Ministry Statements & Speeches:
Good morning Mr Chair
My congratulations to you and all members of the Committee as you take up your new roles. The Ministry looks forward to working constructively with you. I also acknowledge the former Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Defence who are here this morning, as well as the new Minister of Employment.
Thank you for the opportunity to make some opening remarks on the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade work programme during 2016/17.
I preface my comments today by noting that New Zealand’s foreign policy has, historically, been bipartisan. Many of our international achievements, including some of those of more recent weeks and months, are the culmination of efforts spanning several government terms.
On that note, I acknowledge the previous government, under which the work programme being discussed today was carried out. It navigated us out of the global financial crisis, and materially advanced New Zealand’s interests in a changing and at times turbulent international context.
Mr Chair, the Ministry exists to make New Zealanders safer and more prosperous. To achieve this, New Zealand’s foreign policy is built on four central pillars:
- Support for a rules-based international system which reflects our national values, and which delivers all countries the same rights and obligations regardless of size, location or power,
- Membership in international and regional architecture, as a way to reinforce the rules-based system and amplify our influence,
- A network of strong bilateral relationships underpinned by our reputation for being a fair-minded people, which we can leverage in the pursuit of shared interest, and
- The diversification of our trade, as a way to underpin our prosperity and insulate New Zealand from the vagaries of the international economy.
New Zealand knows the worth of strong institutions. We benefit from – and are insulated by – a neutral public service that operates with accountability and transparency; media freedom; academic freedom; free and fair elections. We know the worth of having low levels of corruption, and politicians and judiciary who are above reproach. We value living in a cohesive and peaceful society.
In these times of international change and challenge – where global authority is more contested – our national values and institutions need to be clear and strong. And we need to be seen to stand for them, at home and overseas.
There is of course much to be optimistic about. For the first time since the Global Financial Crisis, all major world economies are growing. Millions continue to be lifted out of poverty. Global literacy continues to rise, as does life expectancy. And a country like New Zealand can still secure a seat on the United Nations Security Council. And conclude the Ross Sea Marine Protected Area. And win cases in the WTO. So there is certainly room for optimism. But in my view, nor should we be naïve about the pressures confronting the international rules-based system, a system from which New Zealand has disproportionately benefitted from for more than 70 years.
I will now briefly look at the year in review against each of the four pillars.
Rules based systems
In December 2016, New Zealand concluded its two-year term on the United Nations Security Council. In the latter part of its term, New Zealand focused its efforts on humanitarian aid for the people of Syria, the Middle East Peace Process, and the transparency and inclusiveness of the Security Council itself. Our term on the Council enhanced New Zealand’s reputation as an independent, constructive and valuable partner.
New Zealand’s responses to security challenges – like North Korea’s illegal and destabilising weapons testing or competing claims in the South China Sea – were predicated on our support for international law, legal dispute settlement frameworks and UN Security Council resolutions, in order to reach peaceful diplomatic solutions.
With international trade underpinning our economy, the World Trade Organization remains a vital rules-based system through which to uphold our rights. This was clearly demonstrated with a successful WTO Panel ruling, confirmed upon appeal, in our challenge to 18 Indonesian agricultural non-tariff barriers.
International and regional architecture
New Zealand ratified the Paris Agreement on climate change in October 2016. This meant we could participate fully in the first Conference of the Parties to the Agreement held in Marrakech, and continue to co-chair the negotiation of the Paris work programme that is turning global intent into global effect.
New Zealand has long been a champion for environmental protection in Antarctica. In October 2016 an agreement was reached on a New Zealand and United States-led proposal to establish a marine protected area in the Ross Sea. The largest marine protected area in the world.
The year also saw us sustain efforts to make the world safer and more stable. We continued our international counterterrorism engagement, particularly through the counter-Daesh Global Coalition. We contributed to international cross-government engagements on cyber-security issues. And we played a key role in negotiating the landmark Nuclear Weapons Prohibition Treaty in the UN.
Over the year, the Ministry also provided consular services to 2,780 individuals and activated consular responses to terror attacks in places ranging from Nice to St Petersburg, Paris to Kabul.
New Zealand continued to be an active member of regional groupings in the Asia-Pacific, positioning ourselves as a trusted and integral partner as global wealth and power shifts to this region.
Bilateral
New Zealand relies on diverse international connections, and in 2016/17 we maintained a strong network of bilateral relationships.
Regular high-level meetings with Australia saw deep engagement on bilateral, regional, and global issues, and underscored Australia’s importance as our closest partner and only ally.
Our relationship with the United States continued to mature. Vice-President Biden visited New Zealand in July 2016. The USS Sampson, the first US warship in our waters in 33 years, visited to attend the Royal New Zealand Navy’s 75th birthday celebrations in Auckland.
A visit by Chinese Premier Li Keqiang marked the 45th anniversary of the New Zealand-China diplomatic relationship, and then-Prime Minister English visited Japan to reinforce our interests with our fifth largest trading partner and investor.
We also continued to have a strong focus on our own region.
Development efforts in the Pacific sought to improve the prosperity, stability, and resilience of the region and its people. Priorities included continued support for the sustainable management of the region’s fisheries, the ongoing roll out of our transformative renewable energy programme, and increasing resilience to adverse impacts of climate change and natural disasters.
Trade diversification
Trade milestones in 2016/17 include signing the Pacific Agreement on Closer Economic Relations Plus (PACER Plus); the launch of free trade negotiations with the Pacific Alliance countries of Latin America; the conclusion of free trade agreement scoping discussions with the European Union; the first formal Trade Policy Dialogue with the United Kingdom, and the first round of negotiations to upgrade the China free trade agreement. Also over the period in review, and under the leadership of the former Minister of Trade, we worked successfully to revive TPP.
Conclusion
Mr Chair, in these remarks I have attempted to present the breadth of the Ministry’s work programme over the year. In closing, I want to acknowledge the Ministry’s people, both on-shore and off-shore, in roles both big and small, who have worked to keep the complicated machinery of a foreign ministry running in Wellington and across the world.
We are a small foreign service, with around 230 diplomats spread across 57 Posts. And we are a young foreign service, with 35% of those diplomats having less than five years’ experience. The achievements of the past year are a testament to such people doing hard and remarkable things, often in challenging environments.
I am particularly grateful to the courage of those staff and their families who faced terror attacks, near misses, daily battles with pervasive smog, outbreaks of disease and wild weather. On behalf of the Governments past and present, I am proud to lead the determined, creative and passionate people who work hard every day to make New Zealanders safer and more prosperous.
Thank you.