New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some 1 500 kilometres (900 mi) east of Australia across the Tasman Sea and roughly 1 000 kilometres (600 mi) south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia Fiji and Tonga. Due to its remoteness it was one of the last lands to be settled by humans.
