Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)

flag of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
flag of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
NameCommonwealth of Independent States (CIS)
RussianСодружество Независимых Государств
Sodruzhestvo Nezavisimykh Gosudarstv
Type
Regional intergovernmental organisation
Leaders
CIS Executive SecretarySergey Lebedev
Secretary GeneralAleksey Sergeyev
Chairperson of the IPA CIS CouncilValentina Matviyenko
Establishment
Belavezha Accords8 December 1991
Alma-Ata Protocol21 December 1991
Soviet Union dissolved25 December 1991
Charter / Statutes of the CIS22 January 1993
Free Trade Area established20 September 2012
Headquarters
St. Kirov, 17
220030 Minsk
Belarus

Sofiyskaya nab., 34c1
115035 Moscow
Russia
Population
Population (2018)236,446,000 (without Crimea)
Density of population11.77 P/km2
(30.5 P/sq mi)
Languages
Official languageRussian
Recognised regional languagesBelarusian, Uzbek, Kazakh, Azerbaijani, Romanian, Kyrgyz, Tajik, Armenian, Turkmen
Geography
Area20,368,759 km2
(7,864,422 sq mi)
Economy
GDP (PPP) (estimate 2018)
Total$5.378 trillion
Per capita$22,745
GDP (nominal) (estimate 2013)
Total$2.696 trillion
Per capita$11,242
Member states (9)
Armenia
Azerbaijan
Belarus
Kazakhstan
Kyrgyzstan
Moldova
Russia
Tajikistan
Uzbekistan
Associate states (1)
Turkmenistan
Observer states (2)
Afghanistan
Mongolia
Currencies
Armenian dram
Azerbaijani manat
Belarusian ruble
Kazakhstani tenge
Kyrgyzstani som
Moldovan leu
Russian ruble
Tajikistani somoni
Uzbekistani som
Turkmenistani manat
Website
CIS.Minsk.by

Definition and history

The Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) is a regional intergovernmental organization that was formed following to the dissolution of the Soviet Union in 1991.

The Soviet Union was composed of 15 republics (Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan, Ukraine, Uzbekistan, Georgia, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania). But on 6th September 1991, the Soviet Union had already recognized the independence of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania.

On December 8, 1991, leaders of Russia, Belarus and Ukraine reach an agreement and create the Commonwealth of Independent States in place of the Soviet Union. This new alliance was open to all the republics of the Soviet Union, but also other nations with similar goals.

The creation of the CIS mark the dissolution of the Soviet Union and it ceased to exist.

All of the 12 remaining republics of the Soviet Union, except Georgia, joined the Commonwealth of Independent States. Georgia joined the CIS two years later (in 1993).

Since then, Georgia and Ukraine have left the CIS and Turkmenistan left the permanent membership and became an associate member.

The Commonwealth of Independent States is not to be confused with:

Purpose of the Commonwealth of Independent States

The CIS is a regional intergovernmental organization that encourages cooperation in economic, political and military of its member. Above this, it has certain powers relating to the coordination of trade, finance, lawmaking and security. It promoted also cooperation on cross-border crime prevention.

Former members of the Commonwealth of Independent States

  • Georgia: 3 December 1993 – 18 August 2009
  • Ukraine: 10 December 1991 – 19 May 2018

Commonwealth realms

Leaders
MonarchQueen Elizabeth II
head of stateQueen Elizabeth II
Population
Population (2019)151 million
Density of population8 P/km2
Geography
Area18,7 million km2
Member States (16)
Antigua and Barbuda
Australia
The Bahamas
Barbados
Belize
Canada
Grenada
Jamaica
New Zealand
Papua New Guinea
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Solomon Islands
Tuvalu
United Kingdom

Meaning of a Commonwealth realm

A Commonwealth realm is a sovereign state which has Queen Elizabeth II as its monarch and head of state. Each realm functions as an independent co-equal kingdom form the other realms.

In each of the countries outside the UK, the Queen appoints a Governor-General. After consulting with the government of his realm, he has all the powers and duties of the queen. Usually the Governor-General signs all acts of parliament into law, but he can wait and ask the Queen for advice or wait for her to sign the act herself.

Although the Queen Elizabeth II is monarch of many countries, the British government has no power in the other realms (just as the governments of the other realms have no power in the UK).

When Queen Elizabeth II became monarch in 1952, she was the monarch and head of state of seven independent states (UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, Pakistan and Ceylon (Ceylon was the commonwealth realm name of current Sri Lanka)). Since then new realms have been created through independence of former colonies and dependencies, and some realms have become republics. In 2020, we have 16 Commonwealth realms: Antigua and Barbuda, Australia, the Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, Canada, Grenada, Jamaica, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu and the United Kingdom.

