Through introduction of the Connecting Oceania’s Nations with Vanguard Exercises and National Empowerment (CONVENE) Act, U.S. Sen. Joni Ernst (R-IA) proposed building partnerships with Pacific island nations and gathering allies against China – a proposal that has been included in the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) of 2024.
“China’s aggressive activity throughout the Indo-Pacific necessitates U.S. action,” Ernst said. “The strategic location of these islands is integral to our national security, but the lack of direct security channels between our nations creates risk. Through increased coordination, my bipartisan effort will strengthen cooperation and help counter and expose Chinese coercion. Before America’s security interests in the region are further threatened or a crisis arises in the Pacific, we must ensure our relationship with these islands is not corrupted by the CCP.”
Currently, the United States maintains Compacts of Free Association (COFA) relationships with three Pacific islands – the Republic of Palau, the Republic of the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia. While these agreements have committed the United States the islands in return for exclusive military access rights and substantial military and veto power in the region, little coordination currently exists specifically focused on Chinese influence.
Ernst’s bill would mandate creation of National Security Councils to coordinate with the United States to counter what she deemed the malign influence of China, and allow increased coordination with COFA nations for emergency humanitarian response, law enforcement and maritime security activities, counterintelligence and more.
It would also tack new restrictions on the agreements, requiring and supporting the use of Department of Defense-approved technical equipment to phase out any Chinese espionage monitoring of U.S. activity. To this end, it would also support further entwining U.S. national security agencies and representatives of the COFA nations.
Ernst cited Chinese purchases of land around U.S. installations on the islands and infiltration and monitoring of U.S. activity throughout the island nations as reasons for the change. Specifically, she pointed to increased incursions in Palau’s territorial waters and China’s own expanding partnership with the Solomon Islands, a close neighbor of the COFA nations.