Associated state
An associated state is the minor partner in a formal, free relationship between a political territory with a degree of statehood and a nation, for which no other specific term, such as protectorate, is adopted.
The details of such free association are contained in United Nations General Assembly resolution 1541 Principle VI, a Compact of Free Association or Associated Statehood Act and are specific to the countries involved. In the case of the Cook Islands and Niue, the details of their free association arrangement are contained in several documents, such as their respective constitutions, the 1983 Exchange of Letters between the governments of New Zealand and the Cook Islands, and the 2001 Joint Centenary Declaration. Free associated states can be described as independent or not, but free association is not a qualification of an entity's statehood or status as a subject of international law.
Informally it can be considered more widely: from a post-colonial form of amical protection, or protectorate, to confederation of unequal members when the lesser partner delegate to the major one some authority normally exclusively retained by a sovereign state, usually in such fields as defense and foreign relations, while often enjoying favorable economic terms such as market access.
According to some scholars, a form of association based on benign protection and delegation of sovereignty can be seen as a defining feature of microstates.
A federacy, a type of government where at least one of the subunits in an otherwise unitary state enjoys autonomy like a subunit within a federation, is similar to an associated state, with such subunit having considerable independence in internal issues, except foreign affairs and defense. Yet in terms of international law it is a completely different situation because the subunits are not independent international entities and have no potential right to independence.
Origin of the concept
The concept of associated state was originally used to refer to arrangements under which Western powers afforded a degree of self-government to some of their colonial possessions after the end of World War II. Soon after the conclusion of the war, the French colonial territories of Vietnam, Cambodia, and Laos were designated as 'associated states' within the newly-created French Union. The arrangement afforded these countries a limited degree of internal and external sovereignty, but for the most part reserved for France effective control over foreign relations, as well as military, judicial, administrative, and economic activities. According to some French jurists, the concept of associated state under the 1946 French constitution automatically extended to the territories of Morocco and Tunisia, which up until then had been protectorates of France. However, unlike their counterparts in Southeast Asia, neither Morocco nor Tunisia became part of the French Union. The associated state concept as applied to former French colonial possessions has been described as 'neo-colonial' as it did not afford them real internal or external sovereignty. All of the aforementioned associated states eventually became fully independent states.Puerto Rico is defined as an "associated free state" in its 1952 constitution. However, it remains a territory of the United States. While exercising substantial internal self-government, Puerto Rico is subordinated to the U.S. Constitution in areas such as foreign affairs or defense. For this reason, it is not considered to be a full-fledged associated state under either international or U.S. domestic law.
States currently in a formal association
The Cook Islands and Niue have the status of "self-government in free association". New Zealand cannot legislate for them, and in some situations they are considered sovereign states. In foreign relations both interact as sovereign states, and they have been allowed to sign on as a state to United Nations treaties and bodies. New Zealand does not consider them to be constitutionally sovereign states due to their continued use of New Zealand citizenship. Both have established their own nationality and immigration regimes.The Federated States of Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau are associated with the United States under what is known as the Compact of Free Association, giving the states international sovereignty and ultimate control over their territory. However, the governments of those areas have agreed to allow the United States to provide defense; the U.S. federal government fund grants and access to U.S. social services for citizens of these areas. The United States benefits from its ability to use the islands as strategic military bases.
