Gerard Finin: PACIFIC ISLANDS: POTENTIAL 'BACK DOOR' FOR TERRORISTS

Date: 01-23-2002

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PACIFIC ISLANDS: POTENTIAL 'BACK DOOR' FOR TERRORISTS

HONOLULU (Jan. 23) -- Ease in obtaining passports, plus loosely regulated offshore banking and poorly patrolled shorelines, make remote Pacific island nations a potential "back door" from which future terrorist attacks could be organized or launched, said an East-West Center researcher.

As the United States looks at countries beyond Afghanistan where al-Qaida could operate, it should not overlook the 14 island nations that span nearly a third of the globe, said Gerard Finin, a Pacific islands specialist.

The recent Israeli commando seizure of a gunrunning ship sailing under the Kingdom of Tonga's flag, and allegedly taking arms to Palestinian militants, "exemplifies how Pacific island nations are today very much linked to transnational flows and contemporary global events," Finin said.

He noted the decline in U.S. development assistance, diplomacy and people-to-people programs in the region since the Cold War ended, lessening U.S. engagement in the islands. Terrorists could potentially seize upon the area because of this lack of American attention to what some in Washington have over the past decade seen as a region lacking strategic significance.

With shrinking economic aid, one way several Pacific island nations have attempted to raise revenues is by selling passports on demand, Finin said. Moreover, citizens from nations without U.S. consulates might obtain visas without personal interviews with American officials, relying only on passports for documentation.

Offshore banking has also become lucrative in parts of the region. Reports suggest Nauru has some 450 shell banking companies, of which one-third are believed to be of Middle East origin. An estimated $400 million has passed through these accounts annually.

Pacific island governments have indicated they are more than willing to join the fight against terrorism. Finin said this is an opportune time to strengthen U.S. ties to the region.

Gerard Finin can be reached at 808-944-7751 or fininj@eastwestcenter.org

This is an East-West Wire, copyright East-West Center