evidence: History [edit]During World War II, the United States took control of the islands from Japan (which governed them as part of the South Seas Mandate) in the 1944 Gilbert and Marshall Islands campaign. The US military conducted nuclear testing on Bikini Atoll in 1946 through 1958. In 1965, the US government formed the Congress of Micronesia, a plan for increased self-governance of Pacific islands. The Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands in 1979 provided independence to the Marshall Islands, whose constitution and president were formally recognized by the US. [...] Wake Island dispute [edit]The United States and the Marshall Islands governments both claim Wake Island, which puts the United States armed forces in the ambiguous position of defending US territory while acting as guarantor (under the Compact of Free Association) of the territorial integrity of a state with which it is involved in a territorial dispute. The United States claims Wake Island as an unorganized, unincorporated territory of the United States.[9]