Home Diseases and pests Federated countries of Europe list. Countries of foreign Europe with a federal structure. The federal state and its features

Federated countries of Europe list. Countries of foreign Europe with a federal structure. The federal state and its features

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federal state what is a federal state
Federation(lat. foederātiō - association, union) - a form of government in which parts of a federal state are state entities with legally defined political independence.

For federations characterized by the presence of territorial entities - subjects of the federation, which do not have state sovereignty, but have fairly broad powers in conducting domestic policy. The most famous states that have a federal form of government are: the Russian Federation, the United States of America and the Federal Republic of Germany.

Components of a federation- these are peculiar state-like entities, which are called subjects of the federation, and the territory of the federation consists of the territories of its subjects.

  • 1 The main features of a federal state
  • 2 Types of federations
  • 3 "Soft federation"
  • 4 Modern federal states
  • 5 Federal states that existed in the past
    • 5.1 Europe
    • 5.2 Asia
    • 5.3 Africa
    • 5.4 America
  • 6 Fictional federations
  • 7 See also
  • 8 Notes
  • 9 Watch. also

The main features of a federal state

In a federal state, in contrast to a unitary state, there are two systems of higher authorities (federal and subjects of the federation). Along with the federal constitution, the subjects of the federation have the right to issue their own regulatory legal acts of a constituent nature (for example, constitutions, charters, basic laws). They have the right to issue regional laws. The subjects of the federation often have their own institution of citizenship, capital, coat of arms and other elements of the constitutional and legal status of the state, with the exception of state sovereignty.

At the same time, a subject of the federation cannot be a subject of international relations without leaving the federation (secession). The subjects of the federation may have different names, which are usually determined by historical or legal factors: states, provinces, regions, territories, republics, states or federal states (as in Germany and Austria) and others. A federation should be distinguished from a confederation, which is an international legal union of sovereign states. However, in practice, it is very difficult to distinguish the legal nature of certain entities - many of the current confederations are very close to federations in their structure or even almost are federations.

We can distinguish the most common features that are characteristic of most federal states:

  • The territory of the federation consists of the territories of its individual subjects: states, cantons, republics, emirates, etc.
  • In a federal state, the supreme legislative, executive and judicial powers are vested in the federal state bodies of the legislative, executive and judicial powers, respectively. The competence between the federation and its subjects is delimited by the federal constitution.
  • In some federations, the subjects have the right to adopt their own constitution, have their own internal supreme legislative, executive and judicial bodies.
  • The main national foreign policy activities in the federations are carried out by federal state bodies. They officially represent the federal state in interstate relations (USA, Russian Federation, Germany, Brazil, India, etc.).
  • A mandatory feature of the federalism of the state is the bicameral structure of the federal parliament. One chamber is a body of federal representation and deputies are elected to it from all over the country. The second chamber is called upon to represent the interests of the subjects of the federation.

Federation types

According to the peculiarities of the constitutional and legal status of the subjects of a federal state, the following are distinguished:

  • symmetrical
  • Asymmetrical.

In symmetrical federations, the subjects have the same constitutional and legal status (for example, the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, the United States of America), in asymmetric federations, the constitutional and legal status of the subjects is different (for example, the Republic of India, the Federative Republic of Brazil).

According to the features of the formation of the federation, there are:

  • territorial
  • national
  • mixed (combined)

When forming territorial federations, a territorial geographical feature is used (for example, the United States of America, Germany), in national federations - on a national basis (for example, the former federations of Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia). mixed federations, the formation goes on both grounds (for example, Russia). Ways of formation of the federation to a large extent determine the nature, content, structure of the state system.

According to the method of formation, federations are divided into:

  • contractual
  • constitutional

Constitutional federations often arise on the basis of a pre-existing unitary state (often an empire). Contrary to popular misconception, the constitutions of such federations, as a rule, spell out the principle of the country's territorial integrity and the subjects of the federation do not have the right to freely secede from the state (for example, Germany, Brazil, Russia).

