1. Introduction to States
Main Points:
The world has nearly 200 states
Most belong to the United Nations
The sovereignty of some land is disputed
International treaties cover possession of polar and coastal regions

2. A World of States
A State is an area organized into a political unit and ruled by an established government. It occupies a specific place on Earth and contains a specific population.
Country means the same thing as state. There are 196 states in the world and 193 of them are members of the United Nations.
List three states: _________________, ___________________, __________________
In the US the term state refers to different subdivisions in the country, like Texas or Oregon. These 50 states are all apart of 1 STATE, or country.
Effective states have sovereignty over the area they occupy. This means they have supreme authority.
States are also good examples of formal regions.

3. A World of States

4. The United Nations This is the most important global organization.
It was created at the end of World War II by the Allied powers. (Who are they?)
It replaced the League of Nations and established a way for states to work together to solve international or world wide problems.
The UN will intervene in military conflicts and peacekeeping actions as well as attempt to solve global financial problems and defend, as well as define, human rights. The UN also likes to provide humanitarian efforts.

6. The Challenges in Defining States
Korea:
After the Korean War from the Korean peninsula was split in half. North Korea was established as a communist government and South Korea was established as a democracy. Today both sides claim to claim sovereignty over the entire land mass.
Crimea:
Crimea is a very small (10,000 square miles) peninsula in between Ukraine and Russia. In the 1920’s, the Soviet Union (USSR) was formed. Russia was the main part of the USSR, but Ukraine and Crimea were also apart of it. Russia allowed Crimea to become a part of Ukraine within the USSR, but when the USSR fell apart and Ukraine became its own country again, they decided to keep Crimea. In 2014 Russia invaded Crimea and took it back through force. Most countries believe Russian action was illegal and that Crimea is still part of Ukraine. Obviously, Russia disagrees. What do you think? _______________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________________________

9. Challenges in Defining States
China and Taiwan:
In the 40’s there was a civil war in China between the Nationalists and Communists. The Communists won and when this happened the Nationalists leaders fled to Taiwan, a small island 125 miles off the coast of China. They claimed they were the rightful rulers of China and that until they could reclaim mainland China they would rule the Taiwan, which is a small part of China. Until 1971 The United States did not recognize the Communists as rightful rulers of China. Today there is conflict as to who really controls Taiwan.
What do you believe is the proper perspective on the Chinese/Taiwan conflict? ___________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________________________________

10. The Law of the Sea