In terms of leadership, the Administration is headed by a director while the Office is headed by the Resident Commissioner of Puerto Rico. Politically, the resident commissioner possesses a higher rank as she is the delegate elected by Puerto Ricans to represent them in Congress, specifically within the U.S. House of Representatives. Her rank stems from the right to serve on congressional committees, a right she exercises in every aspect like that of any other legislator, except being denied a vote on the final disposition of legislation on the House floor.
History
Prior to the arrival of Spaniards, the natives of Puerto Rico, the Taíno, had direct foreign relations with other tribes of the Caribbean. For example, they were known to have amicable relations with the tribes settled in the Greater and the Lesser Antilles, while it is widely believed that they were historical enemies of the Carib. It is unknown, however, if this applied to the Taíno of Puerto Rico, as archeologists believe they may have been allies with the Carib at some point. Findings so far have been inconclusive.
Upon the arrivals of Spaniards in 1493, Puerto Rico opened up to both the New and the Old World, establishing trading routes with North, Central and South America, as well as routes with Spain, Portugal and Africa. Trading of vegetables, fruits, slaves, and minerals became an integral part of Puerto Rico's international development afterwards.
After Puerto Rico was ceded to the United States as part of the Treaty of Paris, the United States and Puerto Rico began a long-standing metropolis-colony relationship.[4] It is at this time that Puerto Rico became subject to the Commercial and Territory Clause of the U.S. Constitution, clauses that restrict how and with whom can Puerto Rico engage internationally.[b] The territory also became, as a byproduct, subject to the different treaties and trade agreements ratified by the United States.
In 1920, after the enactment of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920 (also known as the Jones Act), Puerto Rico became restricted on which merchant marine it can use to import and export products. This is because the Jones Act prevents foreign-flagged ships from carrying cargo between two American ports (a practice known as cabotage). Under the Jones Act, foreign ships inbound with goods from Central and South America, Western Europe, and Africa cannot stop in Puerto Rico, offload Puerto Rico-bound goods, load mainland-bound Puerto Rico-manufactured goods, and continue to U.S. ports.[c] Instead, they must proceed directly to U.S. ports, where distributors break bulk and send Puerto Rico-bound manufactured goods to Puerto Rico across the ocean by U.S.-flagged ships.[5][d]
In modern times, Puerto Rico has been able to establish several treaties and trade agreements mostly with Hispanic American nations due to their cultural and linguistic similarities. Today, Puerto Rico has trade agreements with Colombia and Panamá, along with strong ties with its neighbors in the Caribbean Sea, particularly with the Dominican Republic and the United States Virgin Islands.[1][2]
International organizations
Puerto Rico is restricted to join international organizations without the consent of the United States due to its current political status.[b] However, due to its geographical and cultural nature, the U.S. Department of State allows Puerto Rico to be an observer in most international organizations to which it would potentially belong to if Puerto Rico were a sovereign state.[e]
Puerto Rico was denied observer status by the U.S. Department of State within the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) due to the anti-American rhetoric of some of its founders, namely Bolivia, Cuba, and Venezuela. However, on January 9, 2014, Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro announced a proposed plan to incorporate Puerto Rico into CELAC, without waiting for required U.S. federal consent.[7]
Treaties
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Trade agreements
Countries with whom Puerto Rico can freely engage in trade without diplomatic restrictions
^Caribbean Business (2013) "In 2003, then-U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell [...] reportedly warned of any commonwealth gesture to join international organisms as an independent entity without the approval of the U.S. State Department."[3]
^ abCaribbean Business (2013) "An internal agency memo from a decade ago said: 'Under the U.S. Constitution, the federal government has the sole responsibility for the conduct of U.S. foreign relations, and this includes the foreign relations that relate to U.S. territories.'"[3]
^46 App. U.S. Code § 883. "No merchandise, including merchandise owned by the United States Government, a State [...], or a subdivision of a State, shall be transported by water [...] between points in the United States, including Districts, Territories, and possessions thereof embraced within the coastwise laws, either directly or via a foreign port, or for any part of the transportation, in any other vessel than a vessel built in and documented under the laws of the United States and owned by persons who are citizens of the United States [...]"
^Gutierrez. "The “cabotage” laws impose significant restrictions on commerce between Puerto Rico and the U. S. mainland by requiring that merchandise and produce shipped by water between U.S. ports be shipped only on U.S.-built, U.S.- manned, U.S.-flagged, and U.S.-citizen owned vessels."[6]
^Caribbean Business (2013) "The U.S. State Department has previously given the green-light to Puerto Rico’s active participation in limited international forums."[3]
^ECLAC defines an 'associate member' as a non-independent territory.
†Physiographically, these continental islands are not part of the volcanic Windward Islands arc, although sometimes grouped with them culturally and politically.
#Bermuda is an isolated North Atlanticoceanic island, physiographically not part of the Lucayan Archipelago, Antilles, Caribbean Sea nor North American continental nor South American continental islands. It is grouped with the Northern American region, but occasionally also with the Caribbean region culturally.
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