Treaty federations are formed by concluding an agreement between independent states that existed independently, but realized the need for a state association for the joint regulation of common interests.

degree of centralization:

  • centralized (Argentina, Germany, Russia)
  • decentralized (Switzerland)

"Soft federation"

"Soft federation" - a federation, the subjects of which have the right of secession. It is assumed that in the future the Union of Russia and Belarus (now having the features of a confederation) will become such. The subjects of a soft federation may themselves be federations (there are such subjects in federal Bosnia and Herzegovina). Previously, the renewed Union of SSR, the Union of Sovereign States, was supposed to become a soft federation following the results of an all-Union referendum, but after the August putsch, the project was curtailed.

Modern federal states

Modern federal states on the world map
  1. Russian Federation
  2. Republic of Austria
  3. Federal Republic of Germany
  4. Swiss Confederation
  5. Bosnia and Herzegovina
  6. Kingdom of Belgium
  1. Russian Federation
  2. Islamic Republic of Pakistan
  3. Malaysia
  4. United Arab Emirates
  5. Republic of India
  6. Republic of Iraq
  7. Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal
  8. Republic of the Union of Myanmar
  1. Sudan
  2. Union of the Comoros
  3. Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia
  4. Federal Republic of Nigeria
  5. South Sudan
  6. Somalia
  1. Argentine Republic
  2. Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela
  3. Canada
  4. United Mexican States
  5. USA
  6. Federative Republic of Brazil
  7. Federation of Saint Kitts and Nevis

Australia and Oceania

  1. Australian Union
  2. Federated States of Micronesia

Federal states that existed in the past

Europe

  1. Federal Republic of Spain (1873-1874)
  2. Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (1922-1991)
  3. Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1945-1992), Federal Republic of Yugoslavia (1992-2003), State Union of Serbia and Montenegro (2003-2006)
  4. Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (1968-1990), later Czech-Slovak Federal Republic (1990-1992) and Czech and Slovak Federal Republic (1992)
  5. German Empire

Asia

  1. Federated Malay States (1896-1946)
  2. Malayan Union (1946-1948)
  3. Federation of Malaya (1948-1963)
  4. United States of Indonesia (1949-1950)
  5. Federation of South Arabia (1962-1967)
  6. Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (Transcaucasian Federation, TSFSR) (1922-1936)

Africa

  1. French West Africa (1904-1958)
  2. French Equatorial Africa (1910-1960)
  3. United Kingdom of Libya (1951-1963)
  4. Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland (1953-1963)
  5. United Arab Republic ( UAR , 1958-1971)
  6. Mali Federation (1959-1960)
  7. Federal Republic of Cameroon (1961-1972)
  8. Uganda (1962-1967)
  9. Democratic Republic of the Congo (1960-1971)
  10. United Republic of Tanzania

America

  1. Inca Empire (1197-1572)
  2. United Provinces of Central America (1823-1838)
  3. Confederate States of America (1861-1865)
  4. New Granada (1855-1886)
  5. West Indies Federation (1958-1962)

Fictional federations

Fictional federations are quite common in fictional fantasy universes. Vivid examples of fictional federations:

  1. United Federation of Planets (Star Trek)
  2. Earth Alliance and Minbari Federation (Babylon 5)
  3. Earth Alliance (Galactic Civilizations game series)
  4. The Old Republic and the New Republic (Star Wars)
  5. British Federation (Total Recall)

see also

  • National-territorial autonomy
  • Federalism

Notes

Watch. also

  • unitary state
  • Confederation

federal state, federal state wikipedia, federal state is what is a federal state

Federal State Information About

    Federation (lat. foederatio association, union) is a form of government in which parts of a federal state are state entities with legally defined political independence. Contents ... ... Wikipedia

    Government body- (State authority) A state body is a subdivision of the apparatus of state power, designed to manage affairs in the country Signs of state bodies, types of state bodies, state authorities of Russia, ... ... Encyclopedia of the investor

    Federation- (Federation) Federation is a form of territorial structure of the state Definition, types and types of federations, advantages and disadvantages of the federal structure of the state, federalism in modern Russia Contents >>>>>>>>>> … Encyclopedia of the investor

