FSM exchanges Compact notes with US

In a ceremony on March 18, President Wesley W. Simina exchanged notes with Deputy Secretary Kurt M. Campbell to officially renew the Compact of Free Association between the two countries.

(L) Deputy Secretary Kurt M. Campbell and (R) President Wesley W. Simina photo courtesy of the Office of the President of the Federated States of Micronesia

Simina also met with U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd J. Austin III on March 21 at the Pentagon, according to a release from the U.S. Department of Defense on March 22, CHamoru Standard Time.

“The two officials welcomed the recent successful effort by President Biden and Congress to advance the Compacts of Free Association Amendments Act of 2024, which provides funding for the 20-year extension of economic assistance to the Freely Associated States … under the Compacts of Free Association … Additionally, they expressed gratitude for the decades of distinguished service by FSM citizens in the U.S. military made possible under the Compacts,” the release said.

The budget legislation just passed by Congress includes about $7 billion in economic aid over the next 20 years in exchange for exclusive U.S. military rights for the FSM, Palau and the Marshall Islands. The combined territorial seas and exclusive economic zones of these three nations span approximately 3,473,751 square miles, roughly the land area of the contiguous United States.

Simina will hold a meeting with FSM nationals on March 23 in Kansas City, Mo., according to his office. FSM Ambassador to the U.S. Jackson Soram, FSM Congress members and members of the Joint Committee on Compact Review & Planning will also be present.

The meeting will focus on the renewed Compact and constitutional amendments and will also offer a Q&A opportunity. mbj

US Federal Motor Carrier ruling on Commercial Driver’s Licenses could affect COFA citizens

The Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration has announced that “Only those in lawful immigration status (who provide “evidence of lawful immigration status” as defined in 49 CFR § 383.5) in the United States in one of the following employment-based nonimmigrant statuses will be permitted to obtain a non-domiciled Commercial Learner's Permit or a Commercial Driver’s License.

Shared Prosperity: Government officials, businesses talk investment in the Pacific

HONOLULU, Hawaii — More than 170 representatives from Pacific Island nations, the U.S. government, and the private sector convened at the inaugural Pacific Agenda: Investment, Security, and Shared Prosperity Summit held at the Imin International Conference Center at Jefferson Hall in the University of Hawaii Manoa campus from Feb. 23 to Feb. 24.