Treaty of friendship
Type of international treaty
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
A treaty of friendship, also known as a friendship treaty, is a common generic name for any treaty establishing close ties between countries. Friendship treaties have been used for agreements about use and development of resources, territorial integrity, access to harbours, trading lanes and fisheries, and promises of cooperation. Whilst not common, there are some treaties agreeing to some forms of military alliance which have use friendship terminology in their titles,[1] as well as some non-aggression pacts. Additionally, friendship treaties have also signalled an independent relationship with emerging states.[2]
History
Ancient Greeks distinguished between three different types of friendships between two polities: Philiai, symmachia, and epimachia. Both symmachia and epimachia were types of alliances, with the former committing States to support each other in battle and the latter requiring parties to assist each other if one suffered an invasion. Philiai, then, made the important distinction of denoting friendship between polities but did not give the treaty partners the status of allies. Romans had a similar word amicitia, which was a state of diplomatic relations which could coexist with an alliance, or exist without it. The Romans employed a practice of establishing peace and friendship with polities on its peripheries, though in practice these relationships were usually built on unequal treaties, requiring the neighbour to support Rome militarily, though not necessarily the reverse.[1]
In most cases, the friendship treaties are not based on equal partnership. This is particularly the case in treaties between aboriginal nations and the colonizers, both in America and in the Pacific, throughout the Colonial era. These treaties, often written primarily in the language of the coloniser, manipulated the terminology of friendship by the larger powers in order to create an environment of trust, primarily for the benefit of themselves. While promising protection in return for these benefits, the treaties are more subtle ways of accessing resources for commercial exploitation of smaller nations.[1]
Since the early 2000s, friendship in international relations has been under closer analysis. Whilst friendship terminology had always been used in discourse and diplomacy, the analysis of friendship in international relations had been dismissed as merely being synonymous with good relations. In 2007, Felix Berenskoetter called for the inclusion of friendship analysis into international relations and since then a modest body of literature around the concept has been formed.[3][4]
Terminology
In the Soviet Union, Agreement of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance or Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance (Russian: Договор о дружбе, сотрудничестве и взаимопомощи) was a standard Russian language reference to various treaties both internally, between the Soviet Republics, and externally, with countries considered friendly. This terminology is still in use for some post-Soviet states. The terminology was used in many so-called "friendship treaties" the Soviet Union made, but also was used in the Warsaw Pact.[5]
In the United States, these types of treaties are commonly a Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation. More than a hundred "Treaties of Friendship, Commerce, and Navigation" have been signed since independence. Since 1946, these treaties have dealt with commercial matters concerned with the protection of persons, natural and juridical, and of the property and interests of such persons. They define the treatment each country owes the nationals of the other; their rights to engage in business and other activities within the boundaries of the former; and the respect due them, their property and their enterprises.[5]
List of friendship treaties
| Signatories | Treaty | Date signed |
|---|---|---|
 Electorate of Hanover  Russian Empire | Treaty of Friendship of Hanover | 3 July 1710 |
Mosquito Nation Great Britain | Treaty of Friendship and Alliance | 16 March 1740 |
 France  United States | Treaty of Amity and Commerce (United States–France) | 6 February 1778 |
 Prussia United States | Treaty of Amity and Commerce (Prussia–United States)[6] | 10 September 1795 |
 Morocco United States | Moroccan–American Treaty of Friendship | 28 June 1786 |
 Ottoman Empire  United States | Treaty of Tripoli (Treaty of Peace and Friendship between the United States of America and the Bey and Subjects of Tripoli of Barbary) | 4 November 1796 |
 Johor  United Kingdom | Singapore Treaty of Friendship and Alliance[7] | 6 February 1819 |
| Johor United Kingdom | Crawfurd Treaty (Treaty of Friendship and Alliance between the Honourable East India Company, and the Sultan and the Temenggong of Johore)[8][9] | 2 August 1824 |
 Argentina United Kingdom | Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Between Argentina and the United Kingdom | 1825 |
 Hawaii  United States | Hawaii-United States Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation | 1849 |
 Brunei United States | Brunei–United States Treaty of Peace, Friendship, Commerce and Navigation | 23 June 1850 |
 Japan United Kingdom | Anglo-Japanese Friendship Treaty | 14 October 1854 |
