the legal successor to the [[State of Somaliland]], a short lived sovereign state that existed from 26 June 1960 (when the [[British Somaliland|British Somaliland Protectorate]] gained full independence from the United Kingdom) to 1 July 1960 (when the State of Somaliland united with Somalia to form the [[Somali Republic]]).<ref>{{Cite news |date=11 July 2011 |title=Somaliland profile|publisher=BBC News |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14115069 |access-date=8 December 2023 |archive-date=16 December 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201216233149/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-14115069 |url-status=live }}</ref> It is not officially recognised by any state, though it maintains unofficial relations with several UN member states and the [[Republic of China]] (Taiwan).<ref name="e139">{{cite web | last=Hagi | first=Mohamed | title=A Future Outlook: Prospects for Somaliland-Taiwan Relations | website=Global Taiwan Institute | date=2024-05-01 | url=https://globaltaiwan.org/2024/05/a-future-outlook-prospects-for-somaliland-taiwan-relations/ | access-date=2024-07-25 | quote=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.}}</ref><ref name="f170">{{cite web | last=Blas | first=Javier | title=A Land Deal Cranks Up the Tension in the Red Sea | publisher=Bloomberg News | date=3 January 2024 | url=https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-01-03/ethiopia-somaliland-deal-cranks-up-tension-in-the-red-sea | access-date=18 May 2024 | archive-date=16 June 2024 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240616061624/https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2024-01-03/ethiopia-somaliland-deal-cranks-up-tension-in-the-red-sea | url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url = https://en.mofa.gov.tw/CountryInfoEn.aspx?CASN=2&n=1289&sms=0&s=200 |author = Asia West and Africa Department|title = Republic of Somaliland| publisher = Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of China|access-date = 28 February 2023 |archive-date = 10 December 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20221210115329/https://en.mofa.gov.tw/CountryInfoEn.aspx?CASN=2&n=1289&sms=0&s=200}}</ref> Taiwan and Somaliland have [[Somaliland–Taiwan relations|mutual representative offices]] in each other's countries, similarly to how Taiwan conducts relations with other countries that do not recognize it.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://focustaiwan.tw/politics/202008170019 |title=Taiwan opens representative office in Somaliland |date=17 August 2020 |access-date=1 March 2023 |archive-date=1 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301013701/https://focustaiwan.tw/politics/202008170019 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.france24.com/en/20200909-somaliland-launches-representative-office-in-taiwan |title=Somaliland launches representative office in Taiwan |date=9 September 2020 |access-date=1 March 2023 |archive-date=1 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230301013656/https://www.france24.com/en/20200909-somaliland-launches-representative-office-in-taiwan |url-status=live }}</ref> Since 2023 the state has been [[2023 Las Anod conflict|partially occupied]] by Pro-Somalia groups and administrations, including the autonomous [[States and regions of Somalia|Somali states]] of [[Puntland]] and the [[Khatumo State|North East State of Somalia]].<ref name="jazeera-haji-2023-02-20">{{Cite news |last=Haji |first=Mohammed |date=20 February 2023 |title=What's driving conflict in the disputed Somali city of Las Anod? |work=[[Al Jazeera English]] |url=https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/2/20/whats-driving-conflict-in-the-disputed-somali-city-of-las-anod |access-date=19 March 2023 |archive-date=18 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230318211727/https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/2/20/whats-driving-conflict-in-the-disputed-somali-city-of-las-anod |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Ross |first=Will |date=8 February 2022 |title=UN urges probe into deadly Somaliland clashes |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/cnx753jejqwt |access-date=2023-03-24 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB |archive-date=2023-03-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230323053440/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/cnx753jejqwt/somalia |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Thousands flee fighting in Somaliland town |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/topics/cnx753jejqwt |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230327035439/https://www.bbc.com/news/topics/cnx753jejqwt/somalia?ns_mchannel=social&ns_source=twitter&ns_campaign=bbc_live&ns_linkname=63ef70be94565055842f8927%26Thousands%20flee%20fighting%20in%20Somaliland%20town%262023-02-17T14%3A00%3A20.978Z&ns_fee=0&pinned_post_locator=urn:asset:bd53d63e-b033-4759-a3f3-a7ae725b201c&pinned_post_asset_id=63ef70be94565055842f8927&pinned_post_type=share |archive-date=2023-03-27 |access-date=24 March 2023 |website=BBC News |language=en-GB}}</ref> 
| {{flag|Somalia}} claims Somaliland as a [[Administrative divisions of Somalia|federal state]] within the country.
