This is CBS I In The World. I'm John Bachel with Cleopascal of the Foundation for the Defense of

Democracies. She is in Palau. East of the Philippines, west of Hawaii, the large picture describes a

place called Oceania, which includes Australia and New Zealand. But it is divided into three, all

Oceana has divided into three parts, sounding like a 21st century Caesar. Micronesia to the north,

where Guam occupies an important place in the US plans to defend the Pacific from a Chinese

invasion of Taiwan, overwhelming Japan and the Philippines, our neighbors. This war game is not

just science fiction. It happens all the time. East of Guam is the Hawaii and islands. Both those

are American possessions and therefore not independent states. Surrounding them are independent

islands, divided into Micronesia and the north, where Guam is. Melanesia in the center, where the

Solomon Islands are, aka Guadalcanal and the attendant islands. And then Polynesia, which stretches

all the way to East of Ireland, but includes Pitcare Island at the tropic of Capricorn. So we're

looking at a vast landscape and the Chinese are going after this because of Australia and New

Zealand. Primarily they think of Taiwan, but they think of cutting the US navy off from rescuing Taiwan,

which is the first island chain. Clio, I've done this generally because it's your teaching. Right now,

with Solomon Islands firmly in the Chinese possession, have they shattered the first island chain,

or do they need more? So they've hopscotch, they've leapfrog, which is, you know, terms that we know

from World War II, well, over the first and the second island chain by embedding insolomins. And

the big gains would be, there are three countries that are Micronesia that have unique relationships with

the US. These are, if anybody ever asks you, who is the best friend in the United States? The countries

are to allow martial islands and federated states of Micronesia. These are three independent countries

that cover as much of the Pacific Ocean as it's the same size of ocean they cover as the continental

United States. If you take the continental United States and you superimpose it over the middle of

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