Article X of the Covenant of the League of Nations obliged members of the League "to respect and preserve as against external aggression the territorial integrity and existing political independence of all Members of the League." It was noted that a League of Nations member was not bound to assist a fellow member in combating internal secessionists, but also meant that no country should provide assistance to such rebels. It was also understood that if any League of Nations member was defeated while undertaking an aggressive war, the Covenant didn't protect that defeated member against the consequence of a loss of territory and political independence.[4]