This is a list of sovereign states and dependent territories in Asia. It includes fully recognized states, states with limited but substantial international recognition, de facto states with little or no international recognition, and dependencies of both Asian and non-Asian states. In particular, it lists (i) 49 generally recognized sovereign states, all of which are members of the United Nations; (ii) two states with substantial but not general international recognition, one of which is a United Nations General Assembly non-member observer state; (iii) four largely unrecognized de facto states; and (iv) six dependent and other territories.

The 49 generally recognized sovereign states listed here include two countries that are generally classified as European or African nations but with portions of their territory being in Asia, while the two states with substantial but not general recognition are both fully encompassed in Asia. Though a majority of the Russian Federation's land area is located within Asia, it is generally considered a European country because of its historical, cultural, ethnic, and political ties to Europe. Its capital and largest city, Moscow is located within Europe, and the vast majority of its population lives within its European part. In addition, while Egypt extends into Asia through the Sinai Peninsula, it is generally considered to be an African country because most of its population and geographic area is in Africa.

Geographical boundaries of Asia

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, Bosporus Sea of Marmara, Dardanelles and the Aegean Sea in the south. Azerbaijan, Georgia, Greece, Kazakhstan, Russia, and Turkey all have territory in both Asia and Europe. Armenia and Cyprus are entirely in Western Asia but are socio-politically European countries and members of the Council of Europe, with Cyprus also being a member of the European Union.

The division between Asia and Africa is normally considered to be the Suez Canal, placing the Sinai peninsula (which is part of Egypt) in Asia. Therefore, Egypt, an African country, may also be considered to be a country in Asia.

The division between Southeast Asia and Australia/Oceania is disputed and currently placed somewhere between Java and New Guinea. Indonesia spans both areas, but is ordinarily considered to be an Asian country.^[1] East Timor is sometimes considered to be part of Australasia or Melanesia, but due to its being surrounded by Indonesia, and its once being politically part of Indonesia, it is generally considered to be in Southeast Asia. Papua New Guinea is occasionally thought of as a Southeast Asian country,^[2][3][4] but it is generally considered to be part of Australasia or Melanesia. The division between East Asia and Oceania is usually placed somewhere between the Japanese archipelago and the Northern Mariana Islands of Micronesia.^[5] Certain Japanese islands are often categorized as being within Micronesia due to non-continental geology and similar biogeography.^[6][7] The division between Asia and North America is considered to be the Bering Strait. Some of the Aleutian Islands, however, may be considered to be in Asia.

Sovereign states

A sovereign state is a political organization with effective sovereignty over a population for whom it makes decisions in the national interest.^[8] 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. It is also important to note that these states were categorized accordingly independent of our endorsement or opposition to their statehood and is based solely on their de facto and de jure statuses^[9]

United Nations member states

There are 49 Asian states or states with substantial territory in Asia in this list. All are members of the United Nations.^[10]

