"text":"The Caroline Islands are a widely scattered archipelago in the western Pacific Ocean; they became part of a UN Trust Territory under US administration following World War II. The eastern four island groups adopted a constitution in 1979 and chose to become the Federated States of Micronesia. (The westernmost island group became Palau.) Independence came in 1986 under a Compact of Free Association with the US, which was amended and renewed in 2004. Present concerns include large-scale unemployment, overfishing, overdependence on US foreign aid, and state perception of inequitable allocation of US aid."
}
},
"Geography":{
"Location":{
"text":"Oceania, island group in the North Pacific Ocean, about three-quarters of the way from Hawaii to Indonesia"
"text":"four times the size of Washington, DC (land area only)"
},
"Land boundaries":{
"text":"0 km"
},
"Coastline":{
"text":"6,112 km"
},
"Maritime claims":{
"territorial sea":{
"text":"12 nm"
},
"exclusive economic zone":{
"text":"200 nm"
}
},
"Climate":{
"text":"tropical; heavy year-round rainfall, especially in the eastern islands; located on southern edge of the typhoon belt with occasionally severe damage"
},
"Terrain":{
"text":"islands vary geologically from high mountainous islands to low, coral atolls; volcanic outcroppings on Pohnpei, Kosrae, and Chuuk"
"text":"active local transmission of Zika virus by Aedes species mosquitoes has been identified in this country (as of August 2016); it poses an important risk (a large number of cases possible) among US citizens if bitten by an infective mosquito; other less common ways to get Zika are through sex, via blood transfusion, or during pregnancy, in which the pregnant woman passes Zika virus to her fetus (2016)"
"text":"the term \"Micronesia\" is a 19th-century construct of two Greek words, \"micro\" (small) and \"nesoi\" (islands), and refers to thousands of small islands in the western Pacific Ocean"
"text":"drafted June 1975, ratified 1 October 1978, entered into force 10 May 1979; amended 1990; note - in 2001, all 26 amendments proposed by the FSM constitutional convention were defeated in a national referendum (2016)"
"text":"President Peter M. CHRISTIAN (since 12 May 2015); Vice President Yosiwo P. GEORGE (since 12 May 2015); note - the president is both chief of state and head of government"
},
"head of government":{
"text":"President Peter M. CHRISTIAN (since 12 May 2015); Vice President Yosiwo P. GEORGE (since 12 May 2015)"
},
"cabinet":{
"text":"Cabinet includes the vice president and the heads of the 8 executive departments"
},
"elections/appointments":{
"text":"president and vice president indirectly elected by Congress from among the 4 'at large' senators for a 4-year term (eligible for a second term); election last held on 11 May 2011 (next to be held in May 2015)"
},
"election results":{
"text":"Peter M. CHRISTIAN elected president by Congress; Yosiwo P. GEORGE elected vice president"
}
},
"Legislative branch":{
"description":{
"text":"unicameral Congress (14 seats; 10 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote to serve 2-year terms and 4 directly elected from each of the 4 states by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)"
},
"elections":{
"text":"last held on 5 March 2013 (next to be held in March 2015)"
},
"election results":{
"text":"percent of vote - NA; seats - independent 14"
}
},
"Judicial branch":{
"highest court(s)":{
"text":"Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) Supreme Court (consists of the chief justice and not more than 5 associate justices and organized into appellate and criminal divisions)"
},
"judge selection and term of office":{
"text":"justices appointed by the president of the Federated States of Micronesia with the approval of two-thirds of Congress; justices appointed for life"
},
"subordinate courts":{
"text":"the highest state-level courts are: Chuuk Supreme Court; Korsae State Court; Pohnpei State Court; Yap State Court"
"text":"Ambassador Dorothea-Maria (Doria) ROSEN (since 9 August 2012)"
},
"embassy":{
"text":"101 Upper Pics Road, Kolonia"
},
"mailing address":{
"text":"P. O. Box 1286, Kolonia, Pohnpei, 96941; U.S. Embassy in Micronesia, 4120 Kolonia Place, Washington, D.C. 20521-4120"
},
"telephone":{
"text":"[691] 320-2187"
},
"FAX":{
"text":"[691] 320-2186"
}
},
"Flag description":{
"text":"light blue with four white five-pointed stars centered; the stars are arranged in a diamond pattern; blue symbolizes the Pacific Ocean, the stars represent the four island groups of Chuuk, Kosrae, Pohnpei, and Yap"
},
"National symbol(s)":{
"text":"four, five-pointed, white stars on a light blue field; national colors: light blue, white"
},
"National anthem":{
"name":{
"text":"\"Patriots of Micronesia\""
},
"lyrics/music":{
"text":"unknown"
},
"note":{
"text":"adopted 1991; also known as \"Across All Micronesia\"; the music is based on the 1820 German patriotic song \"Ich hab mich ergeben\", which was the West German national anthem from 1949-1950; variants of this tune are used in Johannes Brahms' \"Festival Overture\" and Gustav Mahler's \"Third Symphony\""
"text":"Economic activity consists largely of subsistence farming and fishing, and government, which employs two-thirds of the adult working population and receives funding largely - 58% in 2013 – from Compact of Free Association assistance provided by the US. The islands have few commercially valuable mineral deposits. The potential for tourism is limited by isolation, lack of adequate facilities, and limited internal air and water transportation. ++ ++ Under the terms of the original Compact, the US provided $1.3 billion in grants and aid from 1986 to 2001. The US and the Federated States of Micronesia (FSM) negotiated a second (amended) Compact agreement in 2002-03 that took effect in 2004. The amended Compact runs for a 20-year period to 2023; during which the US will provide roughly $2.1 billion to the FSM. The amended Compact also develops a Trust Fund for the FSM that will provide a comparable income stream beyond 2024 when Compact grants end. ++ ++ The country's medium-term economic outlook appears fragile because of dependence on US assistance and lackluster performance of its small and stagnant private sector."
"text":"islands interconnected by shortwave radiotelephone (used mostly for government purposes), satellite (Intelsat) ground stations, and some coaxial and fiber-optic cable; mobile-cellular service available on the major islands"
"text":"no TV broadcast stations; each state has a multi-channel cable service with TV transmissions carrying roughly 95% imported programming and 5% local programming; about a half-dozen radio stations (2009)"
