What term describes the idea of a country having full control over its own territory and affairs?

• A. Sovereignty
• B. Autonomy
• C. Independence
• D. Federalism

Answer: (A)

Sovereignty means a country has full and exclusive authority to govern itself and manage everything that happens within its borders. It can make its own laws, control its resources, conduct foreign relations, and defend itself without outside power directing its choices. That full internal and external control is exactly what the phrase “full control over its own territory and affairs” describes, which is why this term fits best.

Autonomy is about partial self-rule within a larger country, not complete independent control. Federalism describes how power is shared between a central government and regional governments in a federation, rather than a state having sole authority over all its territory and affairs. Independence refers to being free from external control, but sovereignty is the established term for the ongoing, formal authority a state has to govern itself.