Kiribati moved the International Date Line in 1994 so its eastern islands could share the same calendar date as the rest of the country.
Kiribati is spread across a vast area of the central Pacific, including the Line Islands, Phoenix Islands and Gilbert Islands. Before the change, its islands were divided by different calendar dates, making national administration and communication difficult. The government aligned the time zones on January 1, 1995, by moving the date-line boundary eastward around the Line Islands.
The change gave Kiribati's easternmost territory, including Kiritimati, or Christmas Island, one of the earliest New Year dates on Earth. This often leads to headlines calling Kiribati the first country to welcome a new year, although the exact order depends on which island and time-zone boundaries are being discussed.
The International Date Line is not a perfectly straight natural line; it bends around national borders and practical interests.