This is a list of sovereign states and dependent territories in Asia. It includes both fully recognized states, states with limited recognition, and dependent territories of both Asian and non-Asian states.
The divisions between Asia and Europe occur at the Ural Mountains, Ural River and Caspian Sea in the east, the Caucasus Mountains and the Black Sea with its outlets, Bosporus and Dardanelles in the south. Azerbaijan, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Russia and Turkey are considered part of both Europe and Asia. Armenia and Cyprus are entirely in Western Asia, but are sociopolitically European countries. The division between Asia and Africa is usually considered to be the Suez Canal, placing the Sinai peninsula in Asia, and therefore Egypt may be included as an Asian state.
The division between Asia and Australasia (Oceania) is disputed, and placed somewhere between Java and New Guinea. Indonesia spans both areas, but is considered to be Asian. East Timor is sometimes considered to be part of Australasia, but due to its being surrounded by Indonesia and its once being part of Indonesia, it is considered Asian. Papua New Guinea is occasionally considered Asian by virtue of neighbouring Indonesia, but this is rare, and it is generally accepted to be part of Australasia. The division between Asia and North America is considered to be the Bering strait. Some of the Aleutian Islands may be considered as Asian.
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A sovereign state is a political association with effective sovereignty over a population for whom it makes decisions in the national interest.[1] According to the Montevideo convention, a state must have a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states.[2]
The 48 states in this list are all members of the United Nations.[3]
| Flag | Map | English short and formal names [4][5][6] |
Domestic short and formal names[4][5] | Capital [7][8][6] |
Population[a][b] [9] |
Area[a][b] [10] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afghanistan Islamic Republic of Afghanistan |
Dari: جمهوری اسلامی افغانستان — افغانستان (Afghānestān — Jomhūrī-ye Eslāmī-ye Afghānestān) Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي جمهوریت — افغانستانت (Afghān̄istān — Afghānistān Islāmī Jumhūrīyat) |
Kabul Dari: کابل (Kābul) Pashto: کابل (Kābul) |
29,835,392 | 652,230 km2 (251,827 sq mi) | ||
| Armenia Republic of Armenia |
Armenian: Հայաստան — Հայաստանի Հանրապետությու (Hayastan — Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun) | Yerevan Armenian: Երևան (Yerevan) |
2,967,975 | 29,743 km2 (11,484 sq mi) | ||
| Azerbaijan[a][b] Republic of Azerbaijan |
Azerbaijani: Azǝrbaycan — Azǝrbaycan Respublikası | Baku Azerbaijani: Bakı |
8,372,373 | 86,600 km2 (33,436 sq mi) | ||
| Bahrain Kingdom of Bahrain |
Arabic: مملكة البحرين — البحرين (Al Baḩrayn — Mamlakat al Baḩrayn) | Manama Arabic: المنامة (Al Manāmah) |
1,214,705 | 760 km2 (293 sq mi) | ||
| Bangladesh People's Republic of Bangladesh |
Bengali: বাংলােদ — গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশ (Bāṁlādesh — Gaṇaprajātantrī Bāṁlādesh) | Dhaka Bengali: ঢাকা (Ḍhākā) |
158,570,535 | 143,998 km2 (55,598 sq mi) | ||
