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Learning the language of linkage in the contested Pacific
There are two items that should concern us in the Pacific island region. One, the ongoing crisis in the Taiwan Straits, which threatens...
These Islands
By Robert Underwood
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- Aug 2
PIF goes pfft, then poof
The Pacific Island Forum is under a great deal of stress and some confusion these days due to the sudden withdrawal of Kiribati a few...
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- Jul 3
The meaning of 4th of July for American colonies
Independence Day is the greatest day in the American calendar. It is the day the English colonies declared their independence from King...
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- Jun 8
‘Don’t be alarmed’ can be alarming in strategic conversations
Last month, Rear Adm. Ben Nicholson, commander of the Joint Region Marianas, told the Guahan community: “I don’t want you to be alarmed.”...
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- May 5
Solomon Islands, China and geographic metaphors
A recently signed Security Cooperation Framework Agreement between the Solomon Islands and China has generated more attention to the...
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- Apr 5
Ambassadors galore now gracing the previously neglected Pacific islands
In the middle of the international attention to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, the freely associated states seem to be finally getting...
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- Feb 9
Pacific islands under siege by climate change or China
When island leaders are asked what is the major security challenge in the island Pacific, they uniformly reply “climate change.” This has...
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- Jan 7
FAS and paused negotiations with US
This is a great time to be president of the three freely associated states (FAS). Presidents David Panuelo of the Federates States of...
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- Dec 10, 2021
Iron island, tip of the spear or spear catcher?
The ancient CHamorus and most traditional Pacific Islanders traded away lots of goods for “iron.” Pacific Islanders were familiar with...
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- Nov 7, 2021
We are regional people. But from which region?
The definition of “region” in the Pacific has always been an issue that divides as much as it unifies. How we define a geographic region...
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- Oct 1, 2021
Living with AUKUS in the nuclear-free Pacific
The recent Australia United Kingdom United States (AUKUS) agreement on nuclear submarines has much of the world scratching their heads....
By Robert A. Underwood
- Sep 1, 2021
9/2 and 9/11: Dates that we should remember and learn from
September will give us in Guahan and the United States two historical dates. They could have a great deal to do with our future in these...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Aug 9, 2021
Micronesians are dying from Covid in high rates. Or are they?
There is nothing more revealing about the conditions of our existence than our income and our health. We expend great effort in acquiring...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Jul 7, 2021
Who are you? What are you? Mark the box
What is the difference between a label, a category and an identity marker? When we say we are something, we are embracing an identity...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Jun 3, 2021
Can they act in their own interest?
Two events of international significance have potentially dramatic effects on these islands on both sides of the equator. The first is...
By Robert A. Underwood
- May 6, 2021
Racism is systematic, not just personal
I had a long-distance relationship with the infamous George Wallace, the segregationist governor of Alabama. It was born in the civil...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Apr 5, 2021
Whipping Palau into shape: A conversation with President Whipps
Palau President Surangel Whipps Pr. recently announced he was going to Taiwan as part of a tourism bubble between the two island nations....
By Robert A. Underwood
- Mar 5, 2021
Microrexit: Micronesia is no longer in the house
For decades, islanders in the Pacific have been enthralled by concepts of regional unity and regional action. Beginning with the...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Mar 2, 2021
Commemorating a historical event 'with a more robust imagination'
Following speech was delivered March 2, 2021 on the occasion of the 500th anniversary commemoration of the circumnavigation It is a...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Apr 4, 2020
Elected leaders in the time of the virus
In the middle of the pandemic, we are experiencing many things. We are having panic attacks, maniacal purchasing, emotional outbursts,...
By Robert A. Underwood
- Dec 6, 2019
Our rights are unalienable
In formal conferences, public meetings and private conversations over self-determination and self-government, we are treated to a series...