Goff meets Biden, Brown at Chile summit

Labour Party leader Phil Goff has held talks with United States Vice-President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown while attending a Progressive Governance summit in Chile.

Mr Goff, who was invited to speak on responses to the world economic crisis, also met Chile's President Michelle Bachelet.

"The conference was a valuable opportunity to get a briefing from a senior member of the Obama administration and a sense of the direction in which it is going," Mr Goff said today.

"Mr Biden indicated the readiness of the US to consult more broadly on foreign policy matters and emphasised the importance of the rule of law in international affairs."

Mr Goff said while New Zealand's relations with the US improved dramatically over the past nine years, it was clear that in many areas the Obama administration would bring the US closer to positions traditionally held by New Zealand.

He said the conference focused on the forthcoming G20 meeting in London this week, and the need for co-ordinated action to address failures in financial markets which led to the economic crisis.

- NZPA