List of sovereign states in 1978
Sovereign states by year | ||
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List of sovereign states in 1977 | Events of 1978 | List of sovereign states in 1979 |
Internationally recognized sovereign states
A
- → → Afghanistan - UN member state
Capital: Kabul - Albania – People's Socialist Republic of Albania, UN member state
Capital: Tirana - Algeria – People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, UN member state
Capital: Algiers - Andorra – Principality of Andorra
Capital: Andorra la Vella - Angola – People's Republic of Angola, UN member state
Capital: Luanda - Antigua – associated state of the United Kingdom
Capital: St. John's - Argentina – Argentine Republic, UN member state[1]
Capital: Buenos Aires - Armenia – Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic (republic within the Soviet Union)
Capital: Yerevan - Australia – Commonwealth of Australia, UN member state
Capital: Canberra - Austria – Republic of Austria, UN member state
Capital: Vienna - Azerbaijan – Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (republic within the Soviet Union)
Capital: Baku
B
- The Bahamas – Commonwealth of the Bahamas
Capital: Nassau - Bahrain - State of Bahrain, UN member state
Capital: Manama - Bangladesh – People's Republic of Bangladesh, UN member state
Capital: Dhaka - Barbados – UN member state
Capital: Bridgetown - Belgium – Kingdom of Belgium, UN member state
Capital: Brussels - Benin – People's Republic of Benin, UN member state
Capital: Porto-Novo (official), Cotonou (seat of government) - Bhutan – Kingdom of Bhutan, UN member state
Capital: Thimphu - Bolivia – Republic of Bolivia, UN member state
Capital: Sucre (official), La Paz (administrative) - Bophuthatswana – Republic of Bophuthatswana (nominally independent South African bantustan)
Capital: Mmabatho - Botswana – Republic of Botswana, UN member state
Capital: Gaborone - Brazil – Federative Republic of Brazil, UN member state
Capital: Brasília - Bulgaria – People's Republic of Bulgaria, UN member state
Capital: Sofia - Burma – Union of Burma, UN member state
Capital: Rangoon - Burundi – Republic of Burundi, UN member state
Capital: Bujumbura - Byelorussia – Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic, UN member state (Republic within the Soviet Union)
Capital: Minsk
C
- Cameroon – United Republic of Cameroon, UN member state
Capital: Yaoundé - Canada , UN member state
Capital: Ottawa - Cape Verde – Republic of Cape Verde, UN member state
Capital: Praia - Central African Empire – UN member state
Capital: Bangui - Chad – Republic of Chad, UN member state
Capital: N'Djamena - Chile – Republic of Chile, UN member state
Capital: Santiago - China – People's Republic of China, UN member state
Capital: Beijing
Republic of China Taiwan
- Colombia – Republic of Colombia, UN member state
Capital: Bogotá - Comoros – Federal Islamic Republic of the Comoros, UN member state
Capital: Moroni - Congo – People's Republic of Congo, UN member state
Capital: Brazzaville - Cook Islands – (A state in free association with New Zealand)
Capital: Avarua - Costa Rica – Republic of Costa Rica, UN member state
Capital: San José - Cuba – Republic of Cuba, UN member state
Capital: Havana - Cyprus – Republic of Cyprus, UN member state
Capital: Nicosia - Czechoslovakia – Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, UN member state
Capital: Prague
D
- Denmark – Kingdom of Denmark, UN member state
Capital: Copenhagen - Djibouti – Republic of Djibouti, UN member state
Capital: Djibouti - Dominica – UN member state
Capital: Roseau- Dominica (to 2 November 1978)
- Commonwealth of Dominica (from 3 November 1978)[4]
- Dominican Republic – Widely recognized UN member state
Capital: Santo Domingo
E
- Ecuador – Republic of Ecuador, UN member state
Capital: Quito - Egypt – Arab Republic of Egypt
Capital: Cairo - El Salvador – Republic of El Salvador, UN member state
Capital: San Salvador - Equatorial Guinea – Republic of Equatorial Guinea, UN member state
Capital: Malabo - Ethiopia – Provisional Military Government of Socialist Ethiopia (Derg), UN member state
Capital: Addis Ababa
F
- Fiji – Dominion of Fiji, UN member state
Capital: Suva - Finland – Republic of Finland, UN member state
Capital: Helsinki - France – French Republic, UN member state
Capital: Paris
G
- Gabon – Gabonese Republic, UN member state
