A Study On The Activities Of The Peace Corps In The Pacific Islands

In 1966 the United States sent the Peace Corps to Micronesia(now as the Federated States of Micronesia,the Republic of the Marshall Islands,the Northern Mariana Islands and the Republic of Palau),the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands.It was the first host country(district)for the Peace Corps in the Pacific Islands.Since then,the host country of the Peace Corps had expanded to include Samoa,Tonga,Fiji,the Solomon Islands,Kiribati,Tuvalu,Papua New Guinea,Cook Islands,Vanuatu and Niue,its work areas had also been constantly adjusted,from the initial four categories of education,medical care,agricultural development and community development,and then extended to youth development,environmental protection,Marine resources development,energy planning and many other types.The scope and geography of Peace Corps assistance has continued to expand,and volunteers have actively explored and acted prudently to implement a variety of assistance programs.In fact,the Peace Corps has powerfully promoted the modernization process in the Pacific region,and even significantly influenced the cultural development and political changes in some countries and regions.In U.S.economic aid programs,recipient countries receive quotas that are closely related to their importance to U.S.national security interests,and the Peace Corps program is no exception.Ever since the "Open Door" policy was put forward at the end of the 19 th century,the United States has regarded the Pacific region as a "lifeline",a "safety valve" and a "new frontier",seeking to establish a colonial empire in the Pacific Ocean "under American rule".Small as they are,island nations serve as transit ports and springboards for military projection between the two sides of the Pacific,and are critical to U.S.national security and strategic interests in the Western Pacific.Accordingly,the Peace Corps has placed a special emphasis on helping the Pacific islands,pouring proportionately more personnel and money into these small countries than any other region,especially during the bipolar Cold War.But in 50 years,neither "people to people" Peace Corps aid nor "government to government" grants and development loans have enabled Pacific island nations to develop on their own and lift their people out of poverty.All this only deepened their dependence on the United States.