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Witnesses say USAID reductions and a tiny Office of Insular Affairs weaken Pacific territories' prosperity and U.S. interests
Summary
At a House Natural Resources subcommittee hearing, witnesses and members warned that cuts to USAID and limited staffing at the Department of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs (OIA) reduce U.S. influence, hamper disaster response and create openings for Chinese and other external influence in Pacific territories.
At a House Natural Resources subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs hearing, witnesses said cuts to USAID and the small size of the Interior Department's Office of Insular Affairs are undermining long-term economic resilience and U.S. strategic interests in the Pacific territories.
Witnesses told the committee that USAID and OIA field presence were critical tools for the territories to build resilience, respond to disasters and provide alternatives to Chinese economic outreach. Francisco Ben Cosme, the former China policy lead at USAID, said the agency's ground programs were "visible signs of U.S. leadership" in the Pacific and that recent changes risked leaving partners "in the lurch."
The testimony said those gaps have real consequences: USAID had been expanding offices in Suva and Papua New Guinea and…
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