This is a list of proposed state mergers, including both current and historical proposals originating from sovereign states or organizations. The entities listed below differ from separatist movements in that they would form as a merger or union of two or more existing states, territories, colonies or other regions, becoming either a federation, confederation or other type of unified sovereign state.
The United States invaded Upper Canada and sponsored rebellions throught the esrly 1800s in order to weaken British presence in North America. The U.S. also pursued the purchase of Greenland and Iceland from Denmark on three separate occasions over the span of 150 years. The Panama Canal was constructed by the U.S. in 1904 which was occupied by America until 1979, 24 years before the treaty expired which was returned to Panama. President-electDonald Trump has increased interest in expanding American territory insisting that their acquisitions are national security concerns. The comments have been rebuffed by Canadian, Danish, and Panamanian officials.
Korean reunification has been a goal for both Koreas since the 1953 armistice agreement. However, proposed strategies vary between the two Koreas, with both proposing unification under one sociopolitical system while abandoning the other, similar to German reunification.[6] In January 2024, the supreme leader of the DPRK, Kim Jong Un called for amending the constitution to remove references to cooperation and unification, as well as defining the territorial boundaries of the DPRK and adding an article designating the Republic of Korea as the most hostile state.[7]
The concept of an Indo-Pakistani Confederation advocates for a political confederation consisting of the sovereign states of India and Pakistan as a means of ending bilateral conflicts and promoting common interests in defence, foreign affairs, and cultural and economic development. While this idea does not propose to end the sovereign existence of either nation through reunification, it is aimed to resolve the conflicts afflicting the subcontinent since the partition of India in 1947.
Russia and Belarus signed an agreement to form the Union State in 1999 aiming to continue deeper integration, possibly until unification.[9][10] Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has refuted this idea, declaring that any attempt to annex Belarus would result in war.[11]
Proposed political union between the eight member states of the East African Community.[12] Federation was proposed in 2004, but in 2016 it was decided that confederation would be the short-term goal. South Sudan, the DR Congo and Somalia are not as integrated as the other five members, as South Sudan only gained independence from Sudan in 2011, the DR Congo joined the Community in 2022, and Somalia joined the Community in 2023.[13]
Three cantons formed the initial Confederation in the 1307 Rütlischwur, followed by the 1315 Pact of Brunnen; ten more cantons joined over the life of the Confederacy.
The Kalmar Union was a personal union between the Kingdoms of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. Established in 1397 under the rule of Queen Margaret I, the union aimed to create a single monarch ruling over these three kingdoms.
Portugal became part of the realms of the Spanish Habsburg (Casa de Austria) following the death of Henry I of Portugal but resumed its independence 60 years later.
Though having been ruled since 1603 in personal union when James VI, already king of Scotland, succeeded to the English crown, both countries remained separate sovereign nation states until 1707 when the Treaty of Union unified them into a single entity.
During the Brabant Revolution, Hendrik van der Noot, Prime Minister of the young Belgian state proposed incorporating the confederation into the Dutch Republic. Later Willem I admitted that his idea to unite the Low Countries under the United Kingdom of the Netherlands was influenced by van der Noot's proposal.[20][21]
Manuel Belgrano proposed to the Junta of Buenos Aires the project to establish a monarchical government to maintain the territorial integrity of the ex-Viceroyalty of the Río de la Plata (modern Argentina, Uruguay, Paraguay and Bolivia), and also expand that monarchy to modern Chile and Peru (which at the time were in control of Royalists and were considered incapable of independence from Spain by themselves).[24][25][26] However, the plan was rejected for chauvinist reasons, as Argentinians did not want to have an Inca, not a Spanish Bourbun, as the proposed King, and also feared being dominated by the Peruvian elites and their reactionary tendencies.[citation needed]
Central America was annexed into the First Mexican Empire. After the dissolution of the Empire only Chiapas choose to remain part of Mexico, the rest became the Federal Republic of Central America. Costa Rica in particular was split between inner factions in favor and against the annexation, ending in a Civil War. The pro-Mexican provinces declared membership but were not recognized by the pro-independence provinces.