    Europe- (Europe) Europe is a densely populated highly urbanized part of the world named after the mythological goddess, forming together with Asia the continent of Eurasia and having an area of ​​​​about 10.5 million km² (about 2% of the total Earth area) and ... Encyclopedia of the investor

    State- (Country) The state is a special organization of society, ensuring unity and integrity, guaranteeing the rights and freedoms of citizens The origin of the state, signs of the state, form of state government, form of state ... ... Encyclopedia of the investor

    This term has other meanings, see Russia (meanings). Request "RF" is redirected here; see also other meanings. Russia Russian Federation ... Wikipedia

    Russian Federation- (The Russian Federation) The state of Russia, the history and development of Russia, the political and economic structure Information about the state of Russia, the history of the emergence and development of Russia, the political and economic structure Contents ... ... Encyclopedia of the investor

    The state budget- (Government budget) The most important parts of the state budget, the state budget of the Russian Federation Expenditures and revenues of the state budget, budget deficit, Russian budget, corruption in public finance management Content >>>>>>>>>> … Encyclopedia of the investor

    Germany- (Deutschland) State of Germany, history and development of Germany, political and economic structure Information about the state of Germany, history of the emergence and development of Germany, political and economic structure Contents ... ... Encyclopedia of the investor

    AND; and. [French] fédération] 1. A form of government in which several state entities with a certain legal and political independence form one union state; state,… … encyclopedic Dictionary

Books

  • Constitutional law of Russia Textbook for bachelors 4th edition revised and enlarged, Strekozov V.

Federations are countries that are divided into separate administrative-territorial units, each of which has legal and political independence, chooses its own head, but at the same time is subordinate to a single center.

The main features of the federal structure

  • The territory of the state is divided into separate independent administrative units. They are called differently: states, cantons, republics.
  • The supreme power belongs exclusively to the center. Relations between subordinate territories are established by the constitution.
  • The administrative structure is built in such a way that, despite the fact that there are nationwide bodies of judicial, legislative and executive power, power is structured in exactly the same way in each republic. A state can adopt its own constitution.
  • Federative countries of Foreign Europe have a bicameral structure of parliament. The first chamber represents national interests and the population elects deputies to it from all over the country. And the second - consists of representatives of the republics. The task of the deputies of the lower house is to protect the interests of the territories they represent.

Countries of Foreign Europe with a federal administrative-territorial division

In total, there are five countries in Europe with such a state form. Let's look at their list:

  • Germany;
  • Austria;
  • Belgium;
  • Switzerland;
  • Spain.

State structure of Germany

Germany is a classic example of a federation. The lands included in the composition are not just provinces, but separate small states with their own constitution, strictly observing the principles of democracy. In the lands of Germany there are elected bodies - Landtags, which represent power.

Fig.1. Administrative divisions of Germany

By law, the federal president is the head of state. Its main function is to select and present the Prime Minister to Parliament. He is called Chancellor. It is in the hands of the Chancellor that all power in Germany is concentrated. He represents the interests of the country at the international level, manages the lower and upper chambers. Thus, although the president is the highest official, the prime minister rules the country. For 12 years now, the position of Federal Chancellor of Germany has been occupied by a woman - Angela Merkel.

State structure of Austria

Austria is a democratic federal republic. This means that the main power belongs to the people of Austria, who elect the president and parliament. Geographically, Austria is divided into 9 districts. It became a federation in 1955, although the constitution was adopted much earlier in 1920 and since then there have been no significant changes to it. The head is the president.

State structure of Belgium

Although Belgium is a federal republic, its structure is very interesting. It is a constitutional parliamentary monarchy. This means that along with the elected bodies (parliament), the heir to the dynasty controls the country. A monarch is a ruler whose power is very limited. The country is divided into 10 provinces.

Fig.2. Administrative divisions of Belgium

The people love their monarch very much and call him “King of the Belgians”. Since 2013, the throne has been occupied by Philip Leopold Louis Maria. Its main powers include the appointment of the prime minister (the actual head of state), the appointment of 14 ministers. Seven of them must be fluent in French, the rest in Dutch.

