Palau’s president says U.S. leaders need to ‘show up’ in Pacific

Palau’s president says U.S. leaders need to ‘show up’ in Pacific

The island nation of Palau, home to just under 18,000 people living on 500 small islands, has become an out sized player on the global stage as the U.S. and China compete for influence across the Pacific islands. The U.S. military has been building up infrastructure in Palau while Chinese investors have been buying up and leasing land in the islands. President Surangel Whipps Jr. said that “when I got into office, one of the things I was told wa…