In the 1898, Spanish–American War, Spain lost most of its territories to the United States under the Treaty of Paris, including Guam, Cuba, the Philippines, and Puerto Rico. Guam continued to be important due to its strategic location for shipping, and later for air travel in the Pacific. During World War II, Japan occupied Guam in 1941 for 31 months, but lost the territory to the United States soon after. The Chamorro people are spread across Guam and Northern Mariana Islands- which is also a United States territory. However, the Chamorro people from Northern Mariana Islands have not integrated well into the territory as they were under Japanese occupation for about 30 years.