| Bhutan Kingdom of Bhutan |
Dzongkha: འྲག་ཡ ఉ ལ — འྲག་གྷལ་ཁ (Druk Yul — Druk Gyalkhapb) | Thimphu Dzongkha: ཐིམ་ཕུ (Thimphu) |
708,427 | 38,394 km2 (14,824 sq mi) | ||
| Brunei Brunei Darussalam |
English: Brunei Darussalam Malay: Brunei — Negara Brunei Darussalam |
Bandar Seri Begawan English: Bandar Seri Begawan Malay: Bandar Seri Begawan |
401,890 | 5,765 km2 (2,226 sq mi) | ||
| Cambodia Kingdom of Cambodia |
Khmer: កមុពា — រពះាាាចរក កមុពា (Kâmpŭchéa — Preăhréachéanachâkr Kâmpŭchéa) | Phnom Penh Khmer: ភ្នំពេញ (Phnum Pénh) |
14,701,717 | 181,035 km2 (69,898 sq mi) | ||
| China[b] People's Republic of China |
Chinese: 中国 — 中华人民共和国 (Zhongguo — Zhonghua Renmin Gongheguo) | Beijing Chinese: 北京 (Beijing) |
1,336,718,015 | 9,596,961 km2 (3,705,407 sq mi) | ||
| Cyprus[b] Republic of Cyprus |
Greek: Κύπρος — Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία (Kýpros — Kypriakí Dimokratí) Turkish: Kıbrıs — Kıbrıs Cumhuriyeti |
Nicosia Greek: Λευκωσία (Lefkosia) Turkish: Lefkoşa |
1,120,489 | 9,251 km2 (3,572 sq mi) | ||
| Georgia[a][b] | Georgian: საქართველო (Sak'art'velo) | Tbilisi / T'bilisi Georgian: თბილისი (T'bilisi) |
4,585,874 | 69,700 km2 (26,911 sq mi) | ||
| India Republic of India |
English: India — Republic of India Hindi: भार — भारत गणरा᭔य (Bhārat — Bhāratīya Gaṇarājya) |
New Delhi English: New Delhi Hindi: नई दिल्ली (Naī Dillī) |
1,189,172,906 | 3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219 sq mi) | ||
| Indonesia[a] Republic of Indonesia |
Indonesian: Indonesia — Republik Indonesia | Jakarta Indonesian: Jakarta |
245,613,043 | 1,904,569 km2 (735,358 sq mi) | ||
| Iran Islamic Republic of Iran |
جمهوری اسلامی ایران (Īrān — Jomhūrī-ye Eslāmī-ye Īrān) | Tehran Persian: تهران (Tehrān) |
77,891,220 | 1,648,195 km2 (636,372 sq mi) | ||
| Iraq Republic of Iraq |
Arabic: العراق — جمهورية العراق (Al ‘Irāq — Jumhūrīyat al ‘Irāq) | Baghdad Arabic: بغداد (Baghdād) |
30,399,572 | 438,317 km2 (169,235 sq mi) | ||
| Israel State of Israel |
Arabic: إسرائيل — دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل (Isrā'īl — Dawlat Isrā'īl) Hebrew: יִשְרָאֵל — מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisra'el — Medinat Yisra'el) |
Jerusalem (Claimed)[c] Hebrew: ירושלים (Yerushalayim) |
7,473,052 | 20,770 km2 (8,019 sq mi) | ||
| Japan | Japanese: 日本 — 日本国 (Nihon / Nippon — Nihon-koku / Nippon-koku) | Tokyo Japanese: 東京都 (Tokyo) |
126,475,664 | 377,915 km2 (145,914 sq mi) | ||
| Jordan Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan |
Arabic: اﻷرُد — المملكة الأردنية الهاشميه (Al Urdun — Al Mamlakah al Urdunīyah al Hāshimīyah) | Amman Arabic: عمان (Ammān) |
6,508,271 | 89,342 km2 (34,495 sq mi) | ||
| Kazakhstan[a] Republic of Kazakhstan |
Kazakh: Қазақстан — Қазақстан Республикасы (Qazaqstan — Qazaqstan Respūblīkasy) Russian: Казахстан — Республика Казахстан (Kazahstan — Respublika Kazahstan) |
Astana Kazakh: Астана Russian: Астана (Astana) |
15,522,373 | 2,724,900 km2 (1,052,090 sq mi) | ||
| Korea, North Democratic People's Republic of Korea |
Korean: 조선 — 조선 민주주의 인민 공화국 (Chosŏn — Chosŏn-minjujuŭi-inmin-konghwaguk) | Pyongyang Korean: 평양 (Phyŏngyang) |
24,457,492 | 120,538 km2 (46,540 sq mi) | ||
| Korea, South Republic of Korea |