Flag	Map	English short, formal names, and ISO [11][12][13][14]	Domestic short and formal name(s) [11][12]	Capital [13][15][16]	Population 2021 [17][18]	Area [19]
		Afghanistan Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan AFG	Dari: امارت اسلامی افغانستان – افغانستان (Afghānistān – Imārat-i Islāmī-yi Afghānistān) Pashto: د افغانستان اسلامي امارت – فغانستان (Afġānistān – Də Afġānistān Islāmī Imārat)	Kabul Dari and Pashto: کابل (Kābəl)	40,099,462	652,230 km2 (251,827 sq mi)
		Armenia Republic of Armenia ARM	Armenian: Հայաստան – Հայաստանի Հանրապետությու (Hayastan – Hayastani Hanrapetut'yun)	Yerevan Armenian: Երևան (Yerevan)	2,790,974	29,743 km2 (11,484 sq mi)
		Azerbaijan[a][b] Republic of Azerbaijan AZE	Azerbaijani: Azǝrbaycan – Azǝrbaycan Respublikası	Baku Azerbaijani: Bakı	10,312,992	86,600 km2 (33,436 sq mi)
		Bahrain Kingdom of Bahrain BHR	Arabic: مملكة البحرين – البحرين (Al Baḩrayn – Mamlakat al Baḩrayn)	Manama Arabic: المنامة (Al Manāmah)	1,463,265	760 km2 (293 sq mi)
		Bangladesh People's Republic of Bangladesh BGD	Bengali: বাংলাদেশ – গণপ্রজাতন্ত্রী বাংলাদেশ (Bānglādesh – Gaṇaprajātantrī Bānglādesh)	Dhaka Bengali: ঢাকা (Ḍhākā)	169,356,251	147,570 km2 (56,977 sq mi)
		Bhutan Kingdom of Bhutan BTN	Dzongkha: འབྲུག་ཡུལ་ – འབྲུག་རྒྱལ་ཁབ་ (Druk Yul – Druk Gyalkhapb)	Thimphu Dzongkha: ཐིམ་ཕུ (Thimphu)	777,486	38,394 km2 (14,824 sq mi)
		Brunei Brunei Darussalam BRN	Malay: Brunei – Negara Brunei Darussalam (‎بروني – ‎نڬارا بروني دارالسلام)	Bandar Seri Begawan Malay: Bandar Seri Begawan (بندر سري بڬاوان)	460,356	5,765 km2 (2,226 sq mi)
		Cambodia Kingdom of Cambodia KHM	Khmer: កម្ពុជា – ព្រះរាជាណាចក្រកម្ពុជា (Kâmpŭchéa – Preăhréachéanachâkr Kâmpŭchéa)	Phnom Penh Khmer: ភ្នំពេញ (Phnum Pénh)	16,589,023	181,035 km2 (69,898 sq mi)
		China[b] People's Republic of China CHN	Chinese: 中国 – 中华人民共和国 (Zhōngguó – Zhōnghuá Rénmín Gònghéguó)	Beijing Chinese: 北京 (Běijīng)	1,425,893,465	9,596,961 km2 (3,705,407 sq mi)
		Cyprus[b] Republic of Cyprus CYP	Greek: Κύπρος – Κυπριακή Δημοκρατία (Kýpros – Kypriakí Dimokratía) Turkish: Kıbrıs – Kıbrıs Cumhuriyeti	Nicosia Greek: Λευκωσία (Lefkosia) Turkish: Lefkoşa	1,244,188	9,251 km2 (3,572 sq mi)
		East Timor[a] Democratic Republic of Timor-Leste TLS	Portuguese: Timor-Leste – República Democrática de Timor-Leste Tetum: Timor Lorosa'e – Repúblika Demokrátika Timor Lorosa'e	Dili Portuguese: Díli Tetum: Díli	1,320,942	14,874 km2 (5,743 sq mi)
		Egypt[c] Arab Republic of Egypt EGY	Arabic: مصر – جمهورية مصر العربية (Miṣr—Jumhūrīyat Miṣr al-ʿArabiyya)	Cairo Arabic: القاهرة (al-Qāhirah)	109,262,178	1,001,449 km2 (386,662 sq mi)