Proposed at the Congress of Panama by Simón Bolívar, but rejected by fears of Bolivarian authoritarism and centralism from non-Colombian deputies that suspected a "Colombian Empire" in this project (or just due to enmity and distrust against Simon Bolivar from regional Caudillos and leaders). Also due to differences between supporters of how to do that union[clarification needed] (conflicts between federalists, monarchists, liberals, conservatives, etc.).[30]
Riograndense forces were financially and (indirectly) militarily supported by the Uruguayan government led by José Fructuoso Rivera.[31] The Uruguayans had the intention of creating a political union with the Riograndense Republic to create a new stronger state.[31] Juliana Republic was founded in 1839 and formed a confederation with Riograndense, but Juliana itself collapsed less than four months after its founding.
The Confederated States of the Río de la Plata were a State proposal devised by Domingo Faustino Sarmiento in the book Argirópolis or the capital of the confederated states of the Río de la Plata, with its capital on Martín García Island, would be founded. This idea did not prosper due to the historical changes produced by the battle of Caseros in 1852.[36]
The Hungarian Statesman Lajos Kossuth (1802–1894) attempted at different stages of his exile following the Hungarian War of Independence in 1849 to organize a Danubian Confederation. He intended to accommodate the forces of nationalism within the Danubian basin while preserving Hungary's territorial integrity and replacing Austria's position in the European balance of power[37]
Following the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 and the annexation by Prussia of Austria's northern German ally states Otto von Bismarck proposed to unify Prussia and its own German ally states into a single Federation. Consequently, the North German Constitution was adopted, with the provision that the southern German minor states could enter into the union when politically feasible.
Proposed union of the southern German states that was discussed in the mid-19th century. The idea of a confederation emerged in the aftermath of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, which resulted in the dissolution of the German Confederation and the emergence of the North German Confederation under the leadership of Prussia. The southern German states, including Bavaria, Württemberg, Baden, and Hesse-Darmstadt, were concerned about the growing power of Prussia and the dominance of northern German states in the new confederation. They sought to form their own union, which would allow them to retain their autonomy while also providing for mutual defense and economic cooperation.
The idea for the United States to buy Greenland was first proposed during the administration of President Andrew Johnson, when, in 1867, Secretary of State William H. Seward unsuccessfully proposed buying Greenland and Iceland from the Danish Kingdom. A post-World War II bid was also declined by Denmark.[42] In 2018 and 2019, President Donald Trump spoke to aides about acquiring the island; Greenlandic and Danish officials firmly rebuffed the suggestion that the island could be sold.[43][44]
Following the British Crown acquiring the North-Western Territory and Rupert's Land from the Hudson's Bay Company it was transferred to the Dominion of Canada.
The German question regarding the competing ideas of "Greater Germany" and "Lesser Germany" (whether or not a united Germany should include the Austrian Empire) was settled with the Austro-Prussian War in 1866, in which Prussia assumed leadership of the various minor German nation states. The Unification of Germany (excluding Austria) was completed after German victory over the French in the Franco-Prussian War.
The matter was discussed on December 8, 1917, at the Estonian Council of Elders, where Jaan Raamot spoke about the positive attitude of Pehr Evind Svinhufvud, Speaker of the Senate of Finland. In his speech to the Council of Elders, Estonian Politician Konstantin Päts supported the Union and welcomed the idea.
After Bulgaria defeated Serbia in the Serbo-Bulgarian War of 1885, Bulgaria nearly doubled in size when East Rumelia was incorporated within its borders. Bulgaria officially annexed it from the Ottoman Empire in 1885.
A Franco-British Union is a concept for a union between the two independentsovereign states of the United Kingdom and France. Such a union was proposed during certain crises of the 20th century; it has some historical precedents. In April 1904 France and the United Kingdom signed a series of agreements, known as the Entente Cordiale, which marked the end of centuries of intermittent conflict between the two powers, and the start of a period of peaceful co-existence. Nationalist political leaders from both sides were uncomfortable with the idea of such a merging.
The Five Civilized Tribes in Indian Territory did not want to unify with Oklahoma, and thus proposed to create a separate state as a means to retain control of their lands and some measure of independence.[54] Their efforts culminated in the State of Sequoyah in 1905, but they failed to gain support in the U.S. Congress. Following annexation, the region was admitted to the union as the State of Oklahoma.