Korean: 한국 — 대한 민국 (Han’guk — Taehan Min’guk) | Seoul Korean: 서울 (Seoul) |
48,754,657 | 99,720 km2 (38,502 sq mi) | ||
| Kuwait State of Kuwait |
Arabic: دولة الكويت — اﻟﻜﻮﻳ (Al Kuwayt — Dawlat al Kuwayt) | Kuwait City Arabic: الكويت (Al Kuwayt) |
2,595,628 | 17,818 km2 (6,880 sq mi) | ||
| Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyz Republic |
Kyrgyz: Кыргызстан — Кыргыз Республикасы (Kyrgyzstan — Kyrgyz Respublikasy) Russian: Кыргызстан — Кыргызская Республика (Kyrgyzstan — Kyrgyzskaja Respublika) |
Bishkek Kyrgyz: Бишкек (Bishkek) Russian: Бишкек (Biškek) |
5,587,443 | 199,951 km2 (77,202 sq mi) | ||
| Laos Lao People's Democratic Republic |
Lao: ສາທາລະນະລດປະຊາທ ັ ປະໄຕປະຊາຊ ິ ນລາວ (Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxôn Lao) | Vientiane Lao: ວຽງຈັນ (Viangchan) |
6,477,211 | 236,800 km2 (91,429 sq mi) | ||
| Lebanon Republic of Lebanon |
Arabic: لبنان — الجمهورية اللبنانية (Lubnān — Al Jumhūrīyah al Lubnānīyah) | Beirut Arabic: بيروت (Bayrūt) |
4,143,101 | 10,400 km2 (4,015 sq mi) | ||
| Malaysia | Malay: Malaysia | Kuala Lumpur[d] Malay: Kuala Lumpur |
28,728,607 | 329,847 km2 (127,355 sq mi) | ||
| Maldives Republic of Maldives |
Maldivian: ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ — ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ (Dhivehi Raajje — Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa) | Malé / Male' Maldivian: މާލެ (Maale) |
394,999 | 298 km2 (115 sq mi) | ||
| Mongolia | Mongolian: Монго — Монгол улс (Mongol — Mongol uls) | Ulaanbaatar Mongolian: Улаанбаатар (Ulaanbaatar) |
3,133,318 | 1,564,116 km2 (603,909 sq mi) | ||
| Myanmar / Burma Republic of The Union of Myanmar |
Burmese: မြန်မာပြည် — ပြည်ထောင်စု သမ္မတ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော် (Myanma — Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw) | Nya Pyi Taw Burmese: နေပြည်တော် (Nay Pyi Taw) |
53,999,804 | 676,578 km2 (261,228 sq mi) | ||
| Nepal Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal |
Nepali: नपाल — सघीय लोकताि᭠ᮢक गणत᭠ᮢ न ं पाल (Nepāl — Saṁghīya Loktāntrik Ganạ tantra Nepāl) | Kathmandu Nepali: काठमाडौं (Kāṭhmāḍauṁ) |
29,391,883 | 147,181 km2 (56,827 sq mi) | ||
| Oman Sultanate of Oman |
Arabic: عُمان — سلطنة عُمان (‘Umān — Salţanat ‘Umān) | Muscat Arabic: مسقط (Masqaţ) |
3,027,959 | 309,500 km2 (119,499 sq mi) | ||
| Pakistan Islamic Republic of Pakistan |
English: Pakistan — Islamic Republic of Pakistan Urdu: پَاکِسْتَان — اسلامی جمہوریہ پاکستان (Pākistān — Jamhūryat Islāmī Pākistān) |
Islamabad English: Islamabad Urdu: اسلام آباد (Islāmābād) |
187,342,721 | 796,095 km2 (307,374 sq mi) | ||
| Philippines Republic of the Philippines |
English: Philippines — Republic of the Philippines Tagalog: Pilipinas — Republika ng Pilipinas |
Manila English: Manila Tagalog: Maynila |
101,833,938 | 300,000 km2 (115,831 sq mi) | ||
| Qatar State of Qatar |
Arabic: قطر — دولة قطر (Qaţar — Dawlat Qaţar) | Doha Arabic: الدوحة (Ad Dawḩah) |
848,016 | 11,586 km2 (4,473 sq mi) | ||
| Russia[a] Russian Federation |
Russian: Росси́я — Российская Федерация (Rossija — Rossijskaja Federacija) | Moscow Russian: Москва (Moskva) |
138,739,892 | 17,098,242 km2 (6,601,668 sq mi) | ||