These 16 Commonwealth realms have a combined area (excluding Antarctic claims) of 18.7 million km2 and a total population of around 151 million (about 149 million live in the 6 most populous countries: UK, Canada, Australia, Papua New Guinea, New Zealand and Jamaica).

All the Commonwealth realms are members of the Commonwealth of Nations, which is an intergovernmental organisation of 54 independent member states.

Commonwealth realms is not to be confused with:

Former realms

Commonwealth of Nations

flag of Commonwealth
flag of Commonwealth
Type
Intergovernmental organisation
Leaders
HeadQueen Elizabeth II
Secretary-GeneralPatricia Scotland
Chair-in-OfficeBoris Johnson
Establishment
Balfour Declaration19 November 1926
Statute of Westminster11 December 1931
London Declaration28 April 1949
Headquarters
Marlborough House
London, SW1
United Kingdom
Population
Population (2016)2,418,964,000
Density of population75 P/km2
Working language
English
Geography
Area29,958,050 km2
Member States (54)
Antigua and Barbuda
Australia
The Bahamas
Bangladesh
Barbados
Belize
Botswana
Brunei
Cameroon
Canada
Cyprus
Dominica
Eswatini
Fiji
The Gambia
Ghana
Grenada
Guyana
India
Jamaica
Kenya
Kiribati
Lesotho
Malawi
Malaysia
Maldives
Malta
Mauritius
Mozambique
Namibia
Nauru
New Zealand
Nigeria
Pakistan
Papua New Guinea
Rwanda
Saint Kitts and Nevis
Saint Lucia
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines
Samoa
Seychelles
Sierra Leone
Singapore
Solomon Islands
South Africa
Sri Lanka
Tanzania
Tonga
Trinidad and Tobago
Tuvalu
Uganda
United Kingdom
Vanuatu
Zambia
Website
thecommonwealth.org

Meaning of the Commonwealth

The Commonwealth of Nations (or Commonwealth) is a political association of 54 member states that shares goals like development, democracy and peace. Nearly all members are former territories of the British Empire.

It dates from the first half of the 20th century with decolonisation of the British Empire through increased self-governance and it was originally created as the British Commonwealth of Nations. Today any country can join the Commonwealth.

The Commonwealth have 2.4 billion people and includes both advanced economies and developing countries. 32 of the 54 members are small states (including many island nations).

It is not to be confused with:

Former members of the Commonwealth of Nations

South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

Historical maps from Worldinmaps.com, now part of TerraScientifica.

Type
Regional Intergovernmental organisation
Leaders
Secretary-GeneralEsala Ruwan Weerakoon
Establishment
8 December 1985
Headquarters
Kathmandu (Nepal)
Population
Population (2015)1,713,870,000
Density of population336.1 P/km2
(870.5 P/sq mi)
Working language
English
Geography
Area5,099,611 km2
(1,968,971 sq mi)
Economy
GDP (PPP) (estimate 2017)
Total$11.64 trillion
GDP (nominal) (estimate 2017)
Total$3.31 trillion
Member States (8)
Afghanistan
Bangladesh
Bhutan
India
Maldives
Nepal
Pakistan
Sri Lanka
Observer States (9)
Australia
China
the European Union
Iran
Japan
Mauritius
Myanmar
South Korea
United States
Website
http://www.saarc-sec.org/

Objectives of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC)

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) is an economic and political organization of 8 countries in South Asia.

The main objectives of the SAARC are to promote economic growth, social progress and cultural development within the South Asia region. The objectives of the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation as defined in its charter are:

  • to promote the welfare of the peoples of SOUTH ASIA and to improve their quality of life
  • to accelerate economic growth, social progress and cultural development in the region and to provide all individuals the opportunity to live in dignity and to realise their full potentials
  • to promote and strengthen collective self-reliance among the countries of SOUTH ASIA
  • to contribute to mutual trust, understanding and appreciation of one another’s problems
  • to promote active collaboration and mutual assistance in the economic, social, cultural, technical and scientific fields
  • to strengthen cooperation with other developing countries
  • to strengthen cooperation among themselves in international forums on matters of common interests
  • to cooperate with international and regional organisations with similar aims and purposes.

History

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation was initiated by the Bangladeshi president Ziaur Rahman. It was founded in New Delhi on 2 august 1983 and it was established by the signing of the SAARC Charter on 8 December 1985 in Dhaka.

At the creation, the SAARC had the following 8 member states:

During the 12th summits (2–6 January 2004), the member states have signed the South Asian Free Trade Area (SAFTA), which foresee the creation of a free trade area for an area covering 1.4 billion people.

In April 2007, Afghanistan joined the South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation.