 "New Zealand seeks stronger US role in Indo-Pacific, says Foreign Minister Peters")
Following a trip to Washington last month to strengthen ties with the Trump administration, New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters stated on Sunday that his country wanted the United States to be an “active” partner in the Indo-Pacific area.
New Zealand and the United States have collaborated in the Pacific to counter China’s expanding influence, but some New Zealand MPs are concerned about what the new administration in Washington and its suspension of assistance funds may mean for the area.
Speaking in Honolulu, Hawaii, on a week-long Pacific trip by a group of New Zealand politicians, Peters said the message he took to the U.S. was that “New Zealand wants, indeed needs, for the United States to remain an active, engaged and constructive partner in the Indo-Pacific”.
“We look forward to more constructive dialogue in the days ahead,” Winston said, according to a transcript.
In Washington, Peters met with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio, National Security Adviser Mike Waltz, the director of the U.S. Office of Foreign Assistance Peter Marocco, and a range of other administration and Congressional representatives.
After the meetings, Peters said New Zealand’s relationship with the U.S. was on a “strong footing” amid what he called “the most challenging strategic environment in at least half a century”.
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