<Li> Guantanamo Bay Naval Base (since 1903): A 45 square miles (120 km) land area along Guantánamo Bay, Cuba, to which the U.S. claims to hold a perpetual lease . The Cuban government does not recognize this claim and has refused to accept any payment since 1959 . The lease amount is US $2,000 in gold per year . </Li> <Li> American research stations in Antarctica: Amundsen--Scott South Pole Station, McMurdo Station, and Palmer Station are under U.S. jurisdiction but are held without sovereignty per the Antarctic Treaty . </Li> <Li> Certain other parcels in foreign countries held by lease, such as military bases, depending on the terms of a lease, treaty, or status of forces agreement with the host country . </Li> <P> Micronesia, the Marshall Islands, and Palau gained independence under the Compact of Free Association (COFA), which gives the U.S. full authority over aid and defense in exchange for continuing access to U.S. health care, government services such as the Federal Communications Commission and the U.S. Postal Service, and the right for COFA citizens to work freely in the U.S. and vice versa . </P>

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