A puppet state is a country that is officially independent but is not so in practice. Puppet governments are usually kept in power by military force provided by an occupying country.

It is a biased term and is used in criticizing the government of the alleged puppet state.

Examples
Examples of puppet states before World War II are:
 Far Eastern Republic (puppet state of the Soviet Union).
 Kingdom of Holland (puppet state of the First French Empire)
 Kingdom of Poland (1916-1918) (puppet state of the German Empire)
 Panama (puppet state of the United States)
 Grand Duchy of Warsaw (puppet state of the First French Empire)
 Emirate of Mongda (puppet state of the Ottoman Empire)

World War II
In World War II the Axis countries created some puppet states, like:
Kingdom of Albania (1939-1943, puppet state of Italy)
Hungarian State of National Unity (1944-1945, puppet state of Nazi Germany)Government of National Unity (Hungary)
Manchukuo (1932-1945, puppet state of the Empire of Japan)
Independent State of Croatia (1941- 1945, puppet state of Italy and Nazi Germany)
Slovak Republic (1939-1945, puppet state of Nazi Germany)
Free State of Burma (1943-1945, puppet state of the Empire of Japan)

After Italy surrendered in World War II the Italian Social Republic was a puppet state created by Germany.

Cold War
During the Cold War (1945-1989) these Eastern European countries were puppet states of the Soviet Union:

 People's Republic of Bulgaria (Soviet Union)
 Czechoslovak Socialist Republic (Soviet Union)
 East Germany (Soviet Union)
 Hungarian People's Republic (Soviet Union)
 Socialist Republic of Romania (Soviet Union)
 Polish People's Republic (Soviet Union)
 Democratic Republic of Albania (Soviet Union)
 Mongolian People's Republic (Soviet Union)
 North Korea (Soviet Union), (until 1976)
Next are economic puppets:

 Austria (mostly in the  north east including Vienna and the old Soviet occupation zone until 1955) (Soviet Union)
In some of these countries the people overthrew the government, but each time they did that (before 1989) the Soviet Union and some of its other puppet states invaded and put the old government back in power. The Soviet Union had also some puppet states outside Europe, such as Mongolia. Some of these countries had more independence from the Soviet Union. For example, the Romanian government sided against the Soviets when they went into Czechoslovakia.

The United States also had some puppet states during the Cold War:

 Cuba (United States), (before 1959)
 Guatemala (United States), (until 1991)
 South Korea A.K.A United States Army Military Government in Korea (United States), (Until 1948)
 Republic of Vietnam A.K.A South Vietnam (United States), (Until 1975)
 Japan A.K.A Allied Occupation of Japan (United States), (Until 1952)

Now
There are these countries that can be called puppet states now:

 Donetsk People’s Republic (puppet state of Russia)
 Luhansk People’s Republic (puppet state of Russia)
 South Ossetia (puppet state of Russia)
Abkhazia (puppet state of Russia)
 Transnistria (puppet state of Russia)
 Republic of Artsakh (puppet state of Armenia between 1991-2020, puppet state of Russia since 2020)
 Islamic Republic of Afghanistan (2004-2021, puppet state of United States)
 This also includes the Transitional Islamic State of Afghanistan, (2002-2004)
 Republic of Iraq (puppet state of United States), (2003-2018)
 This also includes the Coalition Provisional Authority, (2003-2004)

Related pages
 Banana republic
 Satellite state

Politics