The Enduring Nuclear Legacy in the Marshall Islands: Recent Developments

Abstract

This In Brief examines the recent renewal of the Compact of Free Association (COFA) between the United States and the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI), which was the site of the largest nuclear explosion in the United States (US) test series conducted from 1946 to 1958. Called BRAVO, the explosion at Bikini Atoll on 1 March 1954 spread radioactive fallout over Bikini and atolls to the east, leaving a legacy of contamination and injury that persists to this day. In a demonstration attended by the Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General Henry Puna, hundreds of people marched in Majuro, RMI, on 1 March 2024, marking 70 years since BRAVO became a defining event in the country’s post-war history.