		Georgia[a][b] GEO	Georgian: საქართველო (Sak'art'velo)	Tbilisi / T'bilisi Georgian: თბილისი (T'bilisi)	3,757,980	69,700 km2 (26,911 sq mi)
		India Republic of India IND	English: India – Republic of India Hindi: भारत – भारत गणराज्य (Bhārat – Bhārat Gaṇarājya)	New Delhi English: New Delhi Hindi: नई दिल्ली (Naī Dillī)	1,407,563,842	3,287,263 km2 (1,269,219 sq mi)
		Indonesia[a] Republic of Indonesia IDN	Indonesian: Indonesia – Republik Indonesia	Jakarta Indonesian: DKI Jakarta	273,753,191	1,904,569 km2 (735,358 sq mi)
		Iran Islamic Republic of Iran IRN	Persian: جمهوری اسلامی ایران – ایران (Īrān – Jomhūrī-ye Eslāmī-ye Īrān)	Tehran Persian: تهران (Tehrān)	87,923,432	1,648,195 km2 (636,372 sq mi)
		Iraq Republic of Iraq IRQ	Arabic: العراق – جمهورية العراق (Al 'Irāq – Jumhūrīyat al 'Irāq)	Baghdad Arabic: بغداد (Baghdād)	43,533,592	438,317 km2 (169,235 sq mi)
		Israel State of Israel ISR	Hebrew: יִשְרָאֵל – מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל (Yisra'el – Medinat Yisra'el) Arabic: إسرائيل – دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل (Isrā'īl – Dawlat Isrā'īl)	Jerusalem (Claimed and de facto)[d] Hebrew: ירושלים (Yerushalayim)	8,900,059	20,770 km2 (8,019 sq mi)
		Japan JPN	Japanese: 日本 – 日本国 (Nihon / Nippon – Nihon-koku / Nippon-koku)	Tokyo Japanese: 東京 (Tōkyō)	124,612,530	377,915 km2 (145,914 sq mi)
		Jordan Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan JOR	Arabic: اﻷرُدن – المملكة الأردنية الهاشميه (Al Urdun – Al Mamlakah al Urdunīyah al Hāshimīyah)	Amman Arabic: عمان (Ammān)	11,148,278	89,342 km2 (34,495 sq mi)
		Kazakhstan[a] Republic of Kazakhstan KAZ	Kazakh: Қазақстан – Қазақстан Республикасы (Qazaqstan – Qazaqstan Respýblıkasy) Russian: Казахстан – Республика Казахстан (Kazahstan – Respublika Kazahstan)	Astana Kazakh: Астана (Astana) Russian: Астана (Astana)	19,196,465	2,724,900 km2 (1,052,090 sq mi)
		North Korea Democratic People's Republic of Korea PRK	Korean: 조선 – 조선민주주의인민공화국 (Chosŏn – Chosŏn-minjujuŭi-inmin-konghwaguk)	Pyongyang Korean: 평양 (Phyŏngyang)	25,971,909	120,538 km2 (46,540 sq mi)
		South Korea Republic of Korea KOR	Korean: 한국 – 대한민국 (Hanguk – Daehan Minguk)	Seoul Korean: 서울 (Seoul)	51,830,139	99,720 km2 (38,502 sq mi)
		Kuwait State of Kuwait KWT	Arabic: دولة الكويت – اﻟﻜﻮﻳت (Al Kuwayt – Dawlat al Kuwayt)	Kuwait City Arabic: الكويت (Al Kuwayt)	4,250,114	17,818 km2 (6,880 sq mi)
		Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyz Republic KGZ	Kyrgyz: Кыргызстан – Кыргыз Республикасы (Kyrgyzstan – Kyrgyz Respublikasy) Russian: Кыргызстан – Кыргызская Республика (Kyrgyzstan – Kyrgyzskaja Respublika)	Bishkek Kyrgyz: Бишкек (Bishkek) Russian: Бишкек (Biškek)	6,527,743	199,951 km2 (77,202 sq mi)