| Minor partner | Associated with | Associated since | Level of association | International status |
| 4 August 1965 | New Zealand acts on behalf of the Cook Islands in foreign affairs and defense issues, but only when requested so by the Cook Islands Government and with its advice and consent. | Not a UN member state. Independence in foreign relations recognised by the UN. | ||
| 19 October 1974 | New Zealand acts on behalf of Niue in foreign affairs and defense issues, but only when requested so by the Niue Government and with its advice and consent. | Not a UN member state. Independence in foreign relations recognised by the UN. | ||
| 21 October 1986 | United States provides defense, funding grants, and access to U.S. social services for citizens of these areas under the Compact of Free Association. | UN member state | ||
 Federated States of Micronesia | 3 November 1986 | United States provides defense, funding grants, and access to U.S. social services for citizens of these areas under the Compact of Free Association. | UN member state | |
| 1 October 1994 | United States provides defense, funding grants, and access to U.S. social services for citizens of these areas under the Compact of Free Association. | UN member state |
Former associated states
A formal association existed under the Associated Statehood Act 1967 between the United Kingdom and the six West Indies Associated States. These were former British colonies in the Caribbean: Antigua, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Christopher-Nevis-Anguilla, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent. Under this arrangement, each state had internal self-government, but the UK retained responsibility for foreign relations and defense. The United Nations never determined whether these associated states had achieved a full measure of self-government within the meaning of the United Nations Charter and General Assembly resolutions. Within a few years after the status of associated state was created, all six of the former associated states requested and were granted full independence, except for Anguilla within the former St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla union, which separated from the associated state before independence and remains a United Kingdom dependent territory.Shortly before the dissolution of the Soviet Union, the autonomous Soviet republic of Tatarstan declared itself a "sovereign state" and a "subject of international law". Tatarstan and the recently formed Russian Federation entered into a treaty in 1994 specifying that Tatarstan was "associated" with the latter. Through the agreement Tatarstan delegated certain powers to Russia. Changes made to Tatarstan's constitution in 2002 have been seen by some commentators as fundamentally changing this relationship, with Tatarstan now functioning as essentially an integral part of Russia.
Proposed associated states
voted on a referendum in February 2006 to determine whether it wanted to remain a New Zealand territory or become the third state in free association with New Zealand. While a majority of voters chose free association, the vote did not meet the two-thirds threshold needed for approval. A repeat referendum in October 2007 under United Nations supervision yielded similar results, with the proposed free association falling 16 votes short of approval.According to statements of officials of Abkhazia and Transnistria, both intend after recognition of their independence to become associated states of the Russian Federation. In Transnistria a referendum took place in September 2006, in which secession from Moldova and "future free association" with Russia was approved by a margin of 97%, even though the results of the referendum were internationally unrecognized.
The government of the United States unincorporated territory of Guam, led by Governor Eddie Calvo, is currently campaigning for a plebiscite on Guam's future political status, with free association following the model of the Marshall Islands, Micronesia, and Palau as one of the possible options.
Other comparable relationships
Other situations exist where one state has power over another political unit. A dependent territory is an example of this, where an area has its own political system and often internal self-government, but does not have overall sovereignty. In a loose form of association, some sovereign states cede some power to other states, often in terms of foreign affairs and defense.States currently ceding power to another state
| Minor partner | Associated with | Associated since | Level of association | International status |
| and | 1278 | Responsibility for defending Andorra rests with Spain and France. Andorra is a co-principality between the head of state of France and the Bishop of Urgell. | UN member state | |
| and | 1979 | Kiribati has no military. National defense is provided by Australia and New Zealand. | UN member state | |
| 1923 | Although the head of state represents Liechtenstein in its international relations, Switzerland has taken responsibility for much of Liechtenstein's diplomatic relations. Liechtenstein has no military defense. | UN member state | ||
| 1861 | France has agreed to defend the independence and sovereignty of Monaco, while the Monegasque Government has agreed to exercise its sovereign rights in conformity with French interests, which was reaffirmed by the Treaty of Versailles in 1919. | UN member state | ||
| 1968 | Nauru has no military. Australia informally takes responsibility for its defense. | UN member state | ||
| 1914 | Samoa has no regular military. New Zealand provides defense under an informal agreement. | UN member state | ||
| 1939 | Responsibility for defending San Marino rests with Italy. | UN member state | ||
| 1506 and 1929 | According to the Lateran Treaty, anyone who loses Vatican City citizenship and possesses no other citizenship automatically becomes an Italian citizen. The military defense of the Vatican City is provided by Italy and it uses the Pontifical Swiss Guard, founded by Pope Julius II and provided by Switzerland, as the Pope's bodyguards. | UN observer state |
States formerly ceding power to another state
, formerly part of the Kingdom of Denmark, became a nominally sovereign state in 1918. It remained in personal union with the Danish Crown and continued to have a common foreign policy with Denmark until 1944, when it became a fully independent republic.Bhutan, a former protectorate of British India, agreed in a 1949 treaty to allow the recently created state of India to guide its foreign relations in a relatively loose form of association, which resulted in Bhutan sometimes being described as a "protected state". This relationship was updated in a 2007 treaty, in which the provision requiring Bhutan to accept India's guidance on foreign policy was rescinded.