APHUG Unit 4 Chapter 8 - Political Geography Key Issue #1

List the 6 largest states in order

1. Russia 2. Canada 3. United States 4. China 5. Brazil 6. Australia

Define sovereignty

Ability of a state to govern its territory free from control of its internal affairs by other states.

Define state

An area organized into a political unit and ruled by an established government with control over its internal and foreign affairs.

There is some disagreement about how many states there actually are in the world because of regions which may or may not actually be states. Complete the table to demonstrate four cases.

China and Taiwan: One state if you agree that: according to China's government, Taiwan is not sovereign but a part of China. Two states if you agree that: most other countries consider China and Taiwan as separate and sovereign states.

There is some disagreement about how many states there actually are in the world because of regions which may or may not actually be states. Complete the table to demonstrate four cases.

Korea (North and South) One state if you agree that: the fact that it originally had been a territory of Japan but when the Allies defeated Japan in WW2, both the former Soviet Union and the US came into Korea Two states if you agree that: North Korea wants a dictatorship while Korea wants a democracy.Former USSR had the North part of Korea and the US had the south part.

There is some disagreement about how many states there actually are in the world because of regions which may or may not actually be states. Complete the table to demonstrate four cases.

Sahrawl Republic / Western Sahara One state if you agree that: an independent Sahrawi Republic was declared by the Polisario Front (Frente Polisario, FRELISARIO or simply POLISARIO) and recognized by most African countries. no state if you agree that: Morocco claimed the entire territory.

There is some disagreement about how many states there actually are in the world because of regions which may or may not actually be states. Complete the table to demonstrate four cases.

Senkaku / Diaoyu Islands One state if you agree that: Japan illegally seized the territory in 1895 and it belongs to China. Two/three states if you agree that: China, Taiwan, and Japan each have control of them.

How many microstates are recognized? What do many have in common?

Two dozen microstates are recognized. All are extremely small, smaller than 1,000 square kilometers (400 square miles).

How has the number of states changed since 1940?

in 1940 there were only 50 countries and now approximately 200 countries.

Define microstate

very small land area