		Laos Lao People's Democratic Republic LAO	Lao: ປະເທດລາວ – ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ (PathetLao – Sathalanalat Paxathipatai Paxaxôn Lao)	Vientiane Lao: ວຽງຈັນ (Viangchan)	7,425,057	236,800 km2 (91,429 sq mi)
		Lebanon Lebanese Republic LBN	Arabic: لبنان – الجمهورية اللبنانية (Lubnān – Al Jumhūrīyah al Lubnānīyah)	Beirut Arabic: بيروت (Bayrūt)	5,592,631	10,452 km2 (4,036 sq mi)
		Malaysia MYS	Malay: Malaysia	Kuala Lumpur[e] Malay: Kuala Lumpur	33,573,874	329,847 km2 (127,355 sq mi)
		Maldives Republic of Maldives MDV	Dhivehi: ދިވެހިރާއްޖެ – ދިވެހިރާއްޖޭގެ ޖުމްހޫރިއްޔާ (Dhivehi Raajje – Dhivehi Raajjeyge Jumhooriyyaa)	Malé / Male' Dhivehi: މާލެ (Maale)	521,457	298 km2 (115 sq mi)
		Mongolia MNG	Mongolian: Монгол – Монгол улс (Mongol – Mongol uls)	Ulaanbaatar Mongolian: Улаанбаатар (Ulaanbaatar)	3,347,782	1,564,116 km2 (603,909 sq mi)
		Myanmar Republic of the Union of Myanmar MMR	Burmese: မြန်မာ – ပြည်ထောင်စု သမ္မတ မြန်မာနိုင်ငံတော်‌ (Myanma – Pyidaungzu Myanma Naingngandaw)	Nay Pyi Taw Burmese: နေပြည်တော် (Nay Pyi Taw)	53,798,084	676,578 km2 (261,228 sq mi)
		Nepal Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal NPL	Nepali: सङ्घीय लोकतान्त्रिक गणतन्त्र नेपाल (Nepāl – Saṅghīya Loktāntrik Gaṇatantra Nepāl)	Kathmandu Nepali: काठमाडौं (Kāṭhmāḍaũ)	30,034,989	147,516 km2 (56,956 sq mi)
		Oman Sultanate of Oman OMN	Arabic: عُمان – سلطنة عُمان ('Umān – Salţanat 'Umān)	Muscat Arabic: مسقط (Masqaţ)	4,520,471	309,500 km2 (119,499 sq mi)
		Pakistan Islamic Republic of Pakistan PAK	English: Pakistan – Islamic Republic of Pakistan Urdu: پَاکِسْتَان – اسلامی جمہوریہ پاکستان (Pākistān —Islāmī Jamhuriyah-e-Pākistān)	Islamabad English: Islamabad Urdu: اسلام آباد (Islāmābād)	231,402,117	881,913 km2 (340,509 sq mi)
		Philippines Republic of the Philippines PHL	English: Philippines – Republic of the Philippines Filipino: Pilipinas – Republika ng Pilipinas	Manila English: Manila Filipino: Maynila	113,880,328	343,448 km2 (132,606 sq mi)
		Qatar State of Qatar QAT	Arabic: قطر – دولة قطر (Qatar – Dawlat Qatar)	Doha Arabic: الدوحة (Ad Dawḩah)	2,688,235	11,586 km2 (4,473 sq mi)
		Russia[20][a] Russian Federation RUS	Russian: Росси́я – Российская Федерация (Rossija – Rossijskaja Federacija)	Moscow[21] Russian: Москва (Moskva)	145,102,755 (including Crimea)	17,098,242 km2 (6,601,668 sq mi)
		Saudi Arabia Kingdom of Saudi Arabia SAU	Arabic: السعودية – المملكة العربية السعودية (As Su‘ūdīya – Al Mamlakah al 'Arabīyah as Su‘ūdīyah)	Riyadh Arabic: الرياض (Ar Riyāḑ)	35,950,396	2,149,690 km2 (830,000 sq mi)
