Borders fixed by international law
Today's borders, as drawn by Natural Earth. Hatched markers show areas where control and international recognition do not match.
Explore today's borders on the mapAreas calculated from the map outlines (≈). Share of Earth's land area including Antarctica.
| # | State or people | Area | Share of land |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Russia | 16,852,767 km² (6,506,890 sq mi) | 11.3% |
| 2 | Antarctica | 12,256,398 km² (4,732,222 sq mi) | 8.2% |
| 3 | Canada | 9,872,129 km² (3,811,650 sq mi) | 6.6% |
| 4 | United States | 9,439,451 km² (3,644,593 sq mi) | 6.3% |
| 5 | China | 9,371,251 km² (3,618,260 sq mi) | 6.3% |
| 6 | Brazil | 8,499,424 km² (3,281,646 sq mi) | 5.7% |
| 7 | Australia | 7,706,030 km² (2,975,315 sq mi) | 5.2% |
| 8 | India | 3,155,816 km² (1,218,467 sq mi) | 2.1% |
| 9 | Argentina | 2,782,711 km² (1,074,411 sq mi) | 1.9% |
| 10 | Kazakhstan | 2,712,754 km² (1,047,400 sq mi) | 1.8% |
| 11 | DR Congo | 2,334,709 km² (901,436 sq mi) | 1.6% |
| 12 | Algeria | 2,322,794 km² (896,836 sq mi) | 1.6% |
Never formally settled
Russian forces take control in February–March 2014, and Russia declares annexation on 18 March. UN General Assembly Resolution 68/262 affirmed Ukraine's territorial integrity, and most countries do not recognize the annexation.
See it on today’s mapAgreed 41 years before control changed hands · Land Boundary Agreement
Agreed in 1974 but only carried out on 1 August 2015, 41 years later. It ends one of the world's strangest borders.
See it on today’s mapNever formally settled
After its full-scale invasion, Russia declares annexation of Donetsk, Luhansk, Zaporizhzhia and Kherson oblasts on 30 September 2022, though it does not control all of them. UN General Assembly Resolution ES-11/4 rejected it. Front lines shift, so this map does not draw them.
See it on today’s mapAgreed 32 years before control changed hands · Recognized as part of Azerbaijan since independence
Armenian forces control the region from 1994. Azerbaijan retakes much of it in 2020 and the rest in September 2023, and the breakaway republic dissolves on 1 January 2024.
See it on today’s map