Govt told not to ignore US in defence dealings

By JOHN ARMSTRONG political editor

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has warned Coalition ministers of the dangers of neglecting ties with the United States in their rewrite of defence priorities.

The firm reminder is contained in a ministry paper that was prepared for the Coalition's defence policy statement, released on Monday.

Despite the advice, however, the Government's policy document, which was signed off by the cabinet, does not mention the United States as relevant to New Zealand's security interests. In contrast, Australia rates copious mentions.

Before the last election, senior Labour MPs were openly scornful of National's currying of favour in Washington.

The ministry, however, reminded Labour and Alliance ministers of the United States' international clout, saying any overseas commitment of New Zealand troops in peacekeeping or other operations was always likely to be in conjunction with United States forces. The most recent example was East Timor.

"It will often not be possible to mount an effective operation without United States participation," says the ministry paper, stressing it is to New Zealand's advantage to build defence cooperation with Washington despite the "fundamental impediment" of the anti-nuclear policy.

"We must accept that the United States will often be the key element in the international community's ability to respond effectively to a particular security crisis."

The ministry argued that building ties required purchase of United States military hardware, helping New Zealand contribute effectively and safely to joint deployments.

The cancellation of the F-16 jet fighter contract demonstrated Washington's capacity to "understand and accept" a variation in defence policy.

But the Americans were still capable of misreading decisions in other capitals and New Zealand should make a special effort to ensure that did not happen.

The relationship would be influenced in part by the level of New Zealand's defence spending.

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