		Singapore Republic of Singapore SGP	Chinese: 新加坡 – 新加坡共和国 (Xīnjiāpō – Xīnjiāpō Gònghéguó) English: Singapore – Republic of Singapore Malay: Singapura – Republik Singapura Tamil: சிங்கப்பூர் – சிங்கப்பூர் குடியரசு (Chiṅkappūr – Chiṅkappūr Kuṭiyarachu)	Singapore Chinese: 新加坡 (Xīnjiāpō) English: Singapore Malay: Singapura Tamil: சிங்கப்பூர் (Chiṅkappūr)	5,941,060	697 km2 (269 sq mi)
		Sri Lanka Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka LKA	Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ලංකාව – ශ්‍රී ලංකා ප්‍රජාතාන්ත්‍රික සමාජවාදී ජනරජය (Shrī Laṁkā – Shrī Laṁkā Prajātāntrika Samājavādī Janarajaya) Tamil: இலங்கை – இலங்கை ஜனநாயக சமத்துவ குடியரசு (Ilaṅkai – Ilaṅkai Jaṉanāyaka Choṣhalichak Kuṭiyarachu)	Sri Jayawardenapura Kotte Sinhala: ශ්‍රී ජයවර්ධනපුර කෝට්ටේ (Shrī Jayavardhanapura Koṭṭe) Tamil: ஶ்ரீ ஜெயவர்த்தனபுர கோட்டை (Shrī Jĕyavarttaṉapura Koṭṭai)	21,773,441	65,610 km2 (25,332 sq mi)
		Syria Syrian Arab Republic SYR	Arabic: سورية / سوريا – الجمهورية العربية السورية (Sūrīyah / Sūriyā – Al Jumhūrīyah al 'Arabīyah as Sūrīyah)	Damascus Arabic: دمشق (Dimashq)	21,324,367	185,180 km2 (71,498 sq mi)
		Tajikistan Republic of Tajikistan TJK	Tajik: Тоҷикистон – Ҷумҳурии Тоҷикистон (Tojikiston – Jumhurii Tojikiston)	Dushanbe Tajik: Душанбе (Dushanbe)	9,750,064	143,100 km2 (55,251 sq mi)
		Thailand Kingdom of Thailand THA	Thai: ไทย – ราชอาณาจักรไทย (Thai – Ratcha Anachak Thai)	Bangkok Thai: กรุงเทพมหานคร (Krung Thep Maha Nakhon)	71,601,103	513,120 km2 (198,117 sq mi)
		Turkey[a] Republic of Turkey TUR	Turkish: Türkiye – Türkiye Cumhuriyeti	Ankara Turkish: Ankara	84,775,404	783,562 km2 (302,535 sq mi)
		Turkmenistan TKM	Turkmen: Türkmenistan	Ashgabat Turkmen: Aşgabat	6,341,855	488,100 km2 (188,456 sq mi)
		United Arab Emirates ARE	Arabic: اﻹﻣﺎرات – دولة الإمارات العربية المتحدة (Al Imārāt – Al Imārāt al 'Arabīyah al Muttaḩidah)	Abu Dhabi Arabic: أبوظبي (Abu Dhabi)	9,365,145	83,600 km2 (32,278 sq mi)
		Uzbekistan Republic of Uzbekistan UZB	Uzbek: Ўзбекистон – Ўзбекистон Республикаси (O‘zbekiston – O‘zbekiston Respublikasi)	Tashkent Uzbek: Тошкент (Toshkent)	34,081,449	447,400 km2 (172,742 sq mi)
		Vietnam / Viet Nam Socialist Republic of Vietnam VNM	Vietnamese: Việt Nam – Cộng Hòa Xã Hội Chủ Nghĩa Việt Nam	Hanoi Vietnamese: Hà Nội	97,468,029	332,698 km2 (128,455 sq mi)
		Yemen Republic of Yemen YEM	Arabic: اليمن – الجمهورية اليمنية (Al Yaman – Al Jumhūrīyah al Yamanīyah)	Sana'a[f] Arabic: صنعاء (Şan‘ā')	32,981,641	527,968 km2 (203,850 sq mi)