| Saudi Arabia Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |
Arabic: السعودية — المملكة العربية السعودية (As Su‘ūdīya — Al Mamlakah al ‘Arabīyah as Su‘ūdīyah) | Riyadh Arabic: الرياض (Ar Riyāḑ) |
26,131,703 | 2,149,690 km2 (830,000 sq mi) | ||
| Singapore Republic of Singapore |
Chinese: 新加坡 — 新加坡共和国 Xinjiapo — Xinjiapo Gongheguo English: Singapore — Republic of Singapore Malay: Singapura — Republik Singapura Tamil: சிங்கப்பூர் — சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசு (Chiṅkappūr — Chiṅkappūr Kuṭiyarachu) |
Singapore Chinese: 新加坡 Xinjiapo English: Singapore Malay: Singapura Tamil: சிங்கப்பூர் (Chiṅkappūr) |
4,740,737 | 697 km2 (269 sq mi) | ||
| Sri Lanka Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka |
Sinhala: ශ්රී ලංකා — ශ්රී ලංකා ප්රජාතාන්ත්රික සමාජවාදී ජනරජය (Shrī Laṁkā — Shrī Laṁkā Prajātāntrika Samājavādī Janarajaya) Tamil: இலᾱைக — இலங்கை ஜனநாயக சமத்துவ குடியரசு (Ilaṅkai — Ilaṅkai Jaṉanāyaka Choṣhalichak Kuṭiyarachu) |
Colombo Sinhala: කොළඹ (Kŏḷamba) Tamil: கொழும்ப (Kŏl̮umpu) |
21,283,913 | 65,610 km2 (25,332 sq mi) | ||
| Syria Syrian Arab Republic |
Arabic: ﺔُﺳ ِﻮرَا / ﺳ ِﻮر — جمهورية سوريا العربية (Sūrīyah / Sūriyā — Al Jumhūrīyah al ‘Arabīyah as Sūrīyah) | Damascus Arabic: دمشق (Dimashq) |
22,517,750 | 185,180 km2 (71,498 sq mi) | ||
| Tajikistan Republic of Tajikistan |
Tajik: Тоҷикистон — Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон (Tojikiston — Jumhurii Tojikiston) | Dushanbe Tajik: Душанбе (Dushanbe) |
7,627,200 | 143,100 km2 (55,251 sq mi) | ||
| Thailand Kingdom of Thailand |
Thai: ประเทศไทย — ราชอาณาจักรไทย (Prathet Thai — Ratcha Anachak Thai) | Bangkok Thai: กรุงเทพฯ (Krung Thep) |
66,720,153 | 513,120 km2 (198,117 sq mi) | ||
| Timor-Leste[a] Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste East Timor Democratic Republic of East Timor |
Portuguese: Timor-Leste — República Democrática de Timor-Leste Tetum: Timor Lorosa'e — Repúblika Demokrátika Timor Lorosa'e |
Dili Portuguese: Dili Tetum: Dili |
1,177,834 | 14,874 km2 (5,743 sq mi) | ||
| Turkey[a] Republic of Turkey |
Turkish: Türkiye — Türkiye Cumhuriyeti | Ankara Turkish: Ankara |
78,785,548 | 783,562 km2 (302,535 sq mi) | ||
| Turkmenistan | Turkmen: Türkmenistan | Ashgabat Turkmen: Aşgabat |
4,997,503 | 488,100 km2 (188,456 sq mi) | ||
| United Arab Emirates | Arabic: اﻹﻣﺎرا — دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة (Al Imārāt — Al Imārāt al ‘Arabīyah al Muttaḩidah) | Abu Dhabi Arabic: أبوظبي (Abu Dhabi) |
5,148,664 | 83,600 km2 (32,278 sq mi) | ||
| Uzbekistan Republic of Uzbekistan |
Uzbek: O‘zbekiston — O‘zbekiston Respublikasi | Tashkent Uzbek: Toshkent |
28,128,600 | 447,400 km2 (172,742 sq mi) | ||
| Vietnam / Viet Nam Socialist Republic of Vietnam |
Vietnamese: Việt Nam — Cộng Hòa Xã Hội Chủ Nghĩa Việt Nam | Hanoi Vietnamese: Hà Nội |
90,549,390 | 331,210 km2 (127,881 sq mi) | ||
| Yemen Republic of Yemen |
Arabic: اليمن — الجمهورية اليمنية (Al Yaman — Al Jumhūrīyah al Yamanīyah) | Sana'a Arabic: صنعاء (Şan‘ā’) |
24,133,492 | 527,968 km2 (203,850 sq mi) |
The 6 states in this list have varying levels of recognition, but are not members of the United Nations. All are defined as states by the declarative theory of statehood.
