Distinguish between “coming together federation” and “holding together federations”.
- In coming together federations, independent states come together on their own to form a bigger unit, so that by pooling their sovereignty and retaining their identity, they can increase their security. e.g. The USA and Australia
- In holding together federations, a large country decides to divide its power between the constituent states and the national government. In this kind of federalism, the central government tends to be more powerful than the states. Very often different constituent units of federation have unequal powers. Some units are granted special powers. e.g. India, Spain, Belgium.