The British Empire was composed of many states with vastly different constitutions and goals to pursue. Groups like the Imperial Federation League advocated for a political union between the territories of the Empire that could establish a "permanent binding force" between them.[55] Each dominion would be guaranteed representation on equal footing with the United Kingdom in an Imperial Parliament.[56] Ireland would also have been presented representation as an alternative to home rule, and it was deemed possible that an autonomous India could one day join as well. First discussed by heads of government at the 1911 Imperial Conference, and for a second time at the 1937 Imperial Conference where it was eventually dismissed.
In 1911, at the request of the Bahamian House of Assembly, the Canadian and the Bahamian governments began serious negotiations for Bahamian accession to the Canadian confederation.[57] However, a racial panic ignited by the migration of over one thousand African-Americans fleeing violence in Oklahoma derailed the discussions. Prime Minister Wilfrid Laurier turned against the idea, citing incompatible "ethnical origin". After Laurier lost the September 1911 federal election, Bahamian Governor William Grey-Wilson travelled to Canada to reopen accession talks with newly elected PM Robert Borden.[58] In a meeting between Grey and Borden on 18 October 1911, Borden rejected the possibility of taking the Bahamas into the Canadian confederation. His reasoning was that the events of the past year had proved that Canadian public opinion would not countenance the admission of a majority-black province. The British Colonial Office concurred: "No doubt for the moment the Dominion government would safeguard their interests, but there are signs of the rise of a colour question in Canada and in any case it cannot be long before U.S. opinion gives the tone to Canada in regard the Negro."[59]
Crete rebelled against Ottoman rule during the Cretan Revolt of 1866–69 and used the motto "Crete, Enosis, Freedom or Death". The Cretan State was established after the intervention of the Great Powers, and Cretan union with Greece occurred de facto in 1908 and de jure in 1913 by the Treaty of Bucharest.
During World War I and the Interwar period, many Latvian and Lithuanian scholars, such as Jonas Šliūpas, argued that Latvia and Lithuania should unify as part of the Baltic Entente. This idea was originally proposed by Latvia and supported by Lithuania, especially after losing their capital Vilnius to Poland in the Polish–Soviet War, however it was eventually rejected by Lithuania because they would have to give up their claims on Polish land including Vilnius. The idea was still popular until the Occupation of the Baltic states, when it fell out of favour. [2][3]
A short-lived South Caucasian state that extended across what are now the modern-day countries of Georgia, Armenia and Azerbaijan plus parts of Eastern Turkey as well as Russian border areas. The state only lasted for a month before Georgia declared independence, followed shortly by Azerbaijan and Armenia.
Following the disintegration of Austria-Hungary in the final days of World War I the German-speaking territories of the former Austria-Hungary attempted to begin a process of integration into Weimar Germany. The Allies did not favor the idea, and forced the Austrian rump state to sign the Treaty of Saint Germain, which prohibited Austria from uniting with Germany.
The 1922 Southern Rhodesian government referendum was held in the colony on 27 October 1922. Voters, almost all of them White, were given the options of establishing responsible government or joining the Union of South Africa.[67] After 59% voted in favour of responsible government, it was officially granted on 1 October 1923.
The term Baltoscandia was first used by Sten de Geer in an article in "Geografiska Annaler" in 1928 and further developed by Kazys Pakštas.[68] He envisioned Baltoscandia as an economic, political and military unit.[69] Kazys Pakštas proposed that one of the ways for the small nations to withstand the influence coming from the large ones is to unite and to cooperate more closely among each other. As he mentions, unification is possible only among nations that are similar by their size, geographical environment, religion and culture.
The Greek-Yugoslav confederation was a political concept during World War II, sponsored by the United Kingdom and involving the Greek government-in-exile and the Yugoslav government-in-exile. The two governments signed an agreement pushing the proposal ahead, but it never got beyond the planning stage because of opposition from within the Greek and the Yugoslav governments, real world events, and the opposition of the Soviet Union. The proposal envisioned the creation of a confederation of Greece and Yugoslavia.
