An entity, to be considered a state, must have certain characteristics, such as territory, population, government, and sovereignty.

Article 1 of the 1933 Convention on Rights and Duties of States (the Montevideo Convention) provides that “the state as a person of international law should possess the following qualifications: (a) permanent population; (b) defined territory: (c) a government; and (d) capacity to enter into relations with other States.”