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The term vassal state commonly refers to any state that was subordinate to another in the pre-modern international system. The vassal
Vassal

A vassal in the terminology that both preceded and accompanied the feudal of medieval Europe, is one who enters into mutual obligations with a monarch, usually of military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain guarantees, which came to include the terrain held as a fiefdom....
 in these cases was the ruler, rather than the state itself. Being a vassal most commonly implied providing military
Military

A military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or Threat of force ....
 assistance to the dominant state when requested to do so; it sometimes implied paying tribute
Tribute

A tribute is wealth one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance....
, but a state which did so is better described as a tributary state
Tributary state

The term tributary state refers to one of the two main ways in which a pre-modern state might be subordinate to a more powerful neighbour. The heart of the relationship was that the tributary would send a regular token of submission to the superior power....
.

The terms vassal state and tributary state
Tributary state

The term tributary state refers to one of the two main ways in which a pre-modern state might be subordinate to a more powerful neighbour. The heart of the relationship was that the tributary would send a regular token of submission to the superior power....
 are best reserved for the pre-modern era when there was no clear concept of modern state sovereignty
Sovereignty

File:Leviathan gr.jpgSovereignty is the exclusive right to control a government, a State, a people, or oneself. A sovereign is a supreme lawmaking authority....
.






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The term vassal state commonly refers to any state that was subordinate to another in the pre-modern international system. The vassal
Vassal

A vassal in the terminology that both preceded and accompanied the feudal of medieval Europe, is one who enters into mutual obligations with a monarch, usually of military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain guarantees, which came to include the terrain held as a fiefdom....
 in these cases was the ruler, rather than the state itself. Being a vassal most commonly implied providing military
Military

A military is an organization authorized by its nation to use force, usually including use of weapons, in defending its country by combating actual or Threat of force ....
 assistance to the dominant state when requested to do so; it sometimes implied paying tribute
Tribute

A tribute is wealth one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance....
, but a state which did so is better described as a tributary state
Tributary state

The term tributary state refers to one of the two main ways in which a pre-modern state might be subordinate to a more powerful neighbour. The heart of the relationship was that the tributary would send a regular token of submission to the superior power....
.

The terms vassal state and tributary state
Tributary state

The term tributary state refers to one of the two main ways in which a pre-modern state might be subordinate to a more powerful neighbour. The heart of the relationship was that the tributary would send a regular token of submission to the superior power....
 are best reserved for the pre-modern era when there was no clear concept of modern state sovereignty
Sovereignty

File:Leviathan gr.jpgSovereignty is the exclusive right to control a government, a State, a people, or oneself. A sovereign is a supreme lawmaking authority....
. Today, what could be seen as the modern form of a subordinate state akin to a vassal state, is the puppet state
Puppet state

The term puppet state describes a nominal sovereignty controlled effectively by a foreign power.. The term refers to a government controlled by the government of another country like a puppeteer controls the strings of a marionette....
.