ABSTRACT
The Marshall Islands terrain is low coral limestone and sand islands. At the beginning of World War I, Japan assumed control of the Marshall Islands. Their headquarters remained at the German center of administration, Jaluit. US Marines and Army troops took control from the Japanese in early 1944, following intense fighting on Kwajalein and Eniwetok atolls. In 1947, the United States, as the occupying power, entered into an agreement with the UN Security Council to administer Micronesia, including the Marshall Islands, as the Trust Territory of the Pacific Islands. On May 1, 1979, in recognition of the evolving political status of the Marshall Islands, the United States recognized the constitution of the Marshall Islands and the establishment of the Government of the Republic of the Marshall Islands. US nuclear testing took place between 1946 and 1958 on the islands of Bikini and Eniwetok.
