The small archipelago nation, Palau, is stepping up to take 17 ethnic chinese Uighurs from prison in Guantanamo. In fact, the United States Supreme Court ordered these detainees released months ago, but until now the Obama administration could not find a country willing to receive them.
Why Palau? Well, it is one of the staunchest American allies in the world. At the United Nations there is sort of a running joke that the United States is never fully isolated: it can always count on Palau for support. And, indeed, when you look at some of the more contentious votes at the General Assembly you’ll often find the United States, Palau and the Marshall Islands on one side of and most of the rest of the world on the other. Palau’s UN ambassador is even an American.
And of course, Palau was a member of the coalition of the willing.
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