Tuvalu–United States relations
bilateral relations between United States and Tuvalu
Tuvalu–United States relations are bilateral relations between Tuvalu and the United States. The United States does not have a dedicated ambassador to Tuvalu. Instead, the U.S. ambassador to Fiji is also accredited to Tuvalu, handling diplomatic relations from Suva, Fiji.
Tuvalu maintains a diplomatic presence in the United States through its Permanent Mission to the United Nations, in New York City; it is headed by Tapugao Falefou, Tuvalu's Permanent Representative to the United Nations. Tuvalu's Permanent Representative to the United Nations also acts as Tuvalu's ambassador to the United States.
History
There was limited interaction between U.S. citizens and the Tuvaluan people in the 19th century. American whaling ships were active in the waters of the Tuvaluan archipelago. In 1821 Captain George Barrett, of the Nantucket whaler Independence II, visited Niulakita, which he named Rocky (Group). This name was never much used, but Independence Island, after Barrett's ship, was one of the several names which came into general use for Niulakita during the 19th century.
The United States Exploring Expedition under Lieutenant Charles Wilkes visited Funafuti, Nukufetau and Vaitupu in 1841.
The public source identifies “Tuvalu–United States relations” as bilateral relations between United States and Tuvalu. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Tuvalu, United and States.
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This entry incorporates text from “Tuvalu–United States relations” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.