State structure of Switzerland

Switzerland is a very small but very strong country. Its territory has been inviolable since the end of the 17th century. In addition, this is the only state in Europe that was not touched during the First and Second World Wars. Now in Switzerland there are 20 cantons - the so-called administrative units. All issues related to the improvement and life of people are resolved locally. Federal bodies are responsible for problems of a global scale: war and peace, the country's financial budget, transport communications.

Fig.3. Political map of Switzerland

State structure of Spain

Spain has a unique history. After the death of the dictator Franco in 1975, power returned to the hereditary monarch, who announced the beginning of a democratic foundation. The form of government has been preserved: a constitutional monarchy. Most of the powers are concentrated in the hands of the parliament, but the king remains the head of state and represents Spain at the international level.

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What have we learned?

The countries of Foreign Europe with a federal structure are Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland and Spain. Belgium and Spain have their own monarch, who decides on the appointment of the head of government. In Germany, all power is concentrated in the hands of the Federal Chancellor. Austria and Switzerland are governed by a president.

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The state structure largely determines the main directions of development and functioning of the country. Federal states, the list of countries with such a device can be found below, today are few in number - there are only 28 of them. What is inherent in this method of government and what are its features.

The signs of such a device are contained in the main document - the Constitution, which says what is inherent in the federal state system, how it functions, between which bodies state power is distributed.

The term federation itself means, which includes several separate subjects.

This is a voluntary union of republics that are deprived of independence or their own sovereignty. The subjects have broad political powers, but a number of issues must be coordinated with the governing body of the entire federation.

The subject can be either a separate state or just a certain territorial entity (district, district), which has a number of state features. All other issues of self-regulation of the internal structure of the subject decides itself within the powers specified in the mandatory national document.

Subjects can:

  • issue regional legal acts (laws, charters);
  • have a personal civil institution;
  • have a capital and its own symbols (flag, anthem);
  • manage industrial facilities;
  • have its own name, formed historically or legally;
  • enter into agreements with each other.

At the same time, they cannot be part of international relations outside the federation or make all decisions without the participation of the main governing body of the country.

A federal state differs from a unitary state by the presence of two supreme authorities: a common one for the entire state and a specific subject. Furthermore, confederation is a related concept, the only difference being that the members of a confederation are independent sovereign entities. In practice, it is rather difficult to distinguish between them, because they have a very similar legal system.

Good to know! The Swiss Union is officially considered a confederation, but in fact each canton (region) has already become a classical entity without sovereignty. But the European Union is an example of a classic confederation.

signs

Each state structure has its own distinctive features, which are spelled out in the Constitution and which determine the country's belonging to a particular species.

Signs of federal states

Most of these powers are characterized by the presence of common features:

  • the total area consists of several separate territories of the subjects;
  • all three authorities in the subjects belong to and are subordinate to the federal state authorities, respectively;
  • only a single constitution of a state can delimit the rights and duties, as well as freedoms for the entire power and its individual subjects;
  • in individual states, the regions have the right to create their own constitution, which must not contradict the general constitution;
  • only national bodies have the right to conduct foreign policy activities, since only they are official representatives in the international arena;
  • a 2-chamber parliament is obligatory, which has an upper (the body represents the subjects) and a lower (is the body of national representation) chambers.

A distinctive feature of a federal state is the presence of its own laws in the territorial bodies.

Types

Political science has its own modern classification of associations, depending on the rights that the subjects have.

Associations are:

  1. Symmetrical - all regions (states) are equal to each other and have the same rights prescribed in the Constitution. A classic example is the United States, where each state is legally equal to the other.
  2. Asymmetric - each region has its own rights under the Constitution and their legal status is different (Brazil).

Types of federal states

Powers are also distinguished depending on the characteristics of education:

  1. Territorial - the creation is based on a territory that is common to several subjects (USA, Germany);
  2. National - the basis for unification is the same nationality of the inhabitants of different regions (Czechoslovakia, Yugoslavia);
  3. Mixed - the formation is carried out immediately on both grounds: nationality and territory.

