Foreign relations of California

The U.S. state government of California maintains intergovernmental relations with other U.S. states and subnational governments outside of the United States.

Intergovernmental relations

Interstate relations

See also: Category:Interstate compacts of California

The state government maintains several interstate compacts and executive agreements with other U.S. states.

Relations with indigenous communities

Main articles: List of federally recognized tribes by state § California, and Indigenous peoples of California

California is home to 109 federally recognized tribes in the state and over forty self-identified tribes or tribal bands that have applied for federal recognition. ^[1]

Foreign relations

Borders

California shares an international border with the Mexican state of Baja California. California is a member of the Commission of the Californias, a tri-lateral forum for cooperation with the Mexican states of Baja California and Baja California Sur. ^[2]

Trade offices

Main article: California Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development

The Governor's Office of Business and Economic Development, formerly the California Technology, Trade and Commerce Agency, maintains trade offices and coordinates business relations between the state government of California and governments abroad on a paradiplomatic basis. ^[3]

List of sister states

The following is a list of sister-state relationships maintained by California through legislative resolutions or executive order. ^[4]

Jurisdiction	Nation	Year	Type of agreement	Ref.
Taiwan	Republic of China	1983		[5]
Jiangsu Province	China	1985		[6]
Catalonia	Spain	1986		[7]
South Korea	South Korea	1987	Friendship State Relationship
Querétaro	Mexico	1988		[8]
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur	France	1990		[9]
Khanty-Mansi Autonomous Okrug	Russia	1994		[10]
Osaka Prefecture	Japan	1994	Cooperation Agreement	[11]
Altai Republic	Russia	1995
Umbria	Italy	1995		[12]
Special Region of Yogyakarta	Indonesia	1995		[13]
South Chungcheong Province	South Korea	1996		[14]
Alberta	Canada	1997
New South Wales	Australia	1997		[15]
San Salvador Department	El Salvador	1998		[16]
Baja California	Mexico	1999
Cairo Governorate	Egypt	1999
Inner Mongolia	China	1999	Friendship State Relationship
Paraná (state)	Brazil	1999
Western Cape	South Africa	2000
Jalisco	Mexico	2000
Punjab	India	2001
Gujarat	India	2001
Azores	Portugal	2002
Baja California Sur	Mexico	2002
Jeju Province	South Korea	2005
Guangdong	China	2014
Santa Fe Province	Argentina	2015
Nayarit	Mexico	2017
Baden-Württemberg	Germany	2018
Syunik Province	Armenia	2022
Punjab, Pakistan	Pakistan	2022
Bulacan	Philippines	2023
Lviv Oblast	Ukraine	2024

International Consular missions in California

Los Angeles

Main article: List of diplomatic missions in Los Angeles

San Francisco

Main article: List of diplomatic missions in the San Francisco Bay Area

References

1. Blakemore, Erin (2017-11-16). "California's Little-Known Genocide". HISTORY. Retrieved 2025-12-23.
2. Memorandum of Understanding Between the Government of the State of California of the United States of America and the Government of the State of Baja California and the Government of the State of Baja California Sur of the United Mexican States for the Establishment of the Commission of the Californias
3. "Innovation Transfer Operations | UCOP". www.ucop.edu. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
4. "California's Sister State Relationships | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2025-09-11. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
5. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 40 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2025-05-26. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
6. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 19 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
7. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 71 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
8. "Assembly Concurrent Resolution No. 137 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
9. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 115 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
10. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 49 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
11. "AssemblyConcurrent Resolution No. 113 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
12. "scr4 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2025-05-26. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
13. "BILL NUMBER: SCR 23 CHAPTERED | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
14. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 54 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
15. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 19 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.
16. "Senate Concurrent Resolution No. 81 | Senate Office of International Relations". soir.senate.ca.gov. Archived from the original on 2024-05-27. Retrieved 2025-11-22.