A member state is a state that is a member of an

international organization An international organization or international organisation (see spelling differences), also known as an intergovernmental organization or an international institution, is a stable set of norms and rules meant to govern the behavior of states a ...

or of a

federation A federation (also known as a federal state) is a political entity characterized by a union of partially self-governing provinces, states, or other regions under a central federal government ( federalism). In a federation, the self-govern ...

confederation A confederation (also known as a confederacy or league) is a union of sovereign groups or states united for purposes of common action. Usually created by a treaty, confederations of states tend to be established for dealing with critical issu ...

. Since the

World Trade Organization The World Trade Organization (WTO) is an intergovernmental organization that regulates and facilitates international trade. With effective cooperation in the United Nations System, governments use the organization to establish, revise, and ...

(WTO) and the

International Monetary Fund The International Monetary Fund (IMF) is a major financial agency of the United Nations, and an international financial institution, headquartered in Washington, D.C., consisting of 190 countries. Its stated mission is "working to foster glo ...

(IMF) include some members that are not

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defined te ...

s, neither organization ever speaks of "member states". The WTO has simply "members" (see WTO members), and the IMF refers to its members as "member countries". The oldest global member state based organization is the

International Telecommunication Union The International Telecommunication Union is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for many matters related to information and communication technologies. It was established on 17 May 1865 as the International Telegraph Unio ...

, which joined the

United Nations System The United Nations System consists of the United Nations' six principal organs (the General Assembly, Security Council, Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC), Trusteeship Council, International Court of Justice (ICJ), and the UN Secretariat) ...

as a Specialized Agency of the T1088 after the creation of the UN.

Worldwide

Member states of the United Nations The United Nations member states are the sovereign states that are members of the United Nations (UN) and have equal representation in the UN General Assembly. The UN is the world's largest intergovernmental organization. The criteria ...

, 193 *

Member states of the International Telecommunication Union The International Telecommunication Union member states are the sovereign states that are members of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) and have equal representation at its supreme decision-making body, the ITU Plenipotentiary Confere ...

, 193 *

Member states of UNESCO , UNESCO members include 193 member states and 11 associate members.UNESCO official siteList of the 193 Member States (and the 11 Associate Members) of UNESCO and the date on which they became members (or Associate Members) of the Organization, ...

, 195 * Interpol#Members , 190 * Member states of the World Intellectual Property Organization , 184 * Member states of the World Sports Alliance , 24 *

Member states of the League of Nations Between 1920 and 1939, a total of 63 countries became member states of the League of Nations. The Covenant forming the League of Nations was included in the Treaty of Versailles and came into force on 10 January 1920, with the League of Nation ...

* Member states of the Venice Commission , 58 * Member states of the World Customs Organization , 173 sovereign states, 4 customs territories and one customs union * International Hydrographic Organization#Member countries * International Centre for the Study of the Preservation and Restoration of Cultural Property#Member states * Alliance of Small Island States#Member states , 39 * Intersputnik#Member states *

World Health Organization The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of ...

, 194

Worldwide - language related

* Member states of the Arab League , 22 * Member states of the Dutch Language Union , 3 * Member states of the Commonwealth of Nations , 52 * Member states of the Latin Union , 36 * Member states of the Community of Portuguese Language Countries , 8 * Member states of the International Organization of the Francophonie * Member states of the Organization of Ibero-American States , 24

Worldwide - religion related

* Member states of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation , 57

Worldwide - commodity related

Member states of the International Atomic Energy Agency The member states of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) are those states which have joined the international organization that seeks to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its use for any military purpose, incl ...

, 167 * Member states of OPEC , 12 * Member states of CIP , 14 * Member states of the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons , 195+

Restricted to a continent or larger region

Other

* Member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States , 9 + 2 unofficial participants (

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the sout ...

and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inv ...

)

Military

* Member states of NATO , 30 ''In history:'' * Warsaw Pact#Members * Central Powers#Member states

References

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