From UPI (link):
China`s insatiable appetite for energy and natural resources, and its desire to secure the sea lanes through which such resources are transported, are propelling the country`s outreach to even the smallest of the Pacific Islands, leaders from the island nations heard last week at a convention in Tokyo.
China`s determination to undermine Taiwan`s influence in the South Pacific is prompting generous assistance in infrastructure projects, such as building sports complexes in Fiji and Kiribati, and providing cargo ships to Vanuatu.
Representatives from 22 island nations gathered in Tokyo at the Asia-Pacific Island Nations Summit from March 19-23 to discuss ways of partnering to address their common vulnerabilities. They included tiny islands like Niue — 100 square miles in area, with a population of around 2,100 — Vanuatu, Kiribati and Palau, as well as their larger neighbors, the Philippines, Indonesia, Taiwan, Australia, New Zealand and the host country, Japan.
