Republic of the Marshall Islands resident, Tony de Brum died Monday, in the capital city of Majuro, at the age of 72. De Brum, a Tuvala native, was instrumental in securing independence for the island nation, in 1979, as well as a Compact of Free Association with the U.S. Government. De Brum had an enduring distinguished political career, serving as Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Finance, and Minister of Health and the Environment for the RMI. He often spent time in the Arkansas Ozarks visiting family and friends. As an eyewitness to the deadly U.S. atmospheric testing of thermonuclear weapons on the Marshall Islands when he was a small boy in the 1950s, he later became a staunch international nuclear disarmament advocate, as well as an international leader working in coalition with global allies on the United Nations Framework Convention to formulate the Paris Climate Accord. De Brum is survived by his father, his wife Rosalie, three children, 10 grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.