High-level government leaders and security officials from across Micronesia gathered on Guam this week for a regional dialogue focused on growing geopolitical tensions in the Pacific. The discussions centered on how increasing competition between the United States and China is reshaping security, sovereignty and cooperation throughout the region.

Leland Bettis with the Pacific Center for Island Security said, "This particular area in here looks to be a significant area of conflict if there is any sort of kinetic engagement between the U.S. and China."

For many in Micronesia, global competition between the United States and China is no longer a distant issue. This week, former presidents, governors, diplomats, defense officials, and policy experts gathered on Guam to discuss how those growing tensions are increasingly impacting the region.

Dominic D. Taruwemai, the deputy director at the Department of Health Services in Yap State, shared, "The presence of U.S. military in our region elevates the risk for us to be first attacked when there is conflict between U.S. and China."

Hosted by the Pacific Center for Island Security and sponsored by Japan's Sasakawa Peace Foundation, the dialogue focused on military buildup, maritime activity and the growing strategic importance of Micronesia. One major focus of the two-day conference was the Micronesia Security Monitor- an interactive map built by PCIS that tracks military exercises, vessel movements, and installation developments across the Pacific using publicly available information.

That includes monitoring Chinese research vessels in the region. Bettis added, "It's been doing a lot of oceanographic research right off an area that hosts five U.S. nuclear attack submarines." He showed participants how they can use the map to track what he says is increasing military and research activity throughout the Second Island Chain.

Former Palau President Tommy Remengesau acknowledged a growing need for leaders in Micronesia to better understand how global competition is affecting their own communities. "These are the types of things we certainly have to acknowledge as a sub-region. There is a definite need for us to share this information. Military installations are now happening all around our region. But we don't even know what the purpose of those installations will be," he said.

In the meantime, the discussions reflect a region increasingly seeking to shape, not just respond to, the future of the Pacific.

As PCIS Chairman Dr. Robert Underwood puts it, "Whether you know it or not, whether you like it or not, all of us are in somebody's strategic plan."