Tuvan underwent intense Russification of social and economic practices, and virtually all remaining opposition to Stalinist policy was eradicated. The Soviets desired the mineral resources of the republic and a permanent end to Mongolian-Chinese geopolitical intrigues in the region. This process culminated in the absorption of Tuva in 1944, under the rule of General SecretarySalchak Toka and his wife, Head of StateKhertek Anchimaa-Toka.[70]
King Hussein's federation plan: In the late 1940s and early 1950s, there were discussions of a potential merger between Palestine and Jordan, which was then known as Transjordan. The idea was initially proposed by King Abdullah I of Jordan, who sought to create a larger Arab state in the region that would include both Jordan and Palestine. The proposal was also supported by some Israeli politicians who believed that a union with Jordan would help to resolve the ongoing conflict between Jews and Arabs in the region.
Josip Broz Tito came extremely close to persuading Albania to accept integration into Yugoslavia, but relations cooled in 1948 over fears that Yugoslavia only intended to use Albania for raw materials, subsequently resulting in the expulsion of Yugoslav diplomats. Yugoslav/Bulgarian negotiations fell through when Moscow attempted to force both countries into accepting Soviet control over the merge, which caused Yugoslavia to withdraw from negotiations and precipitated the Tito–Stalin split.
Following discussions between Dutch authorities and Indonesian nationalist leaders, the Linggadjati Agreement was signed on 15 November 1946, in which the unilaterally declared Republic of Indonesia agreed to the principle of a federal Indonesia including the territory controlled by the Republic and other territory in the region which the Dutch controlled at that point. The Dutch then organised the December 1946 Denpasar Conference, which led to the establishment of the State of East Indonesia, followed by a state in West Borneo. Further states were set up in former territory of the Republic after they were conquered by the Dutch in 1947. Further Dutch military action faced increasing resistance from governments of the states they had established, and this combined with international pressure caused the Dutch–Indonesian Round Table Conference to take place in The Hague from August to November 1949. This Conference resulted in the Dutch agreeing to hand over sovereignty to a federal union of these states, which officially became the Republic of the United States of Indonesia. This federation lasted only a year, as its member states agreed to dissolve themselves into a unitary state, the last stage of which took place on 17 August 1950.
After the Netherlands had signed a truce with the United States of Indonesia, a transfer of sovereignty took place on 27 December 1949. As part of the Linggadjati Agreement, the Netherlands–Indonesia Union was founded. The Union was abolished when Indonesia left in 1956.[73]
In 1949 Henry Vassey, then Chairman of the Bermuda Trade Development Board, urged the House of Assembly of Bermuda to pursue a political union with Canada. Four Methodist church congregations in Bermuda are part of the United Church of Canada, forming Bermuda Presbytery of the United Church's Maritime Conference headquartered in Sackville, New Brunswick. The same Salvation Army Church territory serves both Canada and Bermuda with many of their pastors travelling between countries.[74] In January 2009, Nova Scotia's Premier, Rodney MacDonald, and the Premier of Bermuda, Ewart Brown, signed a five-year agreement that would strengthen Nova Scotia's ties with Bermuda and enhance service export opportunities, tourism, transportation and health links in both jurisdictions. Bermuda's ties to Canada include the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Bermuda being overseen by Canada's Chartered Professional Accounting profession.
The idea of a Franco-German federation was a proposed merger between France and Germany after the end of World War II. The idea was promoted by French politician Robert Schuman in his declaration on May 9, 1950, which is now celebrated as Europe Day. The aim of the proposal was to create a lasting peace between the two countries and to promote economic cooperation.[4]
The Franco-German federation proposal envisioned a common government, currency, and military. It also sought to establish a European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC), which would integrate the coal and steel industries of France and Germany. The ECSC was created in 1952 and was the first step toward the creation of the European Union.[75][76]
An unofficial referendum on enosis (reunification) with Greece was held in Cyprus between 15 and 22 January 1950, and the proposal was approved by 95.71% of those taking part.
