Kwajalein atoll military base1/7/2023 ![]() State Department said the Indo-Pacific is central to U.S. ![]() But, we’re still quite willing to work with the (Marshallese) on the broader issues that are important to us and that’s what we hope to do." “So, that issue is just not subject to being reopened. official who wasn't authorized to publicly discuss the issue and spoke on condition of anonymity. “We know that’s important, but there is a full and final settlement, and both sides agreed to it,” said a senior U.S. has stonewalled discussions on the nuclear legacy, something that American officials acknowledge. The report concluded that any contaminated groundwater flowing beneath the structure was not measurably impacting the environment.Īs it did in earlier compact negotiations, the U.S. Department of Energy said the dome contains over 100,000 cubic yards (76,000 cubic meters) of radioactively contaminated soil and debris but the structure wasn't in any immediate danger of failing. Various estimates put the true cost of the damage at about $3 billion, including for repairs to a massive nuclear waste facility known as the Cactus Dome which environmentalists say is leaking toxic waste into the ocean.Ī report to Congress last year from the U.S. “When you look at the total cost of property damage and the ongoing health issues to date, it’s a drop in the bucket. “Everyone knows the negotiations at that time were not fair or equitable,” Paul said. military base - said continuing high cancer rates and the displacement of people remain huge issues. Marshallese Senator David Paul - who is on the islands’ negotiating committee and also represents Kwajalein Atoll, which is home to a major U.S. maintains that nuclear compensation was dealt with in a “full and final settlement” and cannot be reopened. position has remained static for more than 20 years, the last time the compact came up for renegotiation. He said his late mother was pregnant at the time of one massive nuclear blast and got exposed to radiation that was the equivalent of 25,000 X-rays before giving birth to a stillborn baby.īut the U.S. settlement of $150 million agreed to in the 1980s fell well short of addressing the nuclear legacy. Like many others on the Marshall Islands, Matayoshi believes a U.S. “But we want to be able to live in our backyard, and enjoy life here.” We don't advocate for war or any superpower influence,” Matayoshi said. He said officials have been talking with potential investors from Asia, after a previous proposal by a Chinese-Marshallese businessman fell through. James Matayoshi, the mayor of Rongelap Atoll on the Marshall Islands, said he and hundreds of others have remained displaced from their atoll since the nuclear tests and want to see it revitalized. Just this week, angry protesters in the Solomons set fire to buildings and looted stores in unrest that some have linked to the China switch. “We welcome efforts to boost economic relations and improve the quality of life between the sides,” the ministry said in a statement.Ĭhina has steadily poached allies from Taiwan in the Pacific, including Kiribati and the Solomon Islands in 2019. It said China was willing to engage with the Marshall Islands and other Pacific island nations on the basis of mutual respect and cooperation under the “One China Principle,” in which Taiwan is viewed as part of China. should face up to its responsibility to restore the environmental damage it caused with its nuclear tests. in a weaker position, and “China is all too ready to step in and provide the desperately needed infrastructure and climate resiliency investment that is sought by these long-time partners.”Ĭhina's Foreign Ministry said the U.S. The lawmakers said the delays were putting the U.S. “It is distressing that these negotiations do not appear to be a priority - there have been no formal meetings since this Administration began - even as our international focus continues shifting to the Indo-Pacific,” they wrote. compact talks with the Marshalls, Micronesia and Palau. But this month, 10 Democratic and Republican members of the House of Representatives wrote to President Joe Biden’s national security adviser, Jake Sullivan, about the U.S.
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