Capital: Libreville - Gambia – Republic of the Gambia, UN member state
Capital: Banjul - Germany, East – German Democratic Republic, UN member state
Capital: East Berlin (disputed) - Germany, West – Federal Republic of Germany, UN member state
Capital: Bonn - Ghana – Republic of Ghana, UN member state
Capital: Accra - Greece – Hellenic Republic, UN member state
Capital: Athens - Grenada – UN member state
Capital: St. George's - Guatemala – Republic of Guatemala, UN member state
Capital: Guatemala City - Guinea – Republic of Guinea, UN member state
Capital: Conakry - Guinea-Bissau – Republic of Guinea-Bissau, UN member state
Capital: Bissau - Guyana – Co-operative Republic of Guyana, UN member state
Capital: Georgetown
H
- Haiti – Republic of Haiti, UN member state
Capital: Port-au-Prince - Honduras – Republic of Honduras, UN member state
Capital: Tegucigalpa - Hungary - Hungarian People's Republic, UN member state
Capital: Budapest
I
- Iceland – Republic of Iceland, UN member state
Capital: Reykjavík - India – Republic of India, UN member state
Capital: New Delhi - Indonesia – Republic of Indonesia, UN member state
Capital: Jakarta - Iran – Imperial State of Iran, UN member state
Capital: Tehran - Iraq – Iraqi Republic, UN member state
Capital: Baghdad - Ireland – UN member state
Capital: Dublin - Israel – State of Israel, UN member state (was not recognized by 21 UN member states)
Capital: Jerusalem - Italy – Italian Republic, UN member state
Capital: Rome - Ivory Coast – Republic of Ivory Coast, UN member state
Capital: Abidjan
J
- Jamaica – Commonwealth of Jamaica, UN member state
Capital: Kingston - Japan – UN member state
Capital: Tokyo - Jordan – Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, UN member state
Capital: Amman
K
- Kampuchea – Democratic Kampuchea
Capital: Phnom Penh - Kazakhstan – Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic (republic within the Soviet Union)
Capital: Alma-Ata - Kenya – Republic of Kenya, UN member state
Capital: Nairobi - North Korea – Democratic People's Republic of Korea, permanent observer at UN (was not recognized by 4 UN member states)
Capital: Pyongyang - South Korea – Republic of Korea, permanent observer at UN (was not recognized by 3 UN member states at greatest extent)
Capital: Seoul - Kuwait – State of Kuwait, UN member state
Capital: Kuwait City
L
- Laos – Lao People's Democratic Republic, UN member state
Capital: Vientiane - Lebanon – Lebanese Republic, UN member state
Capital: Beirut - Lesotho – Kingdom of Lesotho, UN member state
Capital: Maseru - Liberia – Republic of Liberia, UN member state
Capital: Monrovia - Libya – Socialist People's Libyan Arab Jamahiriya, UN member state
Capital: Tripoli - Liechtenstein – Principality of Liechtenstein, UN member state
Capital: Vaduz - Luxembourg – Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, UN member state
Capital: Luxembourg
M
- Madagascar – Democratic Republic of Madagascar, UN member state
Capital: Antananarivo - Malawi – Republic of Malawi, UN member state
Capital: Lilongwe - Malaysia – UN member state
Capital: Kuala Lumpur - Maldives – Republic of Maldives, UN member state
Capital: Malé - Mali – Republic of Mali, UN member state
Capital: Bamako - Malta – Republic of Malta, UN member state
Capital: Valletta - Mauritania – Islamic Republic of Mauritania, UN member state
Capital: Nouakchott - Mauritius – UN member state
Capital: Port Louis - Mexico – United Mexican States, UN member state
Capital: Mexico City - Monaco – Principality of Monaco, Permanent observer at the UN
Capital: Monaco - Mongolia – Mongolian People's Republic, UN member state
Capital: Ulaanbaatar - Morocco – Kingdom of Morocco, UN member state
Capital: Rabat - Mozambique – People's Republic of Mozambique
Capital: Maputo
N
- Nauru – Republic of Nauru, UN member state
Capital: Yaren (unofficial) - Nepal – Kingdom of Nepal, UN member state
Capital: Kathmandu - Netherlands – Kingdom of the Netherlands, UN member state
Capital: Amsterdam (official), The Hague (seat of government) - New Zealand - Dominion of New Zealand, UN member state
Capital: Wellington - Nicaragua – Republic of Nicaragua, UN member state
Capital: Managua - Niger – Republic of Niger, UN member state
Capital: Niamey - Nigeria – Federal Republic of Nigeria, UN member state
Capital: Lagos - Niue – A state in free association with New Zealand.
