Political and Military Factors Affecting the Future Use of Micronesian Territory for Us Strategic Purposes
Author(s) Unknown (April 1976). Political and Military Factors Affecting the Future Use of Micronesian Territory for Us Strategic Purposes (Thesis). Defense Intelligence School.
- Has attachment: File:QGCGW7F9.pdf
Abstract: At the end of world war II, there was heated debate in the united states about the future of Micronesia. Military spokesmen, who had just completed the long, bloody fight to wrest the islands one by one from Japanese control, were in favor of outright annexation of the islands, state Department spokesmen, who had already sponsored the concept of trusteeship for countries “whose peoples have not yet attained a full measure of self-government, favored turning the islands over to the United Nations, The resulting compromise was Micronesia*s designation as a “strategic United Nations trust territory under United states control. At present that trust territory is making preparations to terminate its trusteeship status, assume full self-government, and decide on the nature of its future political status in the world.
The purpose of this paper is threefold! first, to examine significant events leading up to and affecting the current political situation of the Trust Territory of the pacific islands (TTPI) and of Its neighbor, the unincorporated U.S. territory of Guam second, to examine the roles and actions of the principal parties concerned in current Future political status deliberations in Micronesiaia and third, to identify the current military and political is sues in Micronesia with which U.S. foreign policy decision makers must concern themselves The research was limited to a review of the literature, with emphasis on Micronesian perceptions of U.S, actions in the TTPI, the role of the united Nations, the recent independence movement on Guam, the consequences of the Marianas separatist movement toward U.S commonwealth status, and current U.S. perceptions of the strategic importance of Micronesia.
"..A third finding was that “strategic denial" of Micronesian territory to potentially hostile foreign forces remains one of the primary arguments in support of a continued U.S, strategic presence in the TTPI. The other major long-term importance of Micronesian territory to America is its perceived future availability! it is territory u.S. strategists desire to keep in order to leave their future options open..."