States with limited, but substantial, international recognition

In this list, Palestine is a state with substantial international recognition and UN General Assembly non-member observer state status but without practical control over tangible territory, while Taiwan is a de facto state with full practical sovereignty over its territory and unofficial ties with most of the international community but not widely recognized de jure. Although a founding member of the United Nations as the Republic of China, since 1971 Taiwan is no longer recognized by the United Nations.

Flag	Map	English short, formal names, and ISO	Status	Domestic short and formal names	Capital	Population 2021 [17][18]	Area
		Palestine State of Palestine PSE	Recognized by 139 UN member states. See International recognition of the State of Palestine. One of two United Nations General Assembly non-member observer states	Arabic: فلسطين – دولة فلسطين (Filasṭīn – Dawlat Filasṭīn)	Ramallah (de facto) Arabic: رام الله (Rāmāllah) Jerusalem (declared) Arabic: القدس (Al-Quds)	5,133,392	6,220 km2 (2,402 sq mi)
		Taiwan Republic of China[13] TWN[22]	Claimed as part of the People's Republic of China. Officially recognized as sovereign by 11 UN member states and the Holy See, which deem it to be the rightful government of all of China. In addition, Taiwan maintains unofficial relations with most other countries and is de facto recognized by most sovereign states. See Political status of Taiwan for more information about the situation.	Traditional Chinese: 臺灣/台灣 – 中華民國 (Táiwān—Zhōnghuá Mínguó)	Taipei[13][15] Traditional Chinese: 台北 (Táiběi)	23,859,912	35,980 km2 (13,892 sq mi)[23]

De facto states with little or no international recognition

Further information: List of states with limited recognition

The four de facto states on this list have little or no international recognition and are not members of the United Nations. All are defined as states by the declarative theory.

Flag	Map	English short and formal names	Status	Domestic short and formal names	Capital	Population (2011)	Area
		Abkhazia Republic of Abkhazia[24]	Claimed as an autonomous republic of Georgia.[25] Recognised by six UN states.[26][27][28]	Abkhaz: Аҧсуа (Apswa)[24]	Sukhumi / Sukhum[24] Abkhaz: Аҟəа (Akwa)	250,000[29]	8,660 km2 (3,344 sq mi)[25]
		Northern Cyprus Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus[30]	Claimed as part of the Republic of Cyprus. Recognised only by Turkey.[30]	Turkish: Kuzey Kıbrıs – Kuzey Kıbrıs Türk Cumhuriyeti[31]	North Nicosia Turkish: Lefkoşa[32]	285,356[33]	3,355 km2 (1,295 sq mi)[23]
		South Ossetia Republic of South Ossetia	Claimed as part of Georgia.[34] Recognised by five UN states.	Ossetian: Хуссар Ирыстон – Республикӕ Хуссар Ирыстон (Khussar Iryston – Respublikæ Khussar Iryston) Russian: Южная Осетия – Республика Южная Осетия (Yuzhnaya Osetiya – Respublika Yuzhnaya Osetiya)	Tskhinvali[34] Ossetian: Цхинвал or Чъреба (Chreba)	70,000[34]	3,900 km2 (1,506 sq mi)[35]

Dependencies and other territories

The four territories in this list are controlled by a state of which they are not considered to be a part.

Flag	Map	English short, formal names, and ISO[11][13]	Status[36]	Domestic short and formal names	Capital	Population	Area[23]
		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[15]	15,700[37][h]	254 km2 (98 sq mi)
		British Indian Ocean Territory IOT	British overseas territory	English: British Indian Ocean Territory	Camp Justice	4,000[38][i]	54,400 km2 (21,004 sq mi)
		Christmas Island Territory of Christmas Island CXR	Territory of Australia	English: Christmas Island – Territory of Christmas Island	Flying Fish Cove[13] / The Settlement[15]	1,843[39]	135 km2 (52 sq mi)
		Cocos (Keeling) Islands Territory of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands CCK	Territory of Australia	English: Cocos (Keeling) Islands – Territory of the Cocos (Keeling) Islands Cocos Islands Malay: Pulu Kokos (Keeling)	West Island[15] / Bantam[13]	544[39]	14 km2 (5 sq mi)

Special areas of internal sovereignty

The following two entities are integral areas of their controlling state, but have a political arrangement that was decided through an international agreement.

Flag	Map	English short, formal names, and ISO[11][13]	Status[36]	Domestic short and formal names	Capital	Population	Area[23]
		Hong Kong Hong Kong Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China[13] HKG	Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China	Traditional 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	7,582,000[37]	2,755 km2 (1,064 sq mi)
		Macau / Macao Macao Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China[40] MAC	Special Administrative Region of the People's Republic of China	Traditional 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[13]	693,000[37]	28.2 km2 (10.9 sq mi)

See also

• List of Asian countries by GDP
• List of predecessors of sovereign states in Asia
• List of states with limited recognition

References