Capital: Alofi - Norway – Kingdom of Norway, UN member state
Capital: Oslo
O
- Oman – Sultanate of Oman, UN member state
Capital: Muscat, Oman
P
- Pakistan – Islamic Republic of Pakistan, UN member state
Capital: Islamabad - Panama – Republic of Panama, UN member state
Capital: Panama City - Papua New Guinea – Independent State of Papua New Guinea, UN member state
Capital: Port Moresby - Paraguay – Republic of Paraguay, UN member state
Capital: Asunción - Peru – Peruvian Republic, UN member state
Capital: Lima - Philippines – Republic of the Philippines, UN member state
Capital: Manila - Poland – Polish People's Republic, UN member state
Capital: Warsaw - Portugal – Portuguese Republic, UN member state
Capital: Lisbon
Q
R
- Rhodesia – (De facto independent state)
Capital: Salisbury - Romania – Socialist Republic of Romania, UN member state
Capital: Bucharest - Rwanda – Rwandese Republic, UN member state[5]
Capital: Kigali - Rwenzururu – Kingdom of Rwenzururu (De facto independent state)
Capital: Kasese
S
- Sahara, Western – Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic
Capital: Bir Lehlou (official), Rabouni (seat of government-in-exile), El Aaiún (claimed) - Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla – (Associated state of the United Kingdom)
Capital: Basseterre - Saint Lucia – Associated state of the United Kingdom
Capital: Castries - Saint Vincent (Associated state of the United Kingdom)
Capital: Kingstown - San Marino – Republic of San Marino
Capital: San Marino - São Tomé and Príncipe – Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe, UN member state
Capital: São Tomé - Saudi Arabia – Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, UN member state
Capital: Riyadh - Senegal – Republic of Senegal, UN member state
Capital: Dakar - Seychelles – Republic of Seychelles, UN member state
Capital: Victoria - Sierra Leone – Republic of Sierra Leone, UN member state
Capital: Freetown - Singapore – Republic of Singapore, UN member state
Capital: Singapore - Solomon Islands – UN member state (from 7 July 1978)[6]
Capital: Honiara - Somalia - Somali Democratic Republic, UN member state
Capital: Mogadishu - South Africa – Republic of South Africa, UN member state
Capital: Pretoria (administrative), Cape Town (legislative), Bloemfontein (judicial) - Soviet Union – Union of Soviet Socialist Republics, UN member state
Capital: Moscow - Spain – UN member state
Capital: Madrid - Sri Lanka – UN member state
Capital: Colombo (to 1978), Sri Jayawardenapura-Kotte (from 1978) - Sudan – Democratic Republic of the Sudan, UN member state
Capital: Khartoum - Suriname – Republic of Suriname, UN member state
Capital: Paramaribo - Swaziland – Kingdom of Swaziland, UN member state
Capital: Mbabane (administrative), Lobamba (royal and legislative) - Sweden – Kingdom of Sweden, UN member state
Capital: Stockholm - Switzerland – Swiss Confederation, Permanent observer at UN
Capital: Bern - Syria – Syrian Arab Republic, UN member state
Capital: Damascus
T
- Taiwan – Republic of China (partially-recognized de facto sovereign state)
Capital: Taipei - Tanzania – United Republic of Tanzania, UN member state
Capital: Dar es Salaam - Thailand – Kingdom of Thailand, UN member state
Capital: Bangkok - Togo – Togolese Republic, UN member state
Capital: Lomé - Tonga – Kingdom of Tonga
Capital: Nukuʻalofa - Transkei – Republic of Transkei (nominally-independent South African bantustan)
Capital: Umtata - Trinidad and Tobago Republic of Trinidad and Tobago, UN member state
Capital: Port of Spain - Tunisia – Tunisian Republic, UN member state
Capital: Tunis - Turkey – Republic of Turkey, UN member state
Capital: Ankara - Tuvalu – (from October 1)
Capital: Funafuti
U
- Uganda – Republic of Uganda, UN member state
Capital: Kampala - Ukraine – Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic, UN member state (Republic within the Soviet Union)
Capital: Kiev - United Arab Emirates – UN member state
Capital: Abu Dhabi - United Kingdom – United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, UN member state
Capital: London - United States – United States of America, UN member state
Capital: Washington, D.C. - Upper Volta – Republic of Upper Volta, UN member state
Capital: Ouagadougou - Uruguay – Eastern Republic of Uruguay, UN member state
Capital: Montevideo
V
- Vatican City – Vatican City State, permanent observer at UN
Capital: Vatican City - Venezuela – Republic of Venezuela, UN member state
Capital: Caracas - Vietnam – Socialist Republic of Vietnam, UN member state
Capital: Hanoi
W
- Western Samoa – Independent State of Western Samoa, UN member state
Capital: Apia
Y
- Yemen, North – Yemen Arab Republic, UN member state
Capital: Sana'a - Yemen, South – People's Democratic Republic of Yemen, UN member state
Capital: Aden - Yugoslavia – Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, UN member state
Capital: Belgrade
Z
- Zaire – Republic of Zaire, UN member state
