The Kingdom of the Netherlands is a state with territory in Western Europe (the Netherlands) and in the Caribbean (Aruba and the Netherlands Antilles). The three parts are indicated as countries, and participate on a basis of equality as partners in the Kingdom. Their constitutional positions, however, are not the same. Both Caribbean countries are autonomous as provided for in the Charter for the Kingdom of the Netherlands, which has been the Kingdom's leading document since 1954. The Charter also provides them, however, with a say in the Affairs of the Kingdom as described in the Charter, when these affairs affect Aruba and/or the Netherlands Antilles directly. The Netherlands are ruled by the institutions of the Kingdom that are mentioned in the Charter but regulated in the Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The Constitution for the Kingdom of the Netherlands was the highest law of the Kingdom up to 1954.