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of Somaliland|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of Somaliland|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions in Somaliland|to]])
|}

== Other entities with limited recognition of sovereignty ==
{|class="wikitable sortable"
|+Political entities recognised as sovereign by at least one UN member state
|-
! scope=col style="width:12%;" | Name
! scope=col style="width:5%;"  | Declared
! scope=col style="width:38%;" class=unsortable | Status
! scope=col style="width:24%;" class=unsortable | Other claimants
! scope=col style="width:16%;" class=unsortable | Further information
|-
! scope=row | {{flag|Sovereign Military Order of Malta}}<br><small>(SMOM)</small>
| 1113
| The {{Anchor|Sovereign Military Order of Malta}}[[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]] (SMOM) is considered a [[Sovereignty|sovereign]] non-state entity, as it claims neither statehood nor territory.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://analitica.com/opinion/opinion-nacional/la-orden-de-malta-y-su-naturaleza-juridica/|title= La Orden de Malta y su Naturaleza Jurídica|date= 1 May 1999|publisher= [[Venezuela Analitica]]|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150801044650/http://analitica.com/opinion/opinion-nacional/la-orden-de-malta-y-su-naturaleza-juridica/|archive-date= 1 August 2015|url-status= live|access-date= 1 August 2015}} [[Talk:Sovereign Military Order of Malta#"La Orden de Malta y su Naturaleza Jurídica" (English translation) – detailed, expert perspective|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."</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20110806055657/http://www.un.int/orderofmalta/orderandun.html Permanent Observer Mission of the Order of Malta to the United Nations in New York] "The admission of Order of Malta to the United Nations also further solidified its legally recognized sovereignty ..."</ref><ref>Shaw, Malcolm Nathan ''International Law'' Fifth Edition Cambridge University Press 2003 {{ISBN|0-521-82473-7}} p. 218 [https://www.amazon.com/International-Law-Malcolm-N-Shaw/dp/0521824737/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351263623&sr=1-1&keywords=0521824737 Searchable text] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230413151856/https://www.amazon.com/International-Law-Malcolm-N-Shaw/dp/0521824737/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1351263623&sr=1-1&keywords=0521824737 |date=13 April 2023 }}, "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.)"</ref><ref>{{cite news | url=https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9LDb9lFYjVPMkNwdTBGeVk1T3c/view | title=Reconócese a la Soberana Orden Militar de Malta como Entidad Internacionál Independiente | work=Boletín Oficiál de la República Argentina, Año LIX, Número 16.92 | date=19 June 1951 | location=Buenos Aires | page=1 | access-date=11 February 2016 | archive-date=12 March 2016 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312091148/https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9LDb9lFYjVPMkNwdTBGeVk1T3c/view | url-status=live }} "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."</ref><!--<ref>Knol [http://knol.google.com/k/orden-de-malta# Orden de Malta Soberana Orden Militar de San Juan de Jerusalén-Sovereign Military Order of Malta – S.M.O.M.]</ref>{{citation broken|date=October 2012}}--><ref name="Arocha">{{cite web| url= https://drive.google.com/file/d/0B9LDb9lFYjVPUnFkaUVjVVdVUnM/view?usp=sharing| publisher=Analítica.com| location=Caracas, Distrito Capital, Venezuela| access-date=1 October 2012| last=Arocha|first=Magaly | title= La Orden de Malta y su Naturaleza Jurídica (The Order of Malta and Its Legal Nature) | date=May 1999|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20150801044650/http://analitica.com/opinion/opinion-nacional/la-orden-de-malta-y-su-naturaleza-juridica/|archive-date= 1 August 2015|url-status= live}} [[Talk:Sovereign Military Order of Malta#"La Orden de Malta y su Naturaleza Jurídica" (English translation) – detailed, expert perspective|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)."</ref> First [[Pie postulatio voluntatis|recognized as sovereign]] by [[Pope Paschal II]] in 1113, it has established [[Foreign relations of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta|full diplomatic relations with 116 UN member states]] [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta#International status|as a sovereign subject of international law]],<ref>The Sovereign Military Order of Malta maintains [[List of diplomatic missions of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta|embassies around the world]] and receives [[List of diplomatic missions to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta|accreditations from foreign ambassadors]].