Speeches & Testimony

I rise today in support of my resolution reaffirming the enduring partnership between the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) and its eighteen members and the United States toward stability, prosperity and peace in the Pacific, and expressing the sense of the House of Representatives that the United States will continue to remain a strong, reliable and active partner in advancing a peaceful, resilient and prosperous Blue Pacific.

The PIF is the Pacific Islands region’s premier political and economic policy organization, bringing together 18 member countries and four associate members to advance shared priorities across the Blue Pacific. The Forum provides an important platform for Pacific Island countries and territories to work collectively on regional security, disaster resilience, economic development, ocean governance and other issues that directly affect the people of the Pacific. 

The United States has longstanding ties with the PIF and the Pacific Island countries it represents. The United States has been a PIF Dialogue Partner since 1989, and our relationship is grounded in shared interests and longstanding connections across the Pacific. The United States is itself a Pacific nation, home to millions of people with Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander heritage, and our Pacific territories of Guam and American Samoa are Associate Members of the PIF. We also share close relationships with the Freely Associated States through the Compacts of Free Association.

Our interests in the Pacific are clear. The United States and the PIF share a commitment to maintaining a peaceful and secure region, strengthening economic opportunity, responding to natural disasters, protecting our oceans and supporting a free and open Pacific. Strong engagement with the PIF is an important part of advancing these shared priorities while respecting Pacific leadership and the sovereignty of Pacific Island nations.

One of the PIF’s principal annual gatherings is the PIF Leaders Meeting, where Pacific leaders and Dialogue Partners come together to discuss regional priorities and set the Forum’s agenda for the year ahead. The 55th PIF Leaders Meeting will take place in Palau from August 30 to September 4. Deputy Secretary of State Christopher Landau is also expected to participate, making this an important opportunity to demonstrate continued U.S. engagement with the region.

This resolution reaffirms the United States’ commitment to the PIF and encourages continued high-level engagement with Pacific regional institutions. It also supports Pacific-led implementation of the PIF’s 2050 Strategy for the Blue Pacific Continent and calls for continued cooperation on regional security, disaster resilience, economic development, ocean stewardship, technology and connectivity and other shared priorities.

The United States has a strong interest in a peaceful, resilient and prosperous Pacific, and the PIF is an essential partner in achieving that goal. I urge my colleagues to support this bipartisan resolution and reaffirm that the United States will remain a strong, reliable and active partner to the Pacific Islands Forum and the people of the Blue Pacific.