<P> In 1986, the Compact of Free Association with the United States entered into force, granting the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) its sovereignty . The Compact provided for aid and U.S. defense of the islands in exchange for continued U.S. military use of the missile testing range at Kwajalein Atoll . The independence procedure was formally completed under international law in 1990, when the UN officially ended the Trusteeship status pursuant to Security Council Resolution 683 . The Republic was admitted to the UN in 1991 . </P> <P> In 2003, the US created a new Compact of Free Association for the Republic Marshall Islands and Micronesia, with funding of $3.5 billion to be made over the next 20 years . </P> <P> In 2005, Aloha Airlines canceled its flight services to the Marshall Islands . </P> <P> In 2008, extreme waves and high tides caused widespread flooding in the capital city of Majuro and other urban centres, 3 feet (0.91 m) above sea level . On Christmas morning in 2008, the government declared a state of emergency . In 2013, heavy waves once again breached the city walls of Majuro . </P>

When did the marshallese first encounter this process of globalization