Following Dutch recognition of Indonesian Independence, Indonesia continued to claim the remaining Dutch territory in the region, Netherlands New Guinea, as its rightful territory. The dispute escalated into low-level conflict in 1962 following Dutch moves in 1961 to establish a New Guinea Council. Facing diplomatic pressure from the United States, fading domestic support and continual Indonesian threats to invade the territory, the Netherlands decided to relinquish control of the disputed territory in August 1962. Following a short period of UN administration, the territory was transferred to Indonesia on 1 May 1963.
Afghanistan–Pakistan Confederation plan referred to a plan proposed between the governments of Afghanistan and Pakistan between 1953 and 1954 to merge both countries under a single confederation. These plans were started by Ayub Khan, the president of Pakistan and the monarchy of Afghanistan under King Zahir Shah.
President Zia-ul-Haq too was for such confederation. "Charles Wilson recalled a map that Zia had also shown to him in which overlay indicated the goal of a confederation embracing first Pakistan and Afghanistan and eventually Central Asia and Kashmir. Zia further explained about the Pakistan-Afghanistan confederation in which Pakistanis and Afghans could travel freely back and forth without passports."[78] General Akhtar Abdur Rahman, considered Zia's right-hand man and more importantly the DG-ISI (1979–1987), himself a Pashtun, "also shared Zia's vision of a post-Soviet "Islamic Confederation" composed of Pakistan, Afghanistan, Kashmir and even the states of Soviet Central Asia."[79]
Sarawak and North Borneo merged with the independent Federation of Malaya several years later, forming Malaysia, while Brunei later became an independent state on its own.
Proposed union of Romance-language-speaking Central African countries envisioned by Barthélemy Boganda. Boganda first called for it in May 1957.[82] The idea's implementation was cut short by Boganda's death in a plane crash on 29 March 1959.[83] Boganda viewed this entity to be a counterweight to the powerful British-influenced southern bloc of South Africa and the Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland.[82]
Australian Governor General John Kerr was a vocal proponent of the idea of a Melanesian Federation as a solution to the West Papua dispute.[84][85][86]
The Equatoguinean independence leader Enrique Nvo and the first formal Equatoguinean political party, IPGE, advocated for independence from Spain and a political union between Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea.[87] The idea of a union was deemed unfeasible after the 1963 Spanish Guinean autonomy referendum.[87]
The union planned to develop a common currency and unified foreign policy amongst members; however, none of these proposals were implemented by the countries. The union was the first organization in Africa to bring together former colonies of the British and the French. Although the union was open to all independent states in Africa, no other states joined.
The expressed intention of the Federation was to create a political unit that would become independent from Britain as a single state. However, before that could happen, the Federation collapsed due to internal political conflicts.
An attempt to unify the two Hashemite kingdoms of Iraq and Jordan. While successful, the short-lived union was disestablished after a military coup deposed Faisal II of Iraq.
Senghor became very wary of unification efforts after the failed experiment and despite attempts to create other federations in West Africa and with Senegal's neighbours, Senghor often restrained these efforts and they only progressed after his rule.[88] In addition, as the first failed unification experiment in Africa, the Mali Federation served as a lesson in future attempts at unification throughout the continent.[89] Keïta became more assertive with pushing his ideology after the collapse of the federation and refused diplomatic relations with Senegal for many years.[90] Nonetheless, Mali under Keïta still pursued the goal of West African unity but did so in a variety of different international connections.[91]
On 26 June 1960 the former British Somaliland protectorate briefly obtained independence as the State of Somaliland, with the Trust Territory of Somaliland following suit five days later.[92][93] The following day, on 27 June 1960, the newly convened Somaliland Legislative Assembly approved a bill that would formally allow for the union of the State of Somaliland with the Trust Territory of Somaliland on 1 July 1960.[94] Following the collapse of Barre's government in early 1991, local authorities, led by the SNM, unilaterally declared independence from Somalia on 18 May of the same year and reinstated the borders of the former short-lived independent State of Somaliland.
Proposed political union between the four territories (one colony, two protectorates and one League of Nations mandated territory) under British rule in East Africa in the 1960s. Tanganyika proposed to delay its imminent independence in 1960 so that the four territories might achieve independence together as one federation. In 1963 the leaders of all of the territories (some now independent) pledged to work towards a federation by 1964, but ultimately disputes over the nature of the federation and concerns about sharing power led to the collapse of effort to federate. Only Tanganyika and Zanzibar eventually united in 1964.
