Speeches & Testimony

I rise today in support of my Promoting Regional Opportunities for Sustainable Prosperity and Economic Resilience in the Pacific Act, or PROSPER in the Pacific Act, to advance the U.S.-Pacific Islands relationship to include an economic partnership built on shared values and principles.
 
The Pacific Islands, spread across the vast Pacific Ocean, have a collective maritime area that exceeds the land area of Russia and China combined. These jurisdictions are key partners in maintaining a free and open Indo-Pacific and meeting vital security and economic challenges. It is imperative that we develop, maintain and grow these relationships. 
 
Recognizing this, successive administrations have committed to deepening U.S. engagement in the region, including through trade and investment. Most recently, the 2025 National Security Strategy asserts that “the Indo-Pacific is already and will continue to be among the next century’s key economic and geopolitical battlegrounds,” reaffirms our commitment to a free and open Indo-Pacific and prioritizes winning the economic competition over the long term in the region. Additionally, the U.S.-China Economic and Security Review Commission’s 2025 Annual Report to Congress recommended that we strengthen economic assistance to Pacific Island countries to support U.S. national security interests and the priorities of partner countries.
 
However, our economic toolkit for achieving our goals in the Pacific Islands needs to be strengthened. Many Pacific Island countries enjoyed preferential treatment under the Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) when it was authorized, but the program lapsed in 2020. Some of the Pacific Islands’ top exports to the U.S., including tuna, cane sugar, ginger and taro, would be eligible for duty-free treatment under GSP but for this lapse. 
 
The Pacific Islands Forum (PIF), the leading multinational political organization for the Pacific Islands region, has prioritized the region’s need to build trade capacity and infrastructure and has specifically advocated for preferential trade agreements given its lack of competitiveness due to its small national markets, isolation from the global market, high cost of operating and land and labor constraints. The PIF has encouraged the U.S. to extend duty-free treatment under the GSP beyond preferences for Least Developed Beneficiary Developing Countries.
 
Implementing such a program would come at a low cost to the U.S. while delivering a high strategic return, especially given the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) increased focus on expanding its influence in the region. My bill, PROSPER in the Pacific, would provide a visible alternative to the PRC by emphasizing economic partnership over debt-trap diplomacy, all while encouraging private-sector-led development, market-based economies and goodwill towards the U.S.
 
The PROSPER in the Pacific Act would authorize the President to designate certain articles imported from eligible Pacific Island countries for duty-free treatment, extending to them the same preferential access that is afforded to least developed beneficiary developing countries under GSP. By doing so, my legislation aims to stimulate export opportunities for Pacific Island economies while encouraging U.S. businesses to source more goods from the region. In addition to expanding market access, the bill would direct the President to develop a comprehensive plan for negotiating free trade agreements with Pacific Island countries that express interest, laying the groundwork for deeper, long-term economic integration. Finally, my bill would create a dedicated trade facilitation and capacity-building program for the Pacific Islands to help partner governments strengthen customs procedures, meet U.S. product standards and improve overall export readiness, ensuring they can fully realize the benefits of enhanced trade ties.
 
I urge my colleagues to join me in supporting this legislation to sustain and expand U.S. economic and security engagement in this critical region.