Capital: Kinshasa - Zambia – Republic of Zambia, UN member state
Capital: Lusaka
Non-sovereign territories
Australia
- Ashmore and Cartier Islands – Territory of Ashmore and Cartier Islands (from July 1, Uninhabited external territory)
- Australian Antarctic Territory (Uninhabited external territory)[9]
- Christmas Island – Territory of Christmas Island (External territory)
- Cocos (Keeling) Islands – Territory of Cocos (Keeling) Islands (External territory)
- Coral Sea Islands – Coral Sea Islands Territory (Uninhabited external territory)
- Heard Island and McDonald Islands – Territory of Heard Island and McDonald Islands (Uninhabited external territory)
- Norfolk Island – Territory of Norfolk Island (External territory)
Condominiums
- Canton and Enderbury Islands (Anglo-American condominium)
- New Hebrides (Anglo-French condominium)
Denmark
- Faroe Islands (Autonomous province)
France
- Bassas da India (Uninhabited possession)
- Clipperton Island (Uninhabited possession)
- Europa Island (Uninhabited possession)
- French Polynesia – Territory of French Polynesia (Overseas territory)
- French Southern and Antarctic Lands - Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands (Uninhabited overseas territory)[9]
- Glorioso Islands (Uninhabited possession)
- Juan de Nova Island (Uninhabited possession)
- Mayotte – Territorial Collectivity of Mayotte (Territorial collectivity)
- New Caledonia – Territory of New Caledonia and Dependencies (Overseas territory)
- Tromelin Island (Uninhabited possession)
- Wallis and Futuna – Territory of Wallis and Futuna Islands (Overseas territory)
International
- West Berlin (Occupied territory governed by France, the United Kingdom, and the United States)
League of Nations Mandates
- South-West Africa (administered by South Africa)
Netherlands
- Netherlands Antilles (Overseas country)
New Zealand
- Cook Islands (Self-governing state in free association with New Zealand)
- Niue (Self-governing state in free association with New Zealand)
- Ross Dependency (Uninhabited dependent territory)[9]
- Tokelau (Dependent territory)
Norway
- Bouvet Island (Uninhabited possession)
- Peter I Island (Uninhabited possession)[9]
- Queen Maud Land (Uninhabited possession)[9]
Portugal
- Macau (Chinese territory under Portuguese administration)
United Kingdom
- Akrotiri and Dhekelia – Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia (Sovereign base areas administrated as a single colony)
- Bermuda (Self-governing crown colony)
- British Antarctic Territory (Uninhabited colony)[9]
- British Indian Ocean Territory (Uninhabited colony)
- British Virgin Islands (Crown colony)
- Brunei - State of Brunei Darussalam (Protectorate)
- Cayman Islands (Crown colony)
- Dominica (to November 3, Self-governing state in free association with the United Kingdom)
- Ellice Islands (to October 1, crown colony)
- Falkland Islands (Crown colony)
- Gibraltar (Crown colony)
- Gilbert Islands (Crown colony)
- Guernsey – Bailiwick of Guernsey (Crown dependency)
- Hong Kong (Crown colony)
- Isle of Man (Crown dependency)
- Jersey – Bailiwick of Jersey (Crown dependency)
- Montserrat (Crown colony)
- Pitcairn Islands – Pitcairn, Henderson, Ducie and Oeno Islands (Crown colony)
- Saint Helena (Crown colony)
- Solomon Islands (to July 7, Self-governing protectorate)
- Turks and Caicos Islands (Crown colony)
United Nations Trust Territories
- Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands (administered by the United States)
United States
- American Samoa – Territory of American Samoa (Territory)
- Bajo Nuevo Bank (Uninhabited territory)
- Baker Island (Uninhabited territory)
- Guam – Territory of Guam (Territory)
- Howland Island (Uninhabited territory)
- Jarvis Island (Uninhabited territory)
- Johnston Atoll (Uninhabited territory)
- Kingman Reef (Uninhabited territory)
- Midway Atoll (Uninhabited territory)
- Navassa Island (Uninhabited territory)
- Palmyra Atoll (Uninhabited territory)
- Panama Canal Zone (Territory)
- Puerto Rico – Commonwealth of Puerto Rico (Territory)
- Quita Sueño Bank (Uninhabited territory)
- Roncador Bank (Uninhabited territory)
- Serrana Bank (Uninhabited territory)
- Serranilla Bank (Uninhabited territory)
- United States Virgin Islands (Territory)
- Wake Island (Uninhabited territory)
Other entities
Excluded from the list above are the following noteworthy entities which either were not fully sovereign or did not claim to be independent:
- Antarctica as a whole had no government and no permanent population. Seven states claimed portions of Antarctica and five of these had reciprocally recognised one another's claims.[10] These claims, which were regulated by the Antarctic Treaty System, were neither recognised nor disputed by any other signatory state.[11]
- East Timor was invaded by Indonesia in 1975 and forcibly annexed into it in 1976, but this was not recognized by the United Nations.
