ABQ Times

WASHINGTON—This week, U.S. Representative Melanie Stansbury (N.M.-01), spoke of the many New Mexicans in her district that play vital roles in keeping the peace in the South Pacific, and emphasized what Congress can do to support United States' military presence in that area as well as the Freely Associated States in a House Committee and Natural Resources Committee Hearing. 

“Some may be asking why two members from New Mexico are interested in the South Pacific and the compacts of Free Association,” Rep. Stansbury said. “That is, in part because many of our constituents back home play a vital role in national security—from the air men and women who served at Kirtland Air Force Base in my district, to the scientists at our national labs who helped to support these missions, and our proud service members across New Mexico of which we have many—including my own partner who is a proud veteran and Marine who served in the Pacific.” 

In her line of questioning, Rep. Stansbury homed in on what the most significant things Congress can do to support the troops and the people of the South Pacific. 

“I think the immediate term, ma'am, in the Freely Associated States, as I said, small units, engineering units, medical detachments put in there for some extended period of time, and you keep replacing them, this permanent presence, show that you're there and that you're interested,” witness Colonel Grant Newsham said. “And also, as I say, create something along the lines of a local defense force, so that you're not just there doing all the work, have the locals brought into this as well. That would be something I really would stress. And there's a lot of good young officers who want to be in these places using their initiative away from the headquarters.” 

Rep. Stansbury ended her time by highlighting another benefit of the U.S.’ presence in the South Pacific: the opportunity for the people in the Freely Associated States to serve in the U.S. military. 

Rep. Stansbury’s full remarks as delivered are below. 

Rep. Stansbury: Well, good morning everyone and thank you Madam Chair. Thank you to our ranking member as well. I'm truly honored to be able to serve on this bipartisan committee with my colleagues, and I want to thank all of our witnesses for being here today.  

I think the role of this committee and highlighting how essential our continued engagement with the Freely Associated States is obviously not only important for national security and economic interests in the Pacific, but also global security, and that's why we're here.  

The Freely Associated States and their citizens have, as we've discussed, played a crucial role in the strategic interests of the U.S. and its allies for the last 30 years. But they're also our friends and our colleagues. And we're grateful, of course, for our association.

As we've heard this morning, China has made a concerted effort to undermine the U.S. as long standing economic and security relationships with these entities. And it's imperative that we renew our compacts with the Freely Associated States and continue to hold the line with respect to Chinese aggression in the Pacific.  

For those who are watching at home, I want to take a moment to talk about why I'm serving on this very important committee and alongside my sister from New Mexico. Some may be asking why two members from New Mexico are interested in the South Pacific and the compacts of Free Association. 

That is, in part because many of our constituents back home play a vital role in national security—from the air men and women who served at Kirtland Air Force Base in my district, to the scientists at our national labs who helped to support these missions, and our proud service members across New Mexico of which we have many—including my own partner who is a proud veteran and Marine who served in the Pacific.  

So these issues are very important not only to our strategic interest as a country, but also to the people of New Mexico, and our continued commitments in the area, as well as the safety of our service members.  

I want to thank you Colonel for your service and for being here with us today. So, you know, I think that a lot of has been covered already this morning with regards to some of the aggressions and activities that are happening. But Dr. Lum, I wonder if we could sort of zoom out the discussion a little bit and help contextualize what exactly is going on in the Pacific. I know that my colleague, Mr. Gallego touched a bit on this in his questions, but what is the end goal of the Chinese government? Why are we seeing this expanded influence in the Pacific? And why is it a threat to U.S. interests and to the safety of the freely associated states?     

Dr. Lum: Thank you, I can give some responses and maybe defer to my fellow panelists. One, China always hopes to gain support in the United Nations on votes. So that's, that's one area, it doesn't have to even cover the security arena. It's just support in global organizations. So, when it gives money to a country, whether it's in the Pacific or Latin America, it often receives support from the United Nations or other global organizations.  

In the security area, of course, we were talking to the first and second island chains, and being able to, any Taiwan contingency, achieve its military goals. China also has economic interests, whether it's mining in Papua New Guinea, or China needs a place to put its excess capacity when its own companies in China don't have anything left to build. So, it sends those abroad. Those are some of the goals that China's attempting to achieve in the Pacific Islands. 

Rep. Stansbury: Thank you, Doctor. That's extremely helpful. And Colonel Newsham, I'll put the question to you with a follow up question. Given your background and experience with the Marines in serving in our Armed Services, what do you feel like are the most significant things that Congress can do to help support our military presence in the area and strategically to help support the freely associated states? 

Colonel Newsham: I think the immediate term, ma'am, in the Freely Associated States, as I said, small units, engineering units, medical detachments put in there for some extended period of time, and you keep replacing them, this permanent presence, show that you're there and that you're interested.  

And also, as I say, create something along the lines of a local defense force, so that you're not just there doing all the work, have the locals brought into this as well. That would be something I really would stress. And there's a lot of good young officers who want to be in these places using their initiative away from the headquarters.  

And a lot of good things happen once you're there, and you leave things up to the young captains. And that's something that it should be done, wouldn't cost much in terms of money or manpower. 

Rep. Stansbury: And I think, you know, your comments also point to one of the benefits of our compacts, which is the opportunity for those residents of our Freely Associated States to serve in the U.S. military as well. I appreciate that. I realized I'm out of time, my many questions, but Madam Chair, I really appreciate the opportunity to serve on this committee and for your leadership. Thank you. 

Original source can be found here.