On September 20, 1979, representatives of the newly independent Republic of Kiribati and of the United States met in Tarawa to sign a treaty of friendship between the two nations, known as the Treaty of Tarawa.

[1] In this treaty, the U.S. acknowledged Kiribati sovereignty over fourteen islands.

[1] The treaty came into force on September 23, 1983, by the exchange of the instruments of ratification, which took place at Suva, Fiji.

[3] This, together with British cessation of claims, ended the Canton and Enderbury Islands Condominium, which had begun under the terms of the Guano Islands Act.

3 the US have reserved the right to maintain military bases on the Islands of Canton, Enderbury or Hull.