nPostednon July 9, 2014
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Wikipediansays that Palau developed the first “nuclear-free” constitutionnin 1981. – but that the country dropped “nuclear-free” in 1994nin order to become an “associated state” to the U.S.
Wikipediansays that Palau developed the first “nuclear-free” constitutionnin 1981. – but that the country dropped “nuclear-free” in 1994nin order to become an “associated state” to the U.S.n
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nAndnthat got me wondering…
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nWhatnis an “associated state”?
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n Anterritory is an associated state if it has a relationship withnanother—usually much larger—nation but still has a degree ofnself-rule. Some minor partners that have relationships with largernnations are called “protectorates” or some other label, but whennno other label fits, they are called associated states.
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nHownmany associated states are there in the world? n
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nTherenare only five who are in formal associations: two (Cook Islands andnNiue) that are associated with New Zealand, and three (MarshallnIslands, Federated States of Micronesia, and Palau) that arenassociated with the U.S.
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| Jellyfish Lake |
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nHowever,nthere are some dependent territories and countries associated withnlarger countries, usually for the sake of defense. For example,nAndorra depends on Spain and France to defend it, and Monaco dependsnon France.
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| Spearfishing in the clear water |
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nWhatndoes the U.S. do for Palau?
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nItnprovides defense, as you probably guessed. Also, the U.S. also fundsngrants and gives access to social services. Palau uses the U.S.ndollar as its currency, but actually quite a few countries that havenno formal association with the U.S. do that (like Ecuador).
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nWhatnabout that anti-nuclear constitution?
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nAsnI mentioned earlier, in 1981 Palau voted for the world’s firstnnuclear-free constitution which explicitly banned the use, storage,nand disposal of nuclear, toxic chemical, gas and biological weaponsnwithout being approved by a three-fourths majority in a referendumn(vote). n
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nButnthe United States had some power over Palau, because it was part ofnthe Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands set up after World War II.nAnd the U.S. insisted that, if they were to grant Palau fullnindependence, it be allowed to operate its nuclear subs within Palaunwaters. With the promise of independence dangling as a reward,nPalauans finally voted (on the eighth referendum!) to amend that partnof the constitution.
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nWherenin the world is Palau?
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Thisnisland group is part of Micronesia, found near the Philippines,nIndonesia, and the other islands in the western Pacific Ocean. Thenislands were settled some 3,000 years ago. In the late 1800s theynwere colonized by Spain, and they were later were sold to ImperialnGermany. The Imperial Japanese Navy conquered the islands duringnWorld War I.
Thisnisland group is part of Micronesia, found near the Philippines,nIndonesia, and the other islands in the western Pacific Ocean. Thenislands were settled some 3,000 years ago. In the late 1800s theynwere colonized by Spain, and they were later were sold to ImperialnGermany. The Imperial Japanese Navy conquered the islands duringnWorld War I.n
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n(Nonwonder Palauans want help with their defense from a larger country!)
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nWhatnmore should we know about Palau?
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nWell,n I don’t know that you SHOULD know anything at all about Palau, but In found it very interesting that there are from 200 to 250 islands inn the nation.
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nMostn of the islands are volcanoes or coral atolls.
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nOnlyn eight of the islands are inhabited!
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Somen of the islands formed by coral reefs have bases that have beenn eroded away. These islands are often compared to fuzzy greenn mushrooms.n
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Diversn love to go to Palau! Not only is there great visibility in the clearn blue waters, but there are cool underwater walls and caves formed byn eroded coral, and there are also sunken planes and ships from Worldn War II.n
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nSomen of the caves on Palauan islands are adorned with elaborate artwork.n From this and other evidence, we know that the caves have been usedn by humans for at least four thousand years.n
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nAlsonon this date:
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Anniversary of the building of the Charles Bridge
Anniversary of the building of the Charles Bridge
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nInventornElias Howe’s birthday
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nIndependencenDay in Argentina
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nnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn
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nAnniversarynof the settling of Romanov rumors through DNA testing
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nPlannahead:
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nChecknout my Pinterest boards for:
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nJulyn holidays
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nJulyn birthdays
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nHistoricaln anniversaries in July
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nAndnhere are my Pinterest boards for:
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nAugustn holidays
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nAugustn birthdays
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- Historicaln anniversaries in August
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