| − | Although many Communist nations are named as [[Democratic Republic|democratic republics]], such as the [[German Democratic Republic]] (East Germany), the [[North Vietnam|Democratic Republic of Vietnam]] (North Vietnam) and the [[North Korea|Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (North Korea), they have almost universally resorted to [[dictatorship]] or a strong central authority. The Soviet Union, North Korea, Cuba, China and Vietnam, among other nations, have identified themselves as socialist and have fallen, either immediately or eventually, into dictatorship.<ref>{{cite web | + | Although many Communist nations are named as [[Democratic Republic|democratic republics]], such as the former [[German Democratic Republic]] (East Germany), the [[North Vietnam|Democratic Republic of Vietnam]] (North Vietnam) and the [[North Korea|Democratic People's Republic of Korea]] (North Korea), they have almost universally resorted to [[dictatorship]] or a strong central authority. The Soviet Union, North Korea, Cuba, China and Vietnam, among other nations, have identified themselves as socialist and have fallen, either immediately or eventually, into dictatorship.<ref>{{cite web |