In the 1961 British Cameroons referendum, the Christian majority in the south of British Cameroon voted to integrate with Cameroon, whereas the Muslim-majority Northern areas voted to integrate with Nigeria.
The Federation of the Emirates of the South (Arabic: اتحاد إمارات الجنوب العربي Ittiḥād ʾImārāt al-Janūb al-ʿArabiyy) was an organization of states within the BritishAden Protectorate in what would become South Yemen. The Federation of six states was inaugurated in the British Colony of Aden on 11 February 1959, and the Federation and Britain signed a “Treaty of Friendship and Protection,” which detailed plans for British financial and military assistance. It subsequently added nine states and, on 4 April 1962, became known as the Federation of South Arabia. This was joined by the Aden Colony on 18 January 1963.
Proposals to create a union of the people of the Malay race and deal with the continued decolonisation of Southeast Asia led to leaders of the three countries signing the Manila Accord on 5 August 1963. However, cooperation quickly broke down following the formation of Malaysia by Malaya and other former British colonies in the region, which was opposed by Indonesia and the Philippines.[101]
In 1963 the Australian Government proposed that the citizens of Nauru, a United Nations trust territory under Australian administration, would move to Curtis Island and become Australian citizens.[102][103] By that time, Nauru had been extensively mined for phosphate by companies from Australia, Britain and New Zealand damaging the landscape so much that it was thought the island would be uninhabitable by the 1990s. The cost of resettling the Nauruans on Curtis Island was estimated to be £10 million, which included housing and infrastructure and the establishment of pastoral, agricultural, and fishing industries.[104] However, the Nauruan people did not wish to become Australian citizens and wanted to be given sovereignty over Curtis Island to establish themselves as an independent nation, which Australia would not agree to.[105] Nauru rejected the proposal to move to Curtis Island, instead choosing to become an independent nation operating their mines in Nauru.[106] Nauru became self-governing in January 1966, and following a two-year constitutional convention, it became independent in 1968 under founding president Hammer DeRoburt.[107]
Despite Kampuchea's cooperation with the Vietnamese, the Khmer Rouge leadership feared that the Vietnamese communists were planning to form an Indochinese federation, which would be dominated by Vietnam. In order to pre-empt any attempt by the Vietnamese to dominate them, the Khmer Rouge leadership began, as the Lon Nol government capitulated in 1975, to purge Vietnamese-trained personnel within their own ranks. Then, in May 1975, the newly formed Democratic Kampuchea began attacking Vietnam, beginning with an attack on the Vietnamese island of Phú Quốc.[109][110][111]
After independence in 1947, joining the new Indian Union was rejected by popular vote. Sikkim grew closer to India over time, becoming a protectorate and later a suzerainty[citation needed] of India. With Indian pressure and support, Sikkim voted to join India in 1975.[112][113]
The Interim Provincial Government announced that they would declare independence on 1 September, ahead of Papua New Guinea's own planned independence day of 16 September. On 1 September, they issued the 'Unilateral Declaration of Independence of the Republic of the North Solomons'. They sought international recognition through the United Nations, but were unsuccessful. They also failed in an attempt to unite with the Solomon Islands.
