In the remote Pacific, a small island nation of 17,000 souls finds itself at the intersection of superpower ambition and ecological fragility. Palau, long celebrated for its World Heritage lagoons and abundant marine life, is being reshaped by a half-billion-dollar American military expansion — the largest US overseas construction project of its kind — transforming a crumbling wartime wharf into a strategic deep-water installation along what strategists call the second island chain. As concrete and dredges alter the seabed, Palauans are asking the oldest of human questions: what is the cost of
US Military Buildup in Palau Stirs War Fears and Environmental Concerns
Palauans express existential concerns about becoming military targets in potential superpower conflict, with limited evacuation options on their small island territory.