</ref> and also maintains diplomatic relations with the [[European Union]], the [[Holy See]], and [[Palestine]].<ref>{{cite web | title=Bilateral relations | website=Sovereign Order of Malta | date=5 April 2023 | url=https://www.orderofmalta.int/diplomatic-activities/bilateral-relations/ | access-date=22 April 2023 | archive-date=25 June 2017 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170625205913/https://www.orderofmalta.int/diplomatic-activities/bilateral-relations/ | url-status=live }}</ref> Additionally, it participates in the United Nations as an [[United Nations General Assembly observers#Other entities|observer entity]]. However, the UN member state [[San Marino]] recognizes SMOM as a sovereign state, rather than a sovereign subject of international law.<ref>{{cite book|last=Cansacchi|first=Giorgio|title=Il diritto di legazione attivo e passivo dell'Ordine de Malta|date=1940|page=65}}</ref><ref>{{cite journal|last=Astraudo|first=A.|title=Saint-marin et l'Ordre de Malta|date=1935|journal=La Revue Diplomatique|volume=7}}</ref><ref>Cox, Noel S.B., The Continuing Question of Sovereignty and the Sovereign Military Order of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta (June 2008). Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1140462 {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230413151900/https://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1140462 |date=13 April 2023 }} or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.1140462 </ref> Italy's [[Supreme Court of Cassation (Italy)|Supreme Court of Cassation]] decreed on 6 June 1974 that SMOM "constitutes a sovereign international subject, in all terms equal, even if without territory, to a foreign state with which Italy has normal diplomatic relations".<ref>{{cite journal |url=https://swab.zlibcdn.com/dtoken/d9b09dd57910bda736e1e1045ece596b/23164645.pdf |title=Corte Suprema di Cassazione; Sezioni unite civili; sentenza 6 giugno 1974, n. 1653 |journal=Il Foro Italiano |volume=98 |issue=6 |date=June 1975 |pages=1471/1472–1475/1476 |access-date=10 April 2022 |archive-date=12 May 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220512200027/https://swab.zlibcdn.com/dtoken/d9b09dd57910bda736e1e1045ece596b/23164645.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref> As Italy recognizes, in addition to [[extraterritoriality]], SMOM sovereignty within its headquarters in Italy, Italian and SMOM sovereignty uniquely coexist without overlapping.<ref name="Arocha"/>
| style="text-align:center;"| None
| Foreign [[Foreign relations of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta|relations]], missions ([[List of diplomatic missions of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta|of]], [[List of diplomatic missions to the Sovereign Military Order of Malta|to]])
|}

==Excluded entities==
* Subnational entities and regions that function as ''de facto'' independent states, with the central government exercising little or no control over their territory, but that do not explicitly claim to be independent. Examples include the [[Gaza Strip]] in [[Palestine]],<ref name="Brown 2012">{{cite web | last=Brown | first=Nathan J. | title=Gaza Five Years On: Hamas Settles In | website=Carnegie Endowment for International Peace | date=11 June 2012 | url=https://carnegieendowment.org/research/2012/06/gaza-five-years-on-hamas-settles-in?lang=en | access-date=18 December 2023 | archive-date=3 May 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230503072817/https://carnegieendowment.org/2012/06/11/gaza-five-years-on-hamas-settles-in-pub-48470 | url-status=live }}</ref> the [[Kurdistan Region]] in [[Iraq]],<ref name="Jüde 2017 pp. 847–863">{{cite journal | last=Jüde | first=Johannes | title=Contesting borders? The formation of Iraqi Kurdistan's de facto state | journal=International Affairs | volume=93 | issue=4 | date=2017 | issn=0020-5850 | doi=10.1093/ia/iix125 | pages=847–863}}</ref> [[Autonomous Administration of North and East Syria|Rojava]] in [[Syria]],<ref name="Hond 2017">{{cite web | first1=Mireille | last1=Court | first2=Chris | last2=Den Hond | title=Experiment in self-rule in Rojava | website=Le Monde diplomatique | date=1 September 2017 | url=https://mondediplo.com/2017/09/05Rojava | access-date=18 December 2023 | archive-date=18 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231218144324/https://mondediplo.com/2017/09/05Rojava | url-status=live }}</ref> the [[Houthi movement]] and the [[Southern Movement]] in [[Yemen]]; and the [[Wa State]] in [[Myanmar]].<ref name="Kumbun">{{cite news |last1=Kumbun |first1=Joe |title=Protected by China, Wa Is Now a de Facto Independent State |url=https://www.irrawaddy.com/opinion/guest-column/protected-by-china-wa-is-now-a-de-facto-independent-state.html |access-date=11 September 2022 |work=The Irrawaddy |date=23 April 2019 |archive-date=29 November 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221129114041/https://www.irrawaddy.com/opinion/guest-column/protected-by-china-wa-is-now-a-de-facto-independent-state.html |url-status=live }}</ref>
