Ambassador McGann Presents Credentials in Nauru and Tuvalu

UNCLAS SUVA 000073 E.O. 12958: N/A TAGS: AMGT PGOV PREL ODIP FJ SUBJECT: Ambassador McGann Presents Credentials in Nauru and Tuvalu NAURU ¶1. On February 6-8, 2009, Ambassador C. Steven McGann traveled to Nauru to present his credentials to President Marcus Stephen. During his time in Nauru, the Ambassador met with the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister for Commerce, Industry & Resources, Minister for Transport, Minister for Health, Minister for Education, Speaker of Parliament, Chief Secretary, and Australian Consul General. He also toured USDOE's Atmospheric Radiation Monitoring Program station. ¶2. During his meetings, one of the main topics of discussion was the possibility of Nauru providing building materials (phosphate) for the Guam base relocation effort. Ambassador connected President Stephen to Guam Governor Felix Camacho to pursue further discussions. EAP/ANP might wish to follow up with Nauru Ambassador Marlene Moses. ¶3. Ambassador McGann also proposed the possibility of a shipriders agreement being signed with Nauru. The Ambassador mentioned the recent agreement signed with Kiribati and the success of its first shiprider mission with the U.S. Coast Guard. Nauru officials were genuinely interested, and Ambassador said that Suva would pass along a model of an agreement for the officials to review. Nauruan officials also expressed their desire for a return of Peace Corp volunteers. Ambassador McGann said he would advise Washington of Nauru's interest. TUVALU ¶4. 4. On February 17-19, 2009, Ambassador traveled to Tuvalu to present his credentials to Governor General Filoimea Telito. While in Tuvalu, the Ambassador met with the Minister for Public Utilities, the Acting Minister of Finance, the Speaker of Parliament, the Minister of Home Affairs, and the Minister of Health. ¶5. The major concern expressed in the meetings was the failure to construct a promised girl's dormitory with funds from the Humanitarian Assistance program. The bank financing the project did not want to advance the contracting company any funds without additional assurances. Ambassador McGann advised that the existing contract would not be changed and urged Tuvalu's officials to support the local contractor. We have learned that U.S. Pacific Command is trying to find a way to go forward with the dorm project in Tuvalu. While there is no word at this time, we are informed that the issue is still being worked. ¶6. Another priority to the Ministers was the return of Peace Corps volunteers to the region. Ambassador McGann noted this request and relayed it to Washington. Also, the Ministers brought up the issue of the "borrow pits," pits that were dug by U.S. forces during World War II in order to obtain materials for constructing a runway. The Tuvaluans now use the unfilled pits as dump sites for garbage, causing significant environmental problems. Tuvaluan officials renewed their request for U.S. assistance for remediation that had previously been denied. ¶7. Ambassador McGann also noted that Tuvalu had expressed an interest in a shipriders agreement during Secretary Rice's visit to Apia, Samoa. Officials remained very open and receptive to this idea. The Ambassador said we would send them a model agreement to review. ¶8. During the visit to Tuvalu, the Ambassador also visited the Maritime Academy. The Ambassador's visit marked the first time that an American had visited the Academy. The Academy had expressed an interest in receiving assistance from outside resources. Ambassador McGann stated that he would contact the California Maritime Academy (CMA) to help the two academies explore the possibility of establishing a sister-school relationship. The Ambassador noted that the Kiribati Maritime Institute also was interested in closer ties with CMA.