The region known as Micronesia consists of islands east of the Philippines, west of the International Date Line, north of the equator, and south of the Tropic of Cancer. Approximately 600 of the islands in this area united in 1986 to form an independent country, the Federated States of Micronesia. Though 600 islands joined the Federation, there are approximately 1,500 other islands in the region, including the independent countries of the Marshall Islands, Kiribati, and Palau.