The president of the Federated States of Micronesia, Emanuel Mori, has called for a joint Micronesian approach to engage with Washington.
Mr Mori made the call in the Marshall Islands which has been hosting the 11th Micronesian Executives Summit that has also brought together leaders from the US affiliated territories, Guam and the Northern Marianas.
With long-term funding issues and climate change challenges looming, Mr Mori says it will be most effective, if they took a joint approach to explain their needs.
Our correspondent, Giff Johnson, says the trust funds for the Marshall Islands and the Federated States of Micronesia have lost much of their value.
"These trust funds have taken huge hits because of the decline in the stock markets globally in the last year, and both the Marshalls and the FSM want to get the US to deal with it, possibly putting more money in, because they just won't meet targets that were set for them when the deal was negotiated."
Giff Johnson
