Confederation (MultiChronos)

A Confederation (also known as confederacy, alliance or league) is an alliance of sovereign star polities that unified for special purposes. Confederation's members - which are interstellar and non-interstellar - could be seen as more organized than anarchy, but more freedom than federation or republic.

Usually formed from treaties, a confederation is unified for specific purposes, such as collective defense or common prosperity. Confederalism represents a main form of inter-governmentalism, this being defined as ‘any form of interaction between states which takes place on the basis of sovereign independence'.

Purposes in which a confederation is made can be vary, but normally including: Member states in confederations usually retain much more freedom than those of federations. In short, most member states are in charge of themselves, internally, while the central government is more of representatives in external matters, shared defenders and advisors.
 * Mutual defence against a larger, encroaching state.
 * Establishment of a larger economic sphere (market).
 * Reasons of cultural, ethnic, social, or racial solidarity.

The nature of the relationship among the member states constituting a confederation varies considerably. Likewise, the relationship between the member states and the general government, and the distribution of powers among them is highly variable. Some looser confederations are similar to interstellar or pan-universe organisations (i.e, the Confederates, DPTH, ALU...). Other confederations with stricter rules may resemble federal systems (i.e, Oceania, NSC, Indochina....).