| Flag | Map | English short and formal names | Status | Domestic short and formal names | Capital | Population | Area |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Abkhazia Republic of Abkhazia[11] |
Claimed as an autonomous republic of Georgia.[12] Recognised by five UN states.[13] | Abkhaz: Аҧсуа (Apswa)[11] | Sukhumi / Sukhum[11] Abkhaz: Аҟəа (Akwa) |
250,000[14] | 8,660 km2 (3,344 sq mi)[12] | ||
| Nagorno-Karabakh Nagorno-Karabakh Republic[15] |
Claimed as part of Azerbaijan.[16] Recognised only by 3 non-UN states. | Armenian: Լեռնային Ղարաբաղ — Լեռնային Ղարաբաղ Հանրապետություն (Lernayin Gharabaghi — Lernayin Gharabaghi Hanrapetut’yun)[15] | Stepanakert[15] Armenian: Ստեփանակերտ (Khankendi) |
141,400[17] | 7,000 km2 (2,703 sq mi)[18] | ||
| Northern Cyprus Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus[19] |
Claimed as part of the Republic of Cyprus. Recognised only by Turkey.[19] | Turkish: Kuzey Kıbrıs — Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti | Nicosia Turkish: Lefkoşa[20] |
285,356[21] | 3,355 km2 (1,295 sq mi)[10] | ||
| Palestine State of Palestine |
The unilaterally-declared State of Palestine has received diplomatic recognition from 124 states.[22] | Arabic: فلسطين — دولة فلسـطين (Filastīn — As-Sulta Al-Wataniyya Al-Filastīniyya) | Jerusalem (claimed)[23]
Ramallah / Gaza (de facto) |
4,225,710[9] | 6,220[10] | ||
| South Ossetia Republic of South Ossetia |
Claimed as part of Georgia.[24] Recognised by four UN states. | Ossetic: Хуссар Ирыстон — Республикæ Хуссар Ирыстон (Khussar Iryston — Respublikæ Khussar Iryston) Russian: Южная Осетия — Республика Южная Осетия (Yuzhnaya Osetiya — Respublika Yuzhnaya Osetiya) |
Tskhinvali[24] Ossetic: Цхинвал or Чъреба (Chreba) |
70,000[24] | 3,900 km2 (1,506 sq mi)[25] | ||
| Taiwan Republic of China[26][6] |
Claimed as a province of the People's Republic of China, the Republic of China has not renounced claims over the mainland and is recognised as the government of China by 23 states including the Holy See. | Traditional Chinese: 臺灣/台灣 — 中華民國 (Táiwān — Zhōnghuá Mínguó) | Taipei[7][6] | 23,071,779[9] | 35,980 km2 (13,892 sq mi)[10] |
The six entities in this list are either subject to a state they are not part of, or have a special political arrangement that was decided through an international agreement.
| Flag | Map | English short and formal names | Status[27] | Domestic short and formal names | Capital | Population | Area[10] |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Akrotiri and Dhekelia The Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia |
British overseas territory | English: Akrotiri and Dhekelia — Sovereign Base Areas of Akrotiri and Dhekelia | Episkopi Cantonment English: Episkopi Cantonment[7] |
15,700[9][e] | 254 km2 (98 sq mi) | ||
| British Indian Ocean Territory[4][6] | British overseas territory | English: British Indian Ocean Territory | — | 4,000[28][f] | 54,400 km2 (21,004 sq mi) | ||
| Christmas Island Territory of Christmas Island[4] |
Territory of Australia | English: Christmas Island — Territory of Christmas Island | Flying Fish Cove[6] / The Settlement[7] | 1,402[9] | 135 km2 (52 sq mi) | ||
| Cocos (Keeling) Islands Territory of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands[4] |
Territory of Australia | English: Cocos (Keeling) Islands — Territory of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands | West Island[7] / Bantam[6] | 596[9] | 14 km2 (5 sq mi) | ||
| Hong Kong Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China[6] |
Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China | Chinese: 香港 — 中華人民共和國香港特別行政區 English: Hong Kong — Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China |
Hong Kong[6] | 7,122,508[9] | 1,104 km2 (426 sq mi) | ||
| Macau / Macao Macau Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China/Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China[6] |
Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China | Chinese: 澳門 — 中華人民共和國澳門特別行政區 Portuguese: Macau — Região Administrativa Especial de Macau da República Popular da China |
Macau / Macao[6] | 573,003[9] | 28.2 km2 (10.9 sq mi) |
List of Asian countries by GDP
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