PM will use UN speech to press for reforms

John and Bronagh Key pose with Michelle and Barack Obama at a UN reception. Photo / The White House

Frustrated John Key is pushing for Security Council veto changes.

Prime Minister John Key will use his address to the United Nations to again call for reform of the Security Council, in a week in which its failings have been on stark display.

Mr Key is due to speak in the General Assembly debate tonight and said he would use that time to press home New Zealand's case for reform, in particular the veto power held by the five permanent Security Council members.

"We are frustrated by some of the things we see on the Security Council and we think it is our responsibility as a member of the Security Council that as someone who has long advocated for change to continue to reiterate that," Mr Key said.

The perils of the veto power have been on display as the leaders met in New York this week and calls increased for the Security Council to do its job and act over Syria rather than be paralysed by the veto.

Mr Key admitted his speech would not get the same attention as the showdown between US President Barack Obama and Russian President Vladimir Putin but said New Zealand should not sell itself short.

"New Zealand is a reliable, dependable, pragmatic voice," he said. "One of the reasons we've always got on the council when we put our hand up is people see us as having something serious to say."

Last night, Russia called a meeting of the council's foreign ministers to discuss the conflicts in Syria, Iraq and Yemen.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully said that meeting was not expected to broker an outcome but rather get countries to indicate how flexible they would be on Syria.

Mr Key last spoke at the General Assembly in 2013.

Hacking off limits when pandering to China

At one end of Manhattan the leaders of the largest nations were wrestling with ways to cripple Islamic State. At the other end, the leader of one of the smallest was insisting pandas were not the number one issue in his relations with China.

Prime Minister John Key was in Bryant Park after news emerged of Gerry Brownlee's stealth mission to deliver a panda request to the Chengdu breeding centre. It caught Key by surprise - his role as panda champion had been usurped by the Defence Minister. So Key said he would raise the panda topic if he bumped into President Xi Jinping while in New York. He hastened to add, "Not as my number one issue".

It is likely that top of the list is the upgrade to the China free-trade agreement. But what is most definitely not on that list is cyber hacking and cyber spying by China. While US President Barack Obama has directly confronted Xi about alleged Chinese cyber hacking, Key refuses to even confirm China is one of the countries most of the attacks in New Zealand come from.

Meanwhile, the four Secret Service men charged with protecting Key must wonder what they've got themselves into. The guards would not reveal their codeword for Key but when "sprat" was suggested one replied that it should be Eagle "because he's good at golf".

Yesterday the guards found themselves squashed in a see-through Air NZ promotional van while Key plonked down for a rest on the Sky Couch. Those watching hastily tried to convince passersby that no, that wasn't New Zealand's PM, just the lowly Tourism Minister.

The better photo op came at a reception the Obamas hosted for the leaders. Key admitted later he was taken aback by Michelle's height. Perhaps he could turn that around for New Zealand promotional purposes too - the Keys did rather look like the Hobbits next to the Elves.