Marshall Islands: Chinese pair plotted 'mini-state' in Pacific nation
Source: BBC
Marshall Islands: Chinese pair plotted 'mini-state' in Pacific nation
By Frances Mao
BBC News
8 September 2022
A Chinese couple plotted to set up a mini-state on the Marshall Islands in the Pacific, bribing MPs and officials along the way, US prosecutors say.
The man and woman tried to persuade lawmakers to set up a "Semi-Autonomous Region" (SAR) on a remote atoll.
Such a zone would have expanded foreign access to the Pacific nation, which was administered by the US until 1979.
The Marshall Islands government is yet to fully address the accusations, despite calls from opposition parties.
But US authorities say the defendants - Cary Yan and Gina Zhou - undermined the island nation's sovereignty.
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Read more: https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-62830548
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Related: United States v. Cary Yan and Gina Zhou (U.S. Department of Justice)
According to the indictment, Yan and Zhou substantially operated the conspiracy out of New York City.