In early 1977, Castro brought together the leaders of Somalia, Ethiopia and South Yemen to create a socialist federal state in the region. General Mohamed Nur Galal was the former deputy defense minister of Somalia and the vocal point of Somalia's military contacts with Cuba at that time. He was present at the meeting in Aden in March 1977.[118][119]
An attempt to transfer the bantustan, along with parts of the Zulu homeland KwaZulu, to the neighbouring country of Swaziland in 1982 was never realized.[120][121] This would have given land-locked Swaziland access to the sea. The deal was negotiated by the governments, but was met by popular opposition in the territory meant to be transferred.[122] The homeland's territory had been claimed by King Sobhuza of Swaziland as part of the Swazi monarchs' traditional realm, and the South African government hoped to use the homeland as a buffer zone against guerrilla infiltration from Mozambique. South Africa responded to the failure of the transfer by temporarily suspending the autonomy of KaNgwane, then restoring it in December 1982 and granting it nominal self-rule in 1984.[123][124]
With the coming to power of Thomas Sankara in Burkina Faso in 1983, relations between Ghana and Burkina became both warm and close. Indeed, Jerry Rawlings and Sankara began discussions about uniting Ghana and Burkina in the manner of the defunct Ghana-Guinea-Mali Union, which Nkrumah had sought unsuccessfully to promote as a foundation for his dream of a unified continental government.[125]
On January 14, 1991, the four Caribbean island nations of Dominica, Grenada, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines began an initiative to create a political union encompassing themselves.[126]
During apartheid the South African Government granted nominal independence to four autonomous bantustans within it. While no external country recognized these states, South Africa strongly promoted their independence and the four mutually recognized each other. As South Africa moved to end apartheid, the African National Congress (ANC) party advocated reintegration of all bantustans, including the nominally independent ones, into a unitary South African state. Resistance to integration by leaders of some bantustans led to violence, such as in the Bisho massacre and the Bophuthatswana crisis. Nonetheless, inhabitants of all four independent bantustans participated in the 1994 South African general election, during which a new constitution came into effect which reintegrated all bantustans into South Africa.
The Kozak memorandum, officially Russian Draft Memorandum on the Basic Principles of the State Structure of a United State in Moldova, was a 2003 proposal aimed at a final settlement of relations between Moldova and Transnistria and a solving of the Transnistria conflict. It was seen as an extension of the 1997 Moscow memorandum but was ultimately rejected by Moldovan president Vladimir Voronin.
The plan, presented in mid-November 2003 by Russia, was a detailed proposal for a united asymmetric federal Moldavian state. First published in Russian on the website of Transnistria's Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the text was promoted by a Russian politician Dmitry Kozak, a close ally of President Vladimir Putin and one of the key figures in his presidential team. For Transnistria, the memorandum presented an end to the previous Moscow policy, which assumed that the region would have equal status in federation with the rest of the country. According to the memorandum, Russian troops (no more than 2000 strong, without heavy armaments) would remain in Transnistria for the transitional period but not later than 2020.
A referendum was held in Cyprus on 24 April 2004.[127] The two communities were asked whether they approved of the fifth revision of the United Nations proposal for reuniting the island, which had been divided since 1974. While it was approved by 65% of Turkish Cypriots, it was rejected by 76% of Greek Cypriots.
President Ollanta Humala of Peru proposed Bolivian president Evo Morales to reunite the countries in a confederation.[130][131] The Cabinets of the two countries have held joint meetings.[132]
Novorossiya (Full name: Federal State of Novorossiya) was a proposed confederation between the two self-declared nations of the Donetsk People's Republic and the Luhansk People's Republic. The Confederation was declared on 22 May 2014. On 20 May 2015 the constituent members announced the freezing of the Novorossiya project.
On 30 March 2022, President Anatoly Bibilov suggested a referendum on joining Russia,[134] which was to be held on 17 July 2022; the referendum was cancelled on 30 May 2022.[135]
In late September 2022, Russian-installed officials in some parts of Ukraine[136] organized referendum on annexation of occupied territories of Ukraine.[137][138][139] On 27 September, Russian officials of the Central Election Commission in Zaporizhzhia claimed that the referendum passed, with 93.11% of voters in favour of joining the Russian Federation.[140] According to the data provided by the commission, the support for the annexation was 90.01% in the Melitopol Raion, while in its administrative center, Melitopol, it was 96.78%.[141] On 29 September, Russia announced that it would formally annex the four regions Luhansk, Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson the next day, on 30 September.[142] The referendums were illegal under international law[143] and most countries continue to recognize as part of Ukraine.[144]
In early 2023, Burkina Faso's prime minister after his visit in Mali suggested that the two countries should form a federation to boost their economic clout and fight against the jihadists in the region.[145][146] Later in December of the same year, the foreign ministers of Burkina Faso, Mali, and Niger recommended the establishment of a confederation that includes every member of the Alliance of Sahel States.[147] The confederation was established on 6 July 2024.[148]
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