Oversight Hearing on: "Examining the Office of Insular Affairs' Role in Fostering Prosperity in the Pacific Territories and Addressing External Threats to Peace and Security"
House Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs
2025-03-05
Loading video...
Source: Congress.gov
Summary
No summary available.
Participants
Transcript
Good morning. The Subcommittee on Indian and Insular Affairs will come to order. Without objection, the chair is authorized to declare recess of the subcommittee at any time. The subcommittee is meeting today to hear testimony for an oversight hearing entitled Examining the Office of Insular Affairs' Role in Fostering Prosperity in the Pacific Territories in Addressing External Threats to Peace and Security. Under Committee Rule 4F, any oral opening statements at hearings are limited to the chairman and to the ranking minority member. I therefore ask unanimous consent that all other members' opening statements be made part of the hearing record if they are submitted in accordance with Committee Rule 3-0. Without objection, so ordered. I ask unanimous consent that the gentleman from Guam, Mr. Moylan, and the gentleman from the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, Ms. King-Hines, be allowed to sit and participate in today's hearing. Without objection, so ordered. I will now recognize myself for an opening statement. Good morning. Today's hearing topic is particularly timely as our country faces ongoing threats seeking to end the American way of life. Our adversaries seek to subvert, dismantle, and replace US leadership, particularly in the Indo-Pacific region. The People's Republic of China, under the rule of the Chinese Communist Party, has waged political and information warfare in the Indo-Pacific in an attempt to coerce political and business officials and undermine US interests. Furthermore, the PRC has posed a direct challenge to US national security and strategic posture by rapidly developing weapon systems designed to threaten the United States. The PRC has been directly linked with cyber attacks against US government servers and the flow of illicit narcotics in our communities. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea, commonly known as North Korea, also seeks to undermine the US and challenge US leadership in the region. While having far fewer resources than the PRC, the threat that North Korea poses should not be underestimated.
Under the dictatorship of Kim Jong-un, North Korea has become increasingly hostile to the US and to its allies. Perceiving the US as an existential threat, Kim Jong-un has pursued an aggressive nuclear weapon development program and cyber attack capabilities aimed at causing maximum harm to the United States. The Pacific territories of American Samoa, Guam, and the Northern Marianas Islands are on the front lines against these threats by the PRC in North Korea and the Indo-Pacific. From being in range of hypersonic and ballistic missiles to espionage attempts, the Pacific territories face an increasingly hostile geopolitical environment. As such, it is critical that the relevant agencies within the U.S. federal government work to address these threats. The Department of the Interior's Office of Insular Affairs, OIA, plays a key role in this endeavor as the office charged with managing U.S. federal relations with the insular areas. The OIA is among the primary avenues for the territories to find solutions to the threats they face with relevant federal agencies. The OIA also plays a leading role in supporting the economic health of the territories within its jurisdiction by administering grant programs benefiting the territories. As the Pacific territories rely heavily on U.S. federal assistance, the fiscal impact of OIA grant programs cannot be overstated. Fostering prosperity in the territories enables the territories to not only become more self-sufficient, but also equips the territories with the resources they need to push back against the activities of the PRC in North Korea in their communities. It is critical that the OIA increase coordination with agency partners, and the United States Congress to ensure that the US government is appropriately responding to attempts by the PRC and North Korea to threaten peace and spread malign influence in the territories. As we proceed with today's discussion, I want to take this moment to make it clear that when we refer to threats from China and North Korea, we are referring to the Chinese Communist Party and the North Korean government, respectively.
We recognize and firmly believe in the distinction between the totalitarian regimes in Beijing and Pyongyang and the Chinese people and North Korean people who long for democracy and freedom from autocratic rule. In many ways, this makes the PRC and North Korea an even greater threat as their actions are not driven by national interests but by the nefarious desires of the ruling elites. Beijing and Pyongyang, have made it abundantly clear that threatening the U.S. is their priority.
Sign up for free to see the full transcript
Accounts help us prevent bots from abusing our site. Accounts are free and will allow you to access the full transcript.