- Estonia was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1940, but the legality of the annexation was not widely recognized. The Baltic diplomatic services in the West continued to be recognized as representing the de jure state.
- Latvia was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1940, but the legality of the annexation was not widely recognized. The Baltic diplomatic services in the West continued to be recognized as representing the de jure state.
- Lithuania was incorporated into the Soviet Union in 1940, but the legality of the annexation was not widely recognized. The Baltic diplomatic services in the West continued to be recognized as representing the de jure state.
- The Saudi Arabian–Iraqi neutral zone was a strip of neutral territory between Iraq and Saudi Arabia.
- The Sovereign Military Order of Malta was an entity claiming sovereignty. The order had bi-lateral diplomatic relations with a large number of states, but had no territory other than extraterritorial areas within Rome.[12] The order's Constitution stated: "The Order is a subject of international law and exercises sovereign functions." [13] Although the order frequently asserted its sovereignty, it did not claim to be a sovereign state. It lacked a defined territory. Since all its members were citizens of other states, almost all of them lived in their native countries, and those who resided in the order's extraterritorial properties in Rome did so only in connection with their official duties, the order lacked the characteristic of having a permanent population.
- West Berlin was a political enclave that was closely aligned with – but not actually a part of – West Germany. It consisted of three occupied sectors administered by the United States, the United Kingdom, and France.
References
- ^ The name "Argentine Nation" was also used for the purposes of legislation.
- ^ The Comoros became independent from France on 6 Jul 1975
- ^ a b The Comoros enacted a new constitution on 1 Oct 1978
- ^ Dominica gained independence from the United Kingdom on 3 November 1978
- ^ Rwanda's official French name was "République rwandaise". "Archived copy" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on 2007-06-22. Retrieved 2006-08-27.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) [1]. It could be translated into English as "Rwandese Republic" s:CIA World Fact Book, 2004/Rwanda, "Rwandan Republic" [2], or "Republic of Rwanda" [3].
- ^ The Solomon Islands gained independence from the United Kingdom on 7 July 1978. [4]
- ^ a b Spain enacted a new constitution on 29 Dec 1978
- ^ a b A new Constitution of Sri Lanka came into effect on 7 Sep 1978
- ^ a b c d e f Including an Antarctic claim, neither recognized nor disputed under the terms of the Antarctic Treaty System.
- ^ Rogan-Finnemore, Michelle (2005), "What Bioprospecting Means for Antarctica and the Southern Ocean", in Von Tigerstrom, Barbara (ed.), International Law Issues in the South Pacific, Ashgate Publishing, p. 204, ISBN 0-7546-4419-7 "Australia, New Zealand, France, Norway and the United Kingdom reciprocally recognize the validity of each other's claims."
- ^ CIA – The World Factbook – "Antarctica" – accessed 19 January 2008
- ^ Bilateral relations with countries Archived 2008-06-26 at the Wayback Machine, Retrieved 2009-12-22
- ^ Chapter General of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem of Rhodes and of Malta (1998-01-12). Constitutional Charter and Code of the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of St. John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes, and of Malta, promulgated 27 June 1961, revised by the Extraordinary Chapter General 28–30 April 1997, Article 3 "Sovereignty," Paragraph 1 (PDF). Rome: Tipografia Arte della Stampa. p. 11.