This is a list of sovereign countries that border only one other country, with only land borders being counted. Some of these countries may be said to have several neighbours "by sea". As an example Denmark "borders" Sweden and Norway by sea, and Canada has sea boundaries with Denmark (between Baffin Island and Greenland) and France (between the island of Newfoundland and the territory of St. Pierre and Miquelon). Other countries may only border one country by sea.
Territory leased or ceded by one country to another for perpetual use, but not in sovereignty, such as Guantanamo Bay Naval Base in Cuba, or memorials, such as the American Cemetery in France, do not constitute true territorial borders, because the land occupied remains a formal part of the host country.
Contents |
Country | Neighbour | Border length (km) | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
Brunei | Malaysia | 381 | Borders the Malaysian state of Sarawak on the island of Borneo. |
Canada | United States | 8,893 | The border around the area of Hans Island between Canada and Greenland (a Danish dependent territory) is disputed and undefined. Canada also shares a maritime border with Saint Pierre and Miquelon, a French dependent territory |
Denmark | Germany | 68 | Denmark is connected to Sweden via the Øresund Bridge. The border around the area of Hans Island between Canada and Greenland (a Danish dependent territory) is disputed and undefined. See dependent territories below. |
Dominican Republic | Haiti | 360 | On the island of Hispaniola. |
Gambia | Senegal | 740 | |
Haiti | Dominican Republic | 360 | On the island of Hispaniola. |
Ireland | United Kingdom | 360 | The Republic of Ireland borders the United Kingdom on the island of Ireland. |
Lesotho | South Africa | 909 | Lesotho is an enclave entirely surrounded by South Africa. |
Monaco | France | 4.4 | Monaco is surrounded on three sides by France, the last bordering the Mediterranean. |
Papua New Guinea | Indonesia | 820 | On the island of New Guinea. |
Portugal | Spain | 1,214 | |
Qatar | Saudi Arabia | 60 | The planned Qatar–Bahrain Friendship Bridge would connect Qatar to Bahrain. |
San Marino | Italy | 39 | San Marino is an enclave entirely surrounded by Italy. |
South Korea | North Korea | 238 | On the Korean Peninsula, at the Demarcation Line. The two countries are separated by a 4 km wide Demilitarized Zone. |
Timor-Leste | Indonesia | 228 | On the island of Timor. |
United Kingdom | Ireland | 360 | The United Kingdom borders the Republic of Ireland on the island of Ireland. The UK is also connected to France via the Channel Tunnel. The UK sovereign base areas Akrotiri and Dhekelia share borders with Cyprus. Gibraltar, a UK overseas territory, shares a border with Spain. See dependent territories below. |
Vatican City | Italy | 3.2 | The Vatican is an enclave entirely surrounded by Italy. |
Borders relevant to this list may arguably include short theoretical borders in the middle of man-made constructions. Also, artificial islands or causeways could be disputed.
In some cases, a dependent territory of one nation borders another nation.
There are many countries that historically had only one neighbour. Some no longer exist while others now have either no land borders or borders with more than one nation due to map changes.