State
lastmod 2018-08-17created 2014-05-035 edits
| For other meanings (homonyms), see State, State (computer science) |
A state, or country, is a political entity that occupies a defined territory, has an organized political form, namely a government, and exercises internal and external sovereignty. The conditions of statehood generally agreed upon in academia include recognition of independence and the capacity to enter into international agreements. However, according to some theories, such as the Montevideo Convention, these conditions are not strictly necessary.
According to Max Weber, a "state" can also be defined by its domestic situation. Weber said, "A state is a human community that successfully brings about the situation of using physical force exclusively, and legitimately, within a given territory". Weber's definition is understood in various ways, depending on the meaning attached to the qualifier "legitimate". According to Marx, "the state is an executive committee representing the interests of the bourgeois capitalists" and is "nothing more than an instrument of rule by the ruling class".
A state is an organization created by the people of a certain region for their communal needs; it carries out their demands with unity and continuity for its members, and aims to protect and maintain the community against internal and external enemies. It is a single political unit and generally means only the nation-state; when a people exists without being governed by its state, it is not called a country (e.g., the Palestinian people before the establishment of the Palestinian Authority). At the same time, when only a state exists without a corresponding people, or when the state is not a nation-state (that is, when it does not have territory over which it exercises sovereignty), it is not called a country.
There are about 220 states in the world today, and their forms and functions differ widely. Also, throughout history, countless political organizations that could be called states in a broad sense have risen and fallen. Therefore the concept of the state is not settled, and there are various opinions about its origin and role. Opinions are also divided on what should be regarded as a state. However, today's developed countries call themselves welfare states and take as their goal striving for the happiness and welfare of all "from the cradle to the grave".
Elements of the state
In his book The Prince, Machiavelli first introduced the word state into scholarship by saying, "All states, all powers, that have held and hold rule over men have been and are either republics or principalities." Along with this, he named land, people, and dominion as the components of the state. This was carried on into the three-element theory of the state, people, territory, and sovereignty, which is still the prevailing view in international law. The Montevideo Convention on the Rights and Duties of States states that to be recognized as a state under international law, it must have a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.
List of states
| Short and forma names | Membership within the UN System | Sovereignty dispute | Further information on status and recognition of sovereignty |
| Korea, South – Republic of Korea | UN member state | Claimed by North Korea | South Korea contains 1 autonomous region, Jeju-do. South Korea is not recognised by one UN member: North Korea. |
| UN member state | None | Japan disputes Russian administration of the South Kuril Islands. |