Federated States of Micronesia

Federated States of Micronesia independent nation (2005 est. pop. 108,000), c.271 sq mi (702 sq km), an island group in the W Pacific Ocean. It comprises four states: Kosrae, Pohnpei (formerly Ponape), Chuuk (formerly Truk), and Yap . The capital, Palikir, is on the island of Pohnpei. The population is predominantly Micronesian and Christian. English is the official language; a number of Austronesian and Polynesian languages are also spoken.

The United States spent heavily in the islands in the 1990s, making financial assistance the primary source of income. Other mainstays of the economy are subsistence farming and fishing. Fish, clothing, bananas, and black pepper are exported and food and beverages, manufactured goods, and machinery are imported. The United States and Japan are the main trading partners.

The islands are governed under the constitution of 1979. The president, who is both head of state and head of government, is elected by Congress for a four-year term. There are 14 members of the unicameral Congress; four are popularly elected for four-year terms and 10 for two-year terms. Defense is the responsibility of the United States. Administratively the country is divided into four states.

Germany purchased the islands from Spain in 1898. They were occupied (1914) by Japan, which received them (1920) as a League of Nations mandate. During World War II, U.S. forces captured the islands, and in 1947 they became part of the U.S. Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. In 1979, as negotiations for termination of the trusteeship continued, they became self-governing as the Federated States of Micronesia. In 1986, they assumed free-association status with the United States; the economic and defense relationship with the United States was renewed for 20 years in 2004. Emmanuel Mori became president in 2007.

Micronesia The regional name for the widely spread tiny islands of the north Pacific, numbering some 2,100. Except for US-controlled Guam, they came under German control in 1885, but during World War I they passed to Japanese administration, which was confirmed as a League of Nations Mandate after the war. In World War II, Japanese control over the area was extended through the invasion of Guam, which enabled them to block the US advance to liberate the Philippines until 1944. After the war, Micronesia came under the control of the USA, which has administered it as a UN trust territory, with the exception of Guam.

From 1946 (until 1963), Micronesia was the scene of extended nuclear testing. The USA exploded 66 atmospheric test weapons on Bikini and Enewetak Islands. The test of 1 March 1954 not only made Bikini permanently uninhabitable but has resulted in extensive cancer cases and deformities among the population of the neighbouring island of Rongelap. From the 1970s, four separate island states emerged. The Northern Mariana Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, and the Republic of the Marshall Islands negotiated separate autonomy statutes in 1979. While the USA remained responsible for their defence, they received full independence on 3 November 1986, which was recognized by the UN on 22 December 1990. The island state of Palau (Belau) gained independence on 30 September 1994, but retained an association with the USA whereby the latter remained responsible for defence and foreign policy. In 1998 a nuclear claims tribunal was created to determine compensation from the US for victims of the tests and their descendents.