* [[Rebellion|Rebel groups]] that have [[declaration of independence|declared independence]] and exert some control over territory, but that reliable sources do not describe as meeting the threshold of a sovereign state under international law. Examples include [[Puntland]] in [[Somalia]],<ref name="Varming 2017 pp. 8–14">{{cite tech report | last=Varming | first=Kirstine Strøh | title=THE EXPERIENTIAL LIMITS OF THE STATE: TERRITORY AND TAXATION IN GAROOWE, PUNTLAND | year=2017 | jstor=resrep13400.6 | url=http://www.jstor.org/stable/resrep13400.6 | access-date=18 December 2023 | page=8–14 | quote=This is important to consider, when discussing statehood in Puntland state, as in many ways, it functions as an independent state very much like the self-declared Republic of Somaliland.}}</ref><ref name="Africanews 2023">{{cite web | last=Africanews | first=Rédaction | title=Somalia: Puntland state dissociates itself from Mogadishu | website=Africanews | date=11 January 2023 | url=https://www.africanews.com/2023/01/11/somalia-puntland-state-dissociates-itself-from-mogadishu// | access-date=18 December 2023 | archive-date=18 December 2023 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231218144324/https://www.africanews.com/2023/01/11/somalia-puntland-state-dissociates-itself-from-mogadishu// | url-status=live }}</ref>  and [[Ambazonia]]; see [[list of rebel groups that control territory]] for a more complete list of such groups.
* Those areas undergoing current [[list of civil wars|civil wars]] and other situations with problems over government succession, regardless of temporary alignment with [[#Criteria for inclusion|the 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 stable [[quasi-state]]s have emerged yet.
* Those of the current [[list of irredentist claims or disputes|irredentist movements]] and [[Current governments in exile|governments in exile]] that do not satisfy [[#Criteria|the inclusion criteria]] by simultaneously not satisfying the declarative theory and not having been recognised as a state or legitimate government by any other state.
* Entities considered to be [[micronation]]s, 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.{{efn|name=Micronation2|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.<ref name="Cambridge University Press 2021 pp. 162–200">{{cite book | title=Micronations and the Search for Sovereignty | chapter=State Responses | publisher=Cambridge University Press | date=31 December 2021 | doi=10.1017/9781009150132.006 | pages=162–200| isbn=9781009150132 | s2cid=245453022 }}</ref>}} For this reason, micronations are usually not considered of geopolitical relevance. For a list of micronations, see [[list of micronations]].
* [[Uncontacted peoples]] who live in [[stateless society|societies that cannot be defined as states]] or whose statuses as such are not definitively known.
* 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 include [[Croatia]]<ref name="RecogHRV">{{cite web|url=https://mvep.gov.hr/foreign-policy/bilateral-relations/date-of-recognition-and-establishment-od-diplomatic-relations/22800|title=Date of Recognition and Establishment od Diplomatic Relations|website=mvep.gov.hr|publisher=[[Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs (Croatia)|Croatian Ministry of Foreign and European Affairs]]|access-date=1 March 2022|archive-date=28 September 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220928182827/https://mvep.gov.hr/foreign-policy/bilateral-relations/date-of-recognition-and-establishment-od-diplomatic-relations/22800|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Montenegro]].<ref name="RecogMNE">{{cite web|url=http://www.mip.gov.me/en/index.php/Bilateral/dates-of-recognition-and-establishment-of-diplomatic-relations.html|title=Dates of Recognition and Establishment of Diplomatic Relations|website=mip.gov.me|publisher=[[Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Montenegro)|Montenegrin Ministry of Foreign Affairs]]|access-date=1 March 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130517185051/http://www.mip.gov.me/en/index.php/Bilateral/dates-of-recognition-and-establishment-of-diplomatic-relations.html|archive-date=17 May 2013|url-status=dead}}</ref>