For the most part, the methods and factors of formation determine the future nature, content and structure of the power structure.

Types of federal states

It is necessary to distinguish the features of formation from the method:

  • contractual - are concluded through negotiations between independent states that have realized the need to unite in a union;
  • constitutional - are created on the basis of a pre-existing unitary power or empire.

Good to know! Most often, the subjects of an association that has been formed constitutionally cannot freely leave at will, since this is prohibited by the Constitution.

Types of federal states

Similar countries are also different in terms of the extent and method of decision-making by subjects:

  • centralized - all decisions are made by the main authorities, the regions have only a small degree of autonomy (Argentina, Russia);
  • decentralized - each region is autonomous, and the main body of the federation is necessary only for centralized management of the entire country, and not a specific territory (Switzerland).

There is such a thing as a "soft federation" - a territorial-legal association of subjects, each of which has the right of secession, that is. free exit. A striking example is Ethiopia, the only country in the world that is constitutionally approved in this status. The European Union can also be seen as a benign form, but it is not a country under international law.

Useful video: what is a federal country

federal states

A list of countries that have a federal structure can be found on each continent. Despite the small number of such states, their territory is not inferior in size to all the others.

Examples in Europe:

  • Russian Federation,
  • Republic of Austria,
  • Switzerland,
  • Republic of Germany,
  • Kingdom of Belgium.

Asia is less typical of countries that have a federal administrative-territorial formation.

Federal states on the world map

Among them, one can only name:

  • Pakistan (Islamic),
  • India
  • Democratic Republic of Nepal,
  • Malaysia.

In Africa it is:

  • Republic of Nigeria,
  • Sudan (and South Sudan),
  • Union of Comoros.

On the American continent, the most famous representative is, of course, the United States. But besides them there are located:

  • Canada,
  • mexican states,
  • Republic of Brazil,
  • Argentine Republic.

The Commonwealth of Australia and the Federated States of Micronesia (a state in Oceania) have the same device.

Useful video: the principle of a federal device

Conclusion

The division is always based on the degree of autonomy of the members of the association. Political scientists today cannot give an accurate conclusion on how much the state structure affects the degree and speed of development of society.

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Introduction

On the political map of the world, federations make up only one-eighth of the nearly 200 states. At the same time, the interest shown in the history and development of the federal form of the intrastate structure is incommensurable with the number of countries that have chosen it. One of the most frequently cited advantages of a federated state is its ability to change over time and the range of federation options available. In this regard, finding a single model of a federal structure that could be applied in all federal states seems unrealistic. Modern federalism, in the form in which it is presented in a number of countries in Europe, America, Asia and other continents, is the fruit of a long development, the result of the trial and error method.

In Russia, the process of forming a federation is also ongoing, since it is still unclear what division of powers between the center and the subjects is optimal, whether the federation will be symmetrical or asymmetric.

The purpose of the course work is to analyze the history of the emergence and development of federations in modern and recent times in the world.

1. Give a general concept of the federation, describe their position on the modern world map.

2. Divide the existing federations into groups and characterize their features.

When writing a term paper, textbooks and publications on the constitutional law of foreign countries and some publications on federalism were used.

Federal states on the modern map of the world

Federal state (federation)- (from the late Latin Foederatio - union, association) a form of government in which the federal units (subjects of the federation) that are part of the state have their own constitutions, legislative, executive and judicial bodies.

Currently, there are about 200 sovereign states, and only 25 of them are federations. But what role do they play in the modern world? This question can be answered unequivocally - their significance for modern society is invaluable.

Most federations are large and medium-sized states, in which about a third of the world's population lives in total. Of these twenty-three states, 1 is a global banking center (Switzerland), 4 are members of the G8 (USA, Russia, Canada, Germany), 6 have a high level of economic development (Russia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Malaysia, UAE) . However, there are also backward states where industry is extremely poorly developed (Nigeria) or does not exist at all (Comoros).

There are federal states on all continents and, as a rule, occupy leading positions there.

