# Connectedness of diplomatic relations **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 26, 2012, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078 "2012-04-26T23:55:14Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 9\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [April 26, 2012, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/1 "2012-04-26T23:55:14Z")
Obviously major countries like the United States or Russia have diplomatic relations with pretty much everyone else. But what about smaller countries? Does Mozambique have an embassy in Finland? Is there a Sri Lankan ambassador in Argentina? Is there a table or a graph anywhere that shows which countries have active diplomatic relations with which others? ---
**Author:** ![Giles](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/giles/32/60_2.png) [@Giles](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Giles)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 12:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/2 "2012-04-27T00:14:58Z")
Smaller countries don’t have embassies with every country that they have diplomatic relations with, but generally provide diplomatic and consular services through some friendly country that does have an embassy or consulate there. I think that does count as “active diplomatic relations”. ---
**Author:** ![even\_sven](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dfb087/32.png) [@even\_sven](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/even_sven)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 12:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/3 "2012-04-27T00:18:32Z")
No. Countries with important relationships will generally have embassies or at least consulates, but smaller countries without any particular interest in each other don’t. When I was in Cameroon and trying to go to Mali, for example, I needed some paperwork and I had no place to go for it. Small countries will probably just have a few major consulates around the world, and ones in their neighboring countries. It’s too expensive to do otherwise. Sometimes a larger country will handle basic consolate stuff for another country. But if you are a resident of a random country and you have business in another random country, you are probably out of luck. Your only option might be travelling to a third country. This is one of the many, many, many perks of having an American passport. We can travel in ways that most of the world cannot imagine. ---
**Author:** ![madmonk28](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madmonk28/32/20811_2.png) [@madmonk28](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madmonk28)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 6:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/4 "2012-04-27T06:56:44Z")
In addition to the sharing of consular services with another nation as mentioned above, sometimes nations will designate someone as an Honorary Consul. Often this person is a business person living abroad, s/he is empowered to perform some small tasks like issuing visas for their homeland and receive a stipend for their troubles. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 8:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/5 "2012-04-27T08:47:49Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > Obviously major countries like the United States or Russia have diplomatic relations with pretty much everyone else. But what about smaller countries? Does Mozambique have an embassy in Finland? Is there a Sri Lankan ambassador in Argentina? Is there a table or a graph anywhere that shows which countries have active diplomatic relations with which others? Finland has an[embassy in Mozambique](http://formin.finland.fi/public/default.aspx?nodeid=16673&contentlan=2&culture=en-US) Sri Lanka has a [Consulate in Argentina](http://www.embassypages.com/missions/embassy9334/) XYZ country might have an embassy in ABC country even though there are no really apparent connections for several reasons, showing the flag and also keeping contacts open for when you do need them. UAE was not of much use to the US in the 1970’s, less so now that it services a substantial amount of US debt. ---
**Author:** ![MikeS](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/919ad9/32.png) [@MikeS](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeS)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 12:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/6 "2012-04-27T12:49:17Z")
Here’s a list of [Canada’s foreign embassies.](http://www.international.gc.ca/ciw-cdm/embassies-ambassades.aspx?view=d) While all of the countries of the world are listed there (I think), those marked with an asterisk are those in which the affairs are handled by an office in another nearby country. ---
**Author:** ![Donnerwetter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b2d939/32.png) [@Donnerwetter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Donnerwetter)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 12:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/7 "2012-04-27T12:57:15Z")
Diplomats from smaller countries are often accredited for multiple host nations. For instance the ambassador from Iceland in Germany resides in Berlin, but is also at the same time the Icelandic ambassador to Poland, Serbia, Croatia and Montenegro. ---
**Author:** ![Nava](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/da6949/32.png) [@Nava](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nava)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 1:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/8 "2012-04-27T13:43:06Z")
> [@MikeS](#): > > Here’s a list of [Canada’s foreign embassies.](http://www.international.gc.ca/ciw-cdm/embassies-ambassades.aspx?view=d) While all of the countries of the world are listed there (I think), those marked with an asterisk are those in which the affairs are handled by an office in another nearby country. I can’t promise it’s still accurate (it’s not official), but here’s a [similar list for Spain](http://www.cosasdeviajes.com/embajadas-espana-extranjero/). Locations where a full address is not given are handled by another embassy nearby; the list indicates by which one. Official [list of embassies](http://www.maec.es/es/EYC/Paginas/listado-embajadas.aspx) and of [consulates](http://www.maec.es/es/EYC/Paginas/listado-consulados.aspx). ---
**Author:** ![MEBuckner](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mebuckner/32/2896_2.png) [@MEBuckner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MEBuckner)\ **Post date:** [April 27, 2012, 2:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/connectedness-of-diplomatic-relations/620078/9 "2012-04-27T14:15:28Z")
> [@Donnerwetter](#): > > Diplomats from smaller countries are often accredited for multiple host nations. > > For instance the ambassador from Iceland in Germany resides in Berlin, but is also at the same time the Icelandic ambassador to Poland, Serbia, Croatia and Montenegro. Not just smaller countries; the U.S. does this as well. Thus, [our man in Barbados](http://barbados.usembassy.gov/embassy-information.html) is also ambassador to Antigua and Barbuda, Dominica, Grenada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines. Our [woman in Fiji](http://suva.usembassy.gov/about_the_embassy.html) is also accredited to Kiribati, Nauru, Tonga, and Tuvalu (and provides consular services for the French territories in the Pacific).