Still Missing in the Rebalance? The United States and the Pacific Island Countries

Shibuya, Eric Y. (2015). "Still Missing in the Rebalance? The United States and the Pacific Island Countries". In Azizian, Rouben; Cramer, Carleton (eds.). Regionalism, security & cooperation in Oceania (PDF). Honolulu, HI: Daniel K. Inouye Asia-Pacific Center for Security Studies. pp. 57–66. ISBN 978-0-9719416-7-0.

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Abstract: The regional reaction to the US “rebalance” to Asia is mixed. Many countries are more reassured by the returning US focus on the Asia-Pacific region, while others are concerned that they see more rhetoric than reality. For Pacific Island countries, much of the discussion is summed up as just “more of the same” with island states mostly missing in any discussion of the rebalance’s impacts. This chapter describes the history of US-Pacific Island relations, highlighting instances of neglect and unwanted attention. While some countries may look to benefit from greater US attention to the region as part of the rebalance, history suggests they should proceed with caution.