In 2011, there were 25 federations in the world, which accounted for 12% of the total number of independent states in the world (in 1901 - 10%). Europe, Asia and America at the turn of the 20th and 21st centuries remain the regions of the greatest spread of federalism (6 federations each). Asia hosts two exotic federations of monarchies - the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia. Finally, 4 - in Africa, 2 - in Australia and Oceania.

Table 1. Countries with a federal administrative-territorial structure

Republic of Austria, Kingdom of Belgium, Russian Federation, Germany, Swiss Confederation, Bosnia and Herzegovina

Republic of India, Federation of Malaysia, Union of Myanmar, United Arab Emirates, Islamic Republic of Pakistan, Republic of Iraq

Federal Islamic Republic of Comoros, Federal Republic of Nigeria, Ethiopia, Tanzania

Federative Republic of Brazil, Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, Canada, United Mexican States, USA, Argentine Republic, Federation of Saint Christopher and Nevis

Australia and Oceania

Australia, Federated States of Micronesia

At the same time, a number of federations that existed in the past turned out to be unviable and fell apart.

Table 2. Federations that have existed in the past

state

Republic of the United Provinces

Federal Republic of Spain

Union of Soviet Socialist Republics

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

Czechoslovak Socialist Republic

Federal Republic of Yugoslavia

Federated Malay States

Malayan Union

Federation of Malaysia

United States of Indonesia

Federation of South Arabia

French West Africa

French Equatorial Africa

United Kingdom Libya

Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland

United Arab Republic

Malian Federation

Federal Republic of Cameroon

Republic of South Africa

Great Columbia

United Provinces of Central America

Confederate States of America

New Granada

West Indies Federation

The comparison shows that today there are more collapsed federations than existing ones, and the countries of Africa and Asia have unsuccessfully experimented with this form of government most of all.

Some experts believe that it is possible to distinguish several types of federations, characterized by specific development trajectories. For 25 "constitutional" federations, at least 7 types are recruited.

“Western European" type of: Germany, Austria, Belgium, Switzerland- old Western European democracies, connected (Belgium, Switzerland) or not connected with the national structure of settlement, with long traditions of self-government or independent statehood of the constituent parts, a stable relationship between political and ethnic identity.

“North American" type of: USA, Canada, Australia- old English-speaking "settlement" federations, created "from below" in the course of building a liberal democracy, little connected with ethnic and other social differences, with a stable political identity, high decentralization of state power.

“Latin American" type of: Mexico, Argentina, Venezuela, Brazil- old “settlement” federations created “from above” as a result of the collapse of the Spanish and Portuguese empires from parts of their colonies, not related to ethnic differences, asymmetric, with a large number of subjects and high centralization of state power, combined with developed institutions of self-government in the subjects. The plurality of regions and the asymmetry of the federation - the creation of new full-fledged subjects from the territories or by dividing the "old" states, especially in areas of new development - have traditionally been used in Latin American countries as valves for regulating intra-federal relations and social tensions.

“Island” type: Federated States of Micronesia, St. Kitts and Nevis, Comoros - young island federations created as a result of the collapse of colonial empires, asymmetric and poorly integrated.

“Afro-Asian” type: India, Malaysia, UAE, formerly South Africa - young but stable centralized federations created “from above” on the basis of a compromise between the elites of the former federal states and / or the national elites of the regions that became subjects of the federation, highly asymmetric, with strong differences in the potential of the regions, as a rule, with the preservation of significant elements of authoritarian rule in the center and in the regions.

“Nigerian” type: Nigeria, Pakistan, Ethiopia, Myanmar - young highly centralized federations with unstable authoritarian regimes that arose as a result of decolonization, in which the principles of the federal structure were used by the central authorities (“from above) as a means of maintaining the unity of ethnically, socially and economically heterogeneous regions, asymmetrical, with weak and formal institutions of local self-government, legitimized by the frequent intervention of the center in the affairs of the regions, up to a radical redrawing of the boundaries between them

“post-communist” type: Russian Federation, formerly Yugoslavia - countries that inherited the federation from the communist regime, and reform is hampered by a number of institutional problems.

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