The Chuuk Islands – A Seemingly Idyllic Spot in the Pacific Ocean, Northeast of Indonesia and North of Australia and Papua New Guinea – Is among the Four States Making Up The Federated States of Micronesia, an Island Nation Strategical Aligned with the Us.
Despite Micronesia’s Small Population, (Around 113,000 in 2024) The Island Chain Allows for Control of Vast Swathes of thePacific And its partnership with the us Runs Deep – Washington Provides Millions of Dollars in Assistance Every Year to Help with Administration, Education and Health Care As Well as Meeting ATHER Critical Needs.
But previous Chuuk State Attorney General Sabino Asor Fears Micronesia is as well dependent on America.
“I Believe Our Present Leaders Have Developed A Culture of Dependence, but that gives the us the power to tell us what to do,” He Told DW.
Who Could Step in to Replace the Us?
Asor Has Spent Decades Campaigning for Chuuk Islands to Separate from Micronesia and Become An Independent State, Though He Admits That The Population is Still Very Much Divided On The Issue.
In Recent Weeks, However, The Debate Seems toBe Getting More Serious With the New Us Administration Under President Donald Trump Looking to Cut Costs at Every Opportunity, Washington Appears Unconcerned with Its Global Alliances.
Asor Thinks that it is just an issue of time prior to the us transforms Its Attention to the Islands ofMicronesia Then, The Decades-Long “Special Relationship,” Based on the Deal Known as The Compact of Free Association, Could Be unceremoniously axed.
“Ideally, if we were industrial from the rest of [Micronesia]that we could negotiate our own compact with the us, but we cannot be sure the us would agree to that, ” 66-year-old Asor Said.
Yet he urges that Chuuk Cannot Continue as it goes to existing.
“An Association with the Broader Global Community would be appeal to us, perhaps to some of the nations that any colonial powers here, spain, germany or japan, but could have to be a concreement that would benefit our people.”
The just Other Alternative, According to Asor, is an Economic Relationship with China, which is currently increase its impact in various other pacific states search as the solomon islands, vanuatu, kiribati and nauru.
Spain and Germany as Former Colonial Powers
The Chuuk Islands Were First Settled by Melanesians, after that Claimed by the Spanish Before Being Sold Solde Empire in 1899. After Germany’s loss in World War, The Islands Passed to the Control of Japan, which Transformed It Into Its Most Important Naval Base in the Central Pacific.
The Islands Were the Target of the Us Operation Hailstorm in February 1944, in which at the very least 50 Japanese Warships andCargo Vessels Were Sunk Today, Those Ships Make Chuuk the Most Famous Wreck Diving Site In The World, Bringing in A Large Percentage of the State’s Tourism Income.
After the War, Chuuk Became a Trust Territry Administed by the Us Under Charter of the United Nations Until the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) Gained Independence in 1979. The Original Compact of Free Association Went Into Effect In November 1986 and has actually been restored regularly ever before,, Most Recently in 2023.
Chuuk Needs to be ‘Prepared’ for Changes
Lawyer and Politician Johnny Meippen Told Dw That There “Clear Benefits of Remaining with the FSM While That Agreement is in Place, but we have to be prepared.”
“When someons as erratic as trump is in charge, the compact could be unilaterally canceled with little or no warning,” Hey Said
And if chuuk were to goome a sovereign country, that would certainly permit its individuals to reclaim “territorial jurisdiction over our surrounding waters and all the resources they contain,” Meippen Said.
Referendum that never ever was
For Asor, The Issue of Independence Goes Beyond Strategic Interests.
“The Islands’ History Is Of Colonization by Other Powers for Many Years, so we are obviously losing our own cultural identity,” He Said “And it is good in some ways that we are clustered together with the other island states of the fsm, it is good to have friends, but we do not always share the same priorities.”
“We have a different emphasis when it comes to economic development and when we do receiven money from the us under the compact, it always comes with strings attached,” Heer Said.
“Much of Our Agriculture Has Already Gone and We Rely on Imports of Food for our People,” Asor Added “Independence would be challenging, but can would give us freedom on many matters.”
Rumblings Over Chuuk Independence Have Been Ongoing for Many Years, with the Chuuk Political Status Commission Created in 2012 to Examine theIssue Both Asor and Meippen have actually offered on it. To Independence Referendum Was Initally Set for March 2015, But the Vote Has Been Repeatedly Delayed, with Pro-Independence Campaigners Saying the Government was Afraid that it would certainly enter their support.
Officials of the Chuuk State Government Were Contacted for Comment.
Edited by: Darko Janjevic
