FOOT PRINTS OF CHINA IN PACIFIC ISLAND
The Pacific Island Nations are a group of 14 nations which lie mostly in the tropical region of the Pacific Ocean between Asia, Australia and the Americas. These include Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Republic of Marshall Islands, Federated States of Micronesia (FSM), Nauru, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. The islands are separated on the physical and human geography basis into three different divisions — Micronesia, Melanesia and Polynesia. The islands are extremely minute in land terms, and lie far apart along the vast Pacific ocean’s equatorial swathe. Consequently, although they are among the world’s smallest and least populated states, they also possess some of the world’s largest Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs). Big EEZs mean enormous economic potential because of the potential for using the riches of fisheries, energy, minerals and other marine resources available in such areas. Therefore, they like to be called Big Ocean States, instead of Small Island States.
In fact, Kiribati and FSM, both PICs, with EEZs bigger than that of India. Additionally, these nations have been critical in great power competition as launching pads for the projection of power and testbeds for strategic development and demonstration. The great powers of the colonial period competed with one another to control these strategic regions. The Pacific islands also served as one of the primary theatres of war during the Second World War — between imperial Japan and the U.S. Due to the remoteness of these islands from the Soviet Union and major population centres of the world, some of the major nuclear weapon test sites of the U.S., the U.K. and France were located here. Besides, the 14 PICs, united by common economic and security interests, are responsible for as many number of votes in the UN, and also serve as a potential vote bank for great powers to harness international opinions
