Heads of state

The European Council (informally EUCO) is a collegiate body (directorial system) and a symbolic collective head of state, that defines the overall political direction and general priorities of the European Union (EU). It is composed of the heads of state or of government of the EU member states, the president of the European Council, and the president of the European Commission. The High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy also takes part in its meetings.

Established as an informal summit in 1975, the European Council was formalised as an institution in 2009 upon the commencement of the Treaty of Lisbon. Its current president is António Costa, former prime minister of Portugal.

An indirect election or hierarchical voting, is an election in which voters do not choose directly among candidates or parties for an office, but elect people who in turn choose candidates or parties. This electoral system is one of the oldest forms of elections and is used by many countries for heads of state (such as presidents), heads of government (such as prime ministers), and/or upper houses. It is also used for some supranational legislatures. The body that controls the federal executive branch (such as a cabinet) is in many countries elected indirectly by the head of government with exception of the directorial system. Upper houses, especially in federal republics, are often indirectly elected, either by the corresponding lower house or cabinet.

Positions that are indirectly elected may be chosen by a permanent body (such as a parliament) or by a special body convened solely for that purpose (such as an electoral college). An election can be partially indirect, for example in the case of indirect single transferable voting, where only eliminated candidates select other candidates to transfer their vote share to. Similarly, supranational legislatures can be indirectly elected by constituent countries' legislatures or executive governments.

The co-princes of Andorra are jointly the heads of state (Catalan: cap d'estat) of the Principality of Andorra, a landlocked microstate lying in the Pyrenees between France and Spain.

Founded in 1278 by a treaty between the bishop of Urgell and the count of Foix, this unique diarchical arrangement has persisted through the Middle Ages to the present. Following the transfer of the count of Foix's claims to the Crown of France and, subsequently, to the head of state of the French Republic, the current arrangement has the bishop of Urgell (Josep-Lluís Serrano Pentinat) serving as the episcopal co-prince and the president of France (Emmanuel Macron) as the lay co-prince. Each co-prince appoints a personal representative. The episcopal co-prince is currently represented by Eduard Ibáñez and the lay co-prince by Patrice Faure.

In international law, extraterritoriality or exterritoriality is the state of being exempted from the jurisdiction of local law, usually as the result of diplomatic negotiations.

Historically, this primarily applied to individuals, as jurisdiction was usually claimed on peoples rather than on lands. Extraterritoriality can also be partly applied to physical places. For example, such is the immunity granted to diplomatic missions, military bases of foreign countries, or offices of the United Nations. The three most common cases recognized today internationally relate to the persons and belongings of foreign heads of state and government, the persons and belongings of ambassadors and other diplomats, and ships in international waters.

Advice is a formal instruction given by one constitutional officer of state to another that, in many parliamentary systems, is usually binding. For example, heads of state (such as constitutional monarchs) often only act on the advice of the head of government (such as the prime minister) or other ministers. Common examples of advice include the appointment of ministers, the use of executive powers, the calling of elections and the request to deliver formal statements, such as a speech from the throne.

Depending on the state, the duty to accept advice may or may not be legally enforceable. For example, advice is generally not legally enforceable under most countries that follow the Westminster system. Nevertheless, the convention that ministerial advice is always accepted is so strong that in ordinary circumstances, refusal to do so would almost certainly provoke a constitutional crisis, or, at minimum, the removal of the head of state. By contrast, Japan's head of state (the Emperor) is obliged by the constitution to appoint the prime minister designated by the parliament (Diet).

The Scottish Government conduct international engagements with foreign leaders, heads of state and diplomats of international countries to promote Scotland and Scottish interests overseas. Scottish Ministers, such as the first minister as the head of government, and their external affairs and constitution secretary, promote the country's culture, education and research, economy and advocate Scotland as a place for trade and business. As of 2023, Scotland has a total of nine Scottish Government offices – Beijing, Berlin, Brussels, Copenhagen, Dublin, London, Ottawa, Paris and Washington D.C. The Scottish Government plan on opening a further office in Warsaw by the end of the current parliamentary term.

Thirty international offices of the Scottish Government currently operate in twenty countries globally. Scottish offices in other countries act as a mechanism to promote collaboration and engagement between the Scottish Government and other international governments whilst two Scotland Houses, one in London and another in Brussels, are both independent establishments created by the Scottish Government to promote Scotland. There are seven Scottish Government offices based in British embassies or British High Commission offices.

The following is a complete list of people who held the office of President of Turkey. There have been twelve heads of state since the inception of the republican period in 1923, following the Turkish War of Independence. For a list of rulers of the predecessor Ottoman Empire, see List of sultans of the Ottoman Empire.