i agree that puppet state is a pejorative term that is only used by opponents and critics of the sponsoring nation the term provisional government is a more neutral term even the wikipedia article for puppet state says the same thing that it is derogatory while the wikipedia article for provisional government concedes provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a very large government and provisional governments are generally unelected and tend to arise in association with or in the aftermath of civil or foreign wars in a time of crisis a collapsed government may reform with provisional status under a coalition user professortimithy september