A historic, first-ever U.S.-Pacific Island Country Summit is scheduled and comes as the U.S. tries to strengthen ties with nations throughout the Indo-Pacific in the midst of Chinese overtures.

The White House announced the meeting earlier this month saying it will "reflect our broadening and deepening cooperation" on a variety of key issues from climate change to a free and open Indo-Pacific. Governor Leon Guerrero has been invited as an observer, and Acting Governor Josh Tenorio says she'll be working the sidelines to help bridge the gap between U.S. officials and Western Pacific nations.

"There is a big security situation in the Pacific Region. We in Guam are seeing it first-hand. Elsewhere in the Pacific they read about it but they don't know extent. And so I think is an opportunity for the president to listen and see what the rest of the Pacific is thinking and talking about," Tenorio said.

The Chinese threat to the region was underscored when President Biden surprisingly said the US would defend Taiwan against an attack led by Beijing. But Tenorio says another major issue is the impact of climate change on Pacific islands, noting, "One of the things that I think they'll be looking to is the US's leadership in  trying to get emissions down. But I also think its a contrasting moment for the US, because the US is making a lot of progress on reducing emissions, but the greater competitor, their competition in this region. China is not."

The summit with President Biden is scheduled for September 28 and 29 at the White House.