Editing List of sovereign states (section)

==Criteria for inclusion==
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The dominant [[customary international law]] standard of statehood is the [[Sovereign state#Declarative theory|declarative theory of statehood]], which was codified by the [[Montevideo Convention]] of 1933. The Convention defines the state as a [[Legal person|person]] of international law if it "possess[es] the following qualifications: (a) a permanent population; (b) a defined territory; (c) government; and (d) a capacity to enter into relations with the other states" so long as it was not "obtained by force whether this consists in the employment of arms, in threatening diplomatic representations, or in any other effective coercive measure".<ref>{{cite book|author=Hersch Lauterpacht|title=Recognition in International Law|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EWgEv1Qq2TwC&pg=PA419|year=2012|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|page=xxxv|isbn=9781107609433}}</ref>

Debate exists on the degree to which [[Diplomatic recognition|recognition]] should be included as a criterion of statehood. The declarative theory of statehood argues that statehood is purely objective and recognition of a state by other states is irrelevant. On the other end of the spectrum, the [[Sovereign state#Constitutive theory|constitutive theory of statehood]] defines a state as a person under international law only if it is recognised as [[Sovereignty|sovereign]] by other states. For the purposes of this list, included are all polities that consider themselves sovereign states (through a [[declaration of independence]] or some other means) and either:
* are often regarded as satisfying the declarative theory of statehood, ''or''
* are recognised as a sovereign state by at least one [[member states of the United Nations|UN member state]]

In some cases, there is a divergence of opinion over the interpretation of the first point, and whether an entity satisfies it is disputed. Unique political entities which fail to meet the classification of a sovereign state are considered [[quasi-state|proto-states]].<ref name=Hahn>{{cite book|last=Hahn|first=Gordon|title=Russia's Revolution from Above, 1985–2000: Reform, Transition, and Revolution in the Fall of the Soviet Communist Regime|date=2002|page=527|publisher=Transaction Publishers|location=New Brunswick|isbn=978-0765800497}}</ref><ref name=Griffiths>{{cite book|last=Griffiths|first=Ryan|title=Age of Secession: The International and Domestic Determinants of State Birth|date=2016|pages=85, 213–242|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge|isbn=978-1107161627}}</ref>

On the basis of the above criteria, this list includes the following 205 entities:{{efn|The following bullets are grouped according to the availability of sources for the two criteria ((a) or (b)). This arrangement is not intended to reflect the relative importance of the two theories. Additional details are discussed in the state's individual entries.}}{{efn|name="micros"|The [[Sovereign Military Order of Malta]] is not included, as despite being a sovereign entity it lacks territory and does not claim statehood. Entities considered to be [[micronation]]s are not included. It is often up to debate whether a micronation truly controls its claimed territory. Also omitted from this list are all [[uncontacted peoples]], either who live in [[stateless society|societies that cannot be defined as states]] or whose statuses as such are not definitively known.}}
* 203 states recognised by at least one UN member state
* One state that satisfies the declarative theory of statehood and is recognised only by non-UN member states
* One state that satisfies the declarative theory of statehood and is not recognised by any other state

The table includes bullets in the right-hand column representing entities that are either not sovereign states or have a close association to another sovereign state. It also includes subnational areas where the sovereignty of the titular state is limited by an international agreement. Taken together, these include:
* Entities that are in a [[associated state|free association]] relationship with another state
* Two entities controlled by Pakistan which are neither sovereign states, dependent territories, nor part of another state: [[Azad Kashmir]] and [[Gilgit-Baltistan]]
* Dependent territories of another state, as well as areas that exhibit many characteristics of dependent territories according to the [[dependent territory]] page
* Subnational entities created by international agreements