effectively administer U.S. territorial policy because territo- rial problems are too small to warrant high level federal atten- tion. Therefore, the governor recommends the establishment of an Organization within the Office of the President or a separate agency focusing solely on territorial concerns. He also supports State's view that a separate organization is needed for the Micronesian states. The governor of the Northern Mariana Islands commented that while the territories have much in common, goals and aspirations ‘may differ within each. The governor said that in general the NMI has an excellent relationship with eral agencies United States government. in providing territorial and He has with the honored Interior and other Congress. its The pledge governor said guaranteeing fed- the self- also commented that Interior has performed well technical interests. assistance The and, governor in general, suggests that supporting Interior's role in dealing with the territories be expanded to make it more effective in dealing with other federal agencies such as OMB. The governor of Puerto Rico expressed concern that the report emphasizes problems of the Pacific territories and that Puerto Rico is not at all similar to the other territories in terms of history, culture, degree of economic development, population, and experience with self-government. The governor believes Puerto Rico should not be compared with the other ter- ritories, and that it has more in common with the states than any other territory. The governor also expressed concern that our chapter on the Compact of Free Association not be interpreted as a model for U.S. policy toward the territories. In particular, he emphasized that Puerto Rico has historically maintained close ties to the United States, and that the Compact is appropriate only for the Micronesian states which are not part of the United States. Finally, the governor commented that Puerto Rico is an active partner with the United States in rep- resenting U.S. national security, and that its citizens serve as members in the U.S. armed services. The governor of Guam commented that the crux of improving need establish federal-territorial relations is the need for the federal government to respond to each individual territory in a flexible manner. He said that an ultimate status the Congress for each does territory, support for legislation to establish Guam. The governor said commonwealt’: of the issues addressed in our report. not to but wants congressional commonwealth status for status will resolve many These and other comments from State, Interior, and the territory governments were incorporated in the body of this report to reflect updated information or to clarify certain points. 51 5000258