 Argentina  Prussia (Zollverein) | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Zollverein and the Argentine Confederation[10] | 19 September 1857 |
| Japan Prussia | Treaty of Amity and Commerce between Prussia and Japan[11][12] | 24 January 1861 |
 China Prussia | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty between Prussia and China | 2 September 1861 |
Prussia (Zollverein)  Siam | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Zollverein and Thailand[13][14] | 7 February 1862 |
 Liberia  North Germany (Zollverein) | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the North German Confederation and the Republic of Liberia | 31 October 1867 |
| Japan North Germany (Zollverein) | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Zollverein and Japan | 20 February 1869 |
 Mexico North Germany (Zollverein) | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the North German Confederation and the United States of Mexico | 28 August 1869 |
 Serbia United Kingdom | Anglo–Serbian Treaty of Friendship and Commerce[15] | 7 February 1870 |
North Germany (Zollverein)  El Salvador | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Zollverein and El Salvador | 13 June 1870 |
German Empire  Persia | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and Persia | 11 June 1873 |
 Costa Rica German Empire | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and Costa Rica | 18 May 1875 |
German Empire  Tonga | Treaty of Friendship between the German Empire and Tonga | 1 November 1876 |
German Empire  Samoa | Treaty of Friendship Between the German Empire and Samoa | 24 January 1879 |
| German Empire Hawaiian Kingdom | Friendship, Commerce, Navigation Consular Treaty Between the German Empire and the Hawaiian Kingdom | 10 February 1880 |
 Korea  United States | United States–Korea Treaty of 1882 | 22 May 1882 |
German Empire  Mexico | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and the United States of Mexico | 5 December 1882 |
German Empire  Joseon | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and the Kingdom of Korea | 26 November 1883 |
German Empire  Zanzibar | Friendship, Commerce, Navigation and Consular Treaty Between the German Empire and the Sultanate of Zanzibar | 20 December 1885 |
German Empire  South African Republic | Friendship and Commerce Treaty Between the German Empire and the South African Republic | 22 January 1886 |
 Ecuador German Empire | Treaty of Friendship Between the German Empire and Ecuador | 28 March 1887 |
German Empire  Guatemala | Friendship, Commerce, Navigation and Consular Treaty Between the German Empire and Guatemala | 20 September 1887 |
German Empire  Honduras | Friendship, Commerce, Navigation and Consular Treaty Between the German Empire and Honduras | 12 December 1887 |
| German Empire Ottoman Empire | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and the Ottoman Empire | 26 August 1890 |
 Colombia German Empire | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and Colombia | 23 July 1892 |
 Brazil Japan | Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between Brazil and Japan[16] | 1895 |
German Empire  Nicaragua | Friendship, Commerce Navigation, and Consular Treaty Between the German Empire and Nicaragua | 4 February 1896 |
German Empire  Orange Free State | Friendship and Commerce Treaty Between the German Empire and the Orange Free State | 28 April 1897 |
| Tonga United Kingdom | Treaty of Friendship between Tonga and the United Kingdom. | 18 May 1900 |
 Bolivia  Chile | Treaty of Peace and Friendship (1904) | 20 October 1904 |
 Ethiopian Empire German Empire | German-Ethiopian Friendship and Commerce Treaty | 7 March 1905 |
German Empire  Venezuela | Friendship, Commerce and Navigation Treaty Between the German Empire and Venezuela | 26 January 1909 |
 Mongolia  Tibet | Treaty of friendship and alliance between the Government of Mongolia and Tibet | 11 January 1913 |
Persia  Russian SFSR | Russo-Persian Treaty of Friendship | 26 February 1921 |
 Turkey Russian SFSR | Treaty of Moscow (1921)[note 1] | 16 March 1921 |
 Mongolia Russian SFSR | Agreement between the Government of the RSFSR and the People's Government of Mongolia on the Establishment of Friendly Relations between Russia and Mongolia[17] | 5 November 1921 |
 Germany  United States | Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Consular Relations between Germany and the United States of America | 8 December 1923 |
Russian SFSR  Tannu-Tuva | Treaty between the RSFSR and the Tannu-Tuvan People's Republic on the Establishment of Friendly Relations[18][19] | 22 June 1925 |
 Kingdom of Bulgaria Turkey | Treaty of Angora (Treaty of Friendship between Bulgaria and Turkey)[20] | 18 October 1925 |
Germany  Soviet Union | Treaty of Berlin (1926)[note 2] | 24 February 1926 |
 Mongolia Tannu-Tuva | Treaty of Friendship and Mutual Recognition[21][22] | 16 August 1926 |
 Kingdom of Italy Ethiopian Empire | Italo-Ethiopian Treaty of 1928 (Italo–Ethiopian Treaty of Friendship and Arbitration) | 2 August 1928 |
 Portugal  Spain | Portuguese–Spanish Treaty of Friendship and Non-Aggression | 17 March 1939 |
 Nazi Germany Kingdom of Italy | Pact of Friendship and Alliance between Germany and Italy | 22 May 1939 |
