Last week in Washington, D.C. Gov. Arnold I. Palacios held a series of meetings with federal officials, including at the Pentagon where he discussed with Brendan Owens, assistant secretary of Defense for Energy, Installations, and Environment, the collaborative efforts between the CNMI and the Department of Defense. These include infrastructure development such as expanding port enhancement projects and strengthening energy resilience in the Commonwealth. Commonwealth Ports Authority Board Chairman Jose Ayuyu joined Governor Palacios. They also met with Ron Tickle, who is a member of the Senior Executive Service and is the deputy assistant secretary of Defense for Real Property. The governor’s travel to the nation’s capital was funded through a federally sourced grant.
