The United Nations General Assembly kicks off this week, with diplomats and heads of government from 193 member states and two observer states descending upon the UN headquarters in New York.
But despite the UN's best intentions, a number of states will not be represented at the UN this year. Unlike non-voting observers like the Holy See and the State of Palestine, the following nations will not be at the UN in any officially recognized capacity.
Despite these would-be states not having a voice at the UN, these states often punch above their weight and can play a major role in international affairs.
The Republic of China
The Republic of China, also known as Taiwan, is recognized by 21 UN member states and the Vatican as the official government of China. It is the successor of the constitutional government founded in China in 1912 that was driven out of the mainland by Mao and the communists.
Both China and Taiwan claim to be the official government of the entirety of China, including the mainland and the island of Taiwan. China views Taiwan as a renegade province that must be brought into fold, perhaps through military force.
Until 1971, the Republic of China was recognized in the UN as the official government of China, and held one of the five permanent spots on its powerful Security Council. However, in 1971 the UN expelled the Republic of Taiwan and gave its seat, as well as its membership in all intergovernmental organizations, to the People's Republic of China.
Republic of Somaliland
Located along a dry stretch of the Red Sea is the Republic of Somaliland, a self-declared independent state that is recognized as a special autonomous region within the rest of Somalia. The Republic of Somaliland, a former British possession, was independent from June 26, 1960, until July 1, 1960, when it united with the formerly Italian colonized parts of Somalia to form the Somali Republic.
Somaliland came to regret the union, especially as the country disintegrated in the late 1980s and early '90s. After Somalia's central government collapsed in 1991, Somaliland held a referendum on becoming an independent state and declared independence shortly afterward.
Although the Republic of Somaliland has the trappings of statehood — elections, a recognized government, and rule of law — no nation recognizes the republic as independent for fear of threatening Somalia's ever-fragile political order. The neighboring nations of Djibouti and Ethiopia do allow citizens from Somaliland to cross borders with a Somaliland passport, however.
The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic
The Nagorno-Karabakh Republic (NKR) is a breakaway republic in the South Caucasus. NKR is recognized as part of Azerbaijan by the United Nations, and it comprises about a fifth of that country's territory. However, the region is predominantly ethnically Armenian, and the NKR receives support from Armenia.
Nagorno-Karabakh has become a frozen conflict between Armenia and Azerbaijan, with little progress being made in settling the issue since six years of hostilities ended in 1994. In August, the Azeri president went on an incredible Twitter rant in which he came close to declaring war on Armenia over the region.
The NKR is recognized by three other Russian-supported breakaway republics in the former Soviet Union — the Republic of Abkhazia, the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic, and the Republic of South Ossetia.
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