CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION The principal U.S. territories are Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands in the Eastern Caribbean, and American Samoa and Guam in the Pacific. These territories, sometimes known as the flag territories, are under U.S. sovereignty and. generally subject to U.S. laws. Although ‘each enjoys a different type of governmental status--Puerto Rico is a commonwealth; Guam and the Virgin Islands are governed by organic acts and American Samoa by its local constitution--all are part of the United States. The U.S. also exercises sovereignty over a number of largely uninhabited islands, including Wake, Midway, Palmyra, Navassa Johnston Atoll, Kingman Reef, Baker, Jarvis, and Howland. | These smaller U.S. possessions are for the most part within the administrative responsibility of the Department of the Interior but some are administered either by the Department of Defense, or the U.S. Coast Guard. A general description of the territories and insular areas is found in appendix VIII. The other major insular areas currently under U.S. administration are part of the Trust Territory of the Pacific. Under a 1947 United Nations (U.N.} agreement, the United States became the administering authority for the islands known as Micronesia. Today the Trust Territory is composed of four local governments: the Commonwealth of Northern Mariana Islands (NMI), the Republic of Palau, the Federated States ot Micronesia (FSM), and the Republic of the Marshall Islands. These Micronesian states are not under U.S. sovereignty. Nevertheless, the United States has administered these insular areas in a manner similar to its flag territories. The Pacific and Caribbean territorial and insular areas play an important role in representing U.S. national security interests. Some territories such as Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, and the Virgin Islands have represented American security interests as members in the armed forces for almost a century. In addition, defense installations in Puerto Rico, Guam, and some of the Micronesian islands are important to U.S. defense and security in the Caribbean, Asia, and the Pacific. Ithis report addresses ‘policy and organizational rounding the major territories and insular areas. ler possessions are not included in our analysis. issues sur- These smal- 2The NMI is included in our analysis as a flag territory although technically it is still part of the Trust Territory. 5000208