An interstellar union of member worlds founded in 2161, committed to peace, cooperation and exploration, and the central political power of most Star Trek series.
The United Federation of Planets is a union of planetary governments founded in 2161, growing out of the Coalition of Planets formed by Earth, Vulcan, Andoria and Tellar. Its founding, glimpsed at the close of Enterprise, brought together species that had only recently been rivals, and humans have remained among its most visible members ever since.
The Federation is governed by an elected president and a legislature, the Federation Council, whose delegates represent the member worlds. Starfleet serves as its exploratory, scientific and defensive arm. Its laws and ideals, including the Prime Directive's ban on interfering with developing cultures, shape the choices of nearly every Starfleet captain on screen.
Across the centuries the Federation fought wars with the Klingons, the Cardassians and the Dominion, and made lasting peace with former enemies such as the Klingon Empire. By the 32nd century depicted in Discovery, the Burn had reduced it to a shrunken remnant, and the crew of the USS Discovery helped to rebuild it.