* The [[Joseon Cybernation]], a self-proclaimed digital nation which claims no territory, was given recognition by [[Antigua and Barbuda]] in 2023.<ref name="l195">{{cite web | last=Emmanuel | first=Robert A. | title=The digital dynasty: Joseon PM speaks about benefits to country | website=Antigua Observer Newspaper | date=2023-07-13 | url=https://antiguaobserver.com/the-digital-dynasty-joseon-pm-speaks-about-benefits-to-country/ | access-date=2025-11-04}}</ref> The ability of nations in cyberspace to be recognized as sovereign under international law remains unclear.<ref name="i171">{{cite web | last=Yang | first=Jeff | title=Why This Crypto Mogul Claims He’s a King of a ‘Cyber Nation’ | website=The Daily Beast | date=2024-02-03 | url=https://www.thedailybeast.com/how-andrew-lee-became-the-crown-prince-of-koreaand-made-a-digital-kingdom/ | access-date=2025-11-04}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Joseon |url=https://ab.gov.ag/pdf/Joseon_Cybernation.pdf |access-date=2024-08-25 |website= GOVERNMENT OF ANTIGUA AND BARBUDA|archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20250209185244/https://ab.gov.ag/pdf/Joseon_Cybernation.pdf|archive-date=February 9, 2025|language=en}}</ref>

== See also ==
{{portal|Countries|Politics}}
* [[Community for Democracy and Rights of Nations]]
* [[Decolonization]]
* [[Diplomatic recognition]]
* [[List of historical unrecognized states]]
* [[Separatism]]
** [[List of active autonomist and secessionist movements]]
*** [[List of active separatist movements recognized by intergovernmental organizations]]
* [[Territorial dispute]]
** [[List of territorial disputes]]
* [[Territorial integrity]]
* [[Unilateral declaration of independence]]
* [[Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization]]

== Notes ==
{{notelist}}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== Further reading ==
{{refbegin}}
* Adrian Florea, "[[doi:10.1093/isq/sqw049|De Facto States: Survival and Disappearance (1945–2011)]]." International Studies Quarterly, Volume 61, Issue 2, June 2017, Pages 337–351
*{{cite journal|title=Rebel governance in de facto states|last1=Florea|first1=Adrian|date=6 May 2020|journal=[[European Journal of International Relations]]|volume=26|issue=4|pages=1004–1031|publisher=[[SAGE Publishing]]|doi=10.1177/1354066120919481|s2cid=53365477|doi-access=free}}
*{{cite book | last = Geldenhuys | first = Deon | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=Sa2HDAAAQBAJ | title = Contested States in World Politics | year = 2009 | publisher = Palgrave Macmillan | isbn = 978-0-230-23418-5 | access-date = 16 October 2017 | archive-date = 16 June 2024 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20240616061554/https://books.google.com/books?id=Sa2HDAAAQBAJ | url-status = live }}
* {{cite book |last=Keating |first=Joshua |year=2018 |title=Invisible Countries: Journeys to the Edge of Nationhood |publisher=Yale |isbn=978-0-300-22162-6}}
* {{cite book | last = Ker-Lindsay | first = James | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=4PwmeRG9QsUC | title = The Foreign Policy of Counter Secession: Preventing the Recognition of Contested States | edition = 1st | location = Oxford | year = 2012 | publisher = Oxford University Press | isbn = 9780199698394 | access-date = 13 August 2015 | archive-date = 15 January 2023 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230115130621/https://books.google.com/books?id=4PwmeRG9QsUC | url-status = live }}
*[https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/nationalities-papers/issue/special-issue-on-the-emergence-and-resilience-of-parastates/643F832C3E7BDA842E6C7C8E846DA29E Nationalities Papers. Special Issue on the Emergence and Resilience of Parastates.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210131194727/https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/nationalities-papers/issue/special-issue-on-the-emergence-and-resilience-of-parastates/643F832C3E7BDA842E6C7C8E846DA29E |date=31 January 2021 }}
* {{cite book |last1=Wertz |first1=Daniel |last2=Oh |first2=JJ |last3=Kim |first3=Insung |date=August 2016 |title=Issue Brief: DPRK Diplomatic Relations |publisher=The National Committee on North Korea |url=http://www.ncnk.org/resources/publications/NCNK_Issue_Brief_DPRK_Diplomatic_Relations.pdf |access-date=19 January 2017 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161228074114/http://www.ncnk.org/resources/publications/NCNK_Issue_Brief_DPRK_Diplomatic_Relations.pdf |archive-date=28 December 2016 }}
{{refend}}

{{States with limited recognition}}
{{Colonization}}
{{interwiki extra|qid=Q15634554}}

[[Category:States with limited recognition| ]]
[[Category:Lists of countries|Limited recognition]]