Goff gets Russian views on key post

By AUDREY YOUNG

Foreign Minister Phil Goff had a wide-ranging discussion with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov last night in Santiago that covered the appointment of National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice as United States Secretary of State designate.

Ms Rice, a former academic who specialised in Russian affairs, will accompany President Bush to Chile for the Apec meeting.

Mr Goff said some saw it as unfortunate that there would be less contestable advice being given to the President because the State Department would become closer to the White House under Ms Rice.

He said the State Department under Ms Rice would be led by someone "with a sharper edge in terms of a number of the issues, less prepared to be accommodating".

But he implied possible advantages for the international community in having a Secretary of State in whom the President had a strong relationship.

"The advice that he gets from Condoleezza Rice will be from a person who is a very able intelligent person and who will be connecting very directly with the international community."

Mr Goff said he began his bilateral meeting asking Mr Lavrov what he thought about having a Russian expert as Secretary of State.

"He answered with a very straight face and straight bat that he thought all Secretaries of States in the United States were Russian experts."

He talked to Mr Lavrov about New Zealand having provided $1.5 million for the destruction of chemical weapons in Russia.

He said the funding would go into the creation of an electricity sub-station critical to the destruction of the chemical components.

"The Russians acknowledged our assistance and their gratitude for it and we, of course , are very happy to make an investment in the destruction of chemical weapons."