Uttar pradesh: A 45-year-old man was arrested on Tuesday (July 22) by the Uttar Pradesh Police's Special Task Force (STF) for running a fake 'embassy' in Ghaziabad and posing as the 'Ambassador' of the micronation of Westarctica.

Harsh Vardhan Jain allegedly claimed to be a 'globe-trotting diplomat' and is believed to have run an elaborate con built on forged documents, a fake embassy, and claims of global influence from a rented two-storey bungalow in Kavi Nagar.

Jain allegedly used morphed images of himself with prime ministers and presidents to con businessmen and launder money. 'He used the guise of diplomacy to influence businessmen, promise them access to international markets, and run a hawala network through shell companies,' the STF said in a statement Wednesday (July 23).

A golden nameplate at the door introduced him as 'His Excellency Harsh Vardhan Jain, Royale Consigliere, Principato di Seborga' - the Royal Advisor to Seborga, another unrecognised micronation in Italy's Liguria province. The bungalow's balcony and roof featured fake flags, including one with a white cross on a blue field and another with a royal crown and shield.

The incident has shone a spotlight on micronations and the ambiguous status they occupy in international law. Here is what to know.

What are micronations?

Micronations are political entities that claim to be independent and sovereign, but lack recognition from any government or international body. They have their own governments, constitutions, flags, currencies, and sometimes even passports.

In the absence of a clear definition of nation-states, the one provided by the Montevideo Convention of 1933 is used. It stipulates that a state must have a permanent population, a defined territory, a government, and the capacity to enter into relations with other states. Micronations often fail to meet one or more of these criteria, especially the latter two.