After queen's death, commonwealth countries revive debate on monarch as head of state

London - The death of Queen Elizabeth II has revived the debate about the future and unity of the British Commonwealth, a group of 15 independent countries that recognized the queen — and now the new King Charles III — as their official head of state, above each country's own democratically elected leader. 

That list of commonwealth nations, also known as "realms," includes Canada and Jamaica across the Atlantic and as far away as Australia and New Zealand in the southern Pacific. The queen's face adorns many of those countries' coins and banknotes. Here is where countries of the realm stand based on officials' recent comments: