New Zealand is an island country in the south-wester Pacific ocean comprising two main landmasses (the North Island and the South Island), and numerous smaller slands, most notably Stewart a and the Chatham Islands. The Realm of New Zealand also includes the Cook Islands and Niue, Tokelau and the Ross Dependency (New Zealand's territorial claim in Antarctica). New Zealand is known for ts geographic isolation: it is situated about 2,000 kilometres (1,200 mi) southeast of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and its closest neighbours to the north are New Caledonia, Fiji and Tonga.