Nazi Germany  Soviet Union | German–Soviet Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Demarcation | 23 August 1939 |
| Nazi Germany Turkey | German–Turkish Treaty of Friendship | 18 June 1941 |
 Ecuador  Peru | Rio Protocol aka Protocol of Friendship and Peace | 29 January 1942 |
 China Soviet Union | Sino-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Alliance | 14 August 1945 |
| China United States | Treaty of Friendship, Commerce and Navigation between the United States of America and the Republic of China | 4 November 1946 |
 Finland Soviet Union | Finno-Soviet Treaty of 1948 | 8 April 1948 |
 India  Bhutan | 1949 Indo-Bhutan Treaty of Peace and Friendship | 9 August 1949 |
India  Nepal | 1950 Indo-Nepal Treaty of Peace and Friendship | 31 July 1950 |
 Greece Turkey  Yugoslavia | Balkan Pact (1953) | 28 February 1953 |
 Albania  Bulgaria  Czechoslovakia  East Germany  Hungary  Poland  Romania | Warsaw Pact (Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance) | 14 May 1955 |
 Iran  United States | Treaty of Amity, Economic Relations and Consular Rights[note 3] | 15 August 1955 |
 China East Germany | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the People's Republic of China[23] | 25 December 1955 |
 Netherlands United States | DAFT (Dutch-American Friendship Treaty) | 27 March 1956 |
East Germany  Mongolia | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the Mongolian People's Republic[23] | 22 August 1957 |
 Indonesia  Malaya | Treaty of Friendship between the Federation of Malaya and the Republic of Indonesia[24] | 17 April 1959 |
 North Korea  Soviet Union | The DPRK-Soviet Union Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance[25] | 6 July 1961 |
| China North Korea | Sino-North Korean Mutual Aid and Cooperation Friendship Treaty | 11 July 1961 |
 New Zealand  Samoa | Treaty of Friendship | 1 August 1962 |
 France  West Germany | Élysée Treaty aka Treaty of Friendship | 22 January 1963 |
| India Soviet Union | Indo-Soviet Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation | August 1971 |
 Bangladesh India | Indo-Bangla Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Peace | 19 March 1972 |
 Australia  Japan | Basic Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation | 16 June 1976 |
Portugal  Spain | Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation between Spain and Portugal | 2 November 1977 |
East Germany  Vietnam | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam[23] | 4 December 1977 |
| China Japan | Treaty of Peace and Friendship between Japan and China | 12 August 1978 |
 Afghanistan Soviet Union |
Soviet-Afghan Treaty of Friendship[26] | 12 December 1978 |
 Angola East Germany | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the People's Republic of Angola[23] | 24 February 1979 |
East Germany  Mozambique | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the People's Republic of Mozambique[23] | 24 February 1979 |
 Cambodia Vietnam | Treaty of Peace, Friendship and Cooperation[27] | 1979 |
 Kiribati  United States | Treaty of Tarawa aka Treaty of Friendship Between the United States of America and the Republic of Kiribati | 20 September 1979 |
 Ethiopia East Germany | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and Socialist Ethiopia[23] | 15 November 1979 |
East Germany  South Yemen | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen[23] | 15 November 1979 |
| Cambodia East Germany | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the People's Republic of Kampuchea[23] | 18 March 1980 |
 Cuba East Germany | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the Republic of Cuba[23] | 18 March 1980 |
 Equatorial Guinea  Spain | Treaty of Friendship and Cooperation between Spain and Equatorial Guinea of 1980 | 23 October 1980 |
 Afghanistan East Germany | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the Democratic Republic of Afghanistan[23] | 21 May 1982 |
East Germany  Laos | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the Lao People's Democratic Republic[23] | 22 September 1982 |
| East Germany North Korea | Treaty for Friendship and Cooperation Between the GDR and the Democratic People's Republic of Korea[23] | 1 June 1984 |
| Argentina Chile | Treaty of Peace and Friendship of 1984 between Chile and Argentina | 29 November 1984 |
| Russia Germany | Treaty of Neighbourhood, Partnership and Cooperation | 5 July 1991 |
Finland  Russia | Neighborhood agreement (Naapuruussopimus) on Friendship, Basics of relationships, Territorial integrity and Cooperation[28] | 20 January 1992 |
 Kazakhstan Russia | Kazakh-Russian Agreement on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance[29] | 25 May 1992 |
 Tajikistan Russia | Russia-Tajikistan Agreement on Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance[30] | 25 May 1993 |
Russia  Ukraine | Russian–Ukrainian Friendship Treaty | 31 May 1997 |
| North Korea Russia | North Korea-Russia Treaty of 2000 | 9 February 2000 |
| China Russia | 2001 Sino-Russian Treaty of Friendship | 16 July 2001 |
 Italy  Libya | 2008 Treaty of Benghazi[31] | 30 August 2008 |
Bulgaria  North Macedonia | Treaty of Friendship, Good-Neighbourliness and Cooperation | 1 August, 2017 |
| Germany United Kingdom | Kensington Treaty (Treaty between the United Kingdom […] and […] Germany on Friendship and Bilateral Cooperation) | 17 July 2025 |