 | | Assistant Secretary Christopher Hill addresses the conference |
Assistant Secretary Christopher Hill's speech at the Partnership ForumThank you for a very nice introduction and stroll down memory lane.
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It is great to be here in Auckland, a city that is mercifully far away from Washington DC and does not remind me of Washington at all. As you know, the State Dept where I live and work is located in a place called Foggy Bottom – it’s kind of a state of mind as well as a part of Washington itself. It’s great to get out of FB and to come to Auckland to see how you’ve solved global warming – and to participate in this Forum. I want to say what a great honor and pleasure it is to be here right now – actually, it’s a little intimidating to be here with Prime Minister Clark listening to my remarks. I think, Prime Minister, you covered so well the gamut of what we are trying to accomplish. I’m sort of humbled as I try to go, with my own lack of prose, to go through some of those events from our perspective. It is certainly a great honor to have you here. It is also an honor to be here with so many distinguished people. As Paul Cleveland suggested, to be here with mentors, and tormentors as well. As I look out here in the audience and see so may people I’ve met in the course of my work. I see Clayton Yeiler who does not remember meeting me in Seoul in 1986, but I took you around and we went through all the Korean offices where they were refusing – it’s interesting, at the time we were trying to sell wine, high quality beef, and my favorite, which does seem like a bit of an anachronism – we were trying to open the market for American cigarettes. I’m not sure whether we succeeded on that. We’re working on the beef, though. And because they have the Free Trade Agreement with Chile, they’re brining in the Chilean wine, so it’s sort of American wine, but the wrong part of the hemisphere I guess. Anyway, we’re doing our best on all of that. So I think to be here and discussing this is for me a very important moment. To see how important the Pacific region is, all you have to do is look at a map. Some of the fastest growing economies and most innovative societies line the shores of the Pacific. Looking at a map, you can see also there is a LOT of water between here and the United States. But I think we also need to see, as we look at that water, that the Pacific is indeed something that joins us rather than just separates us. It should join us. It should catalyze us and help us to create a sense of community in the region. We see this already happening in ASEAN. We see this in APEC and we even see it in the Pacific Islands Forum. There is a sense of community that is beginning to coalesce around this part of the world. This Partnership Forum is a vital part of building the kind of region both our countries want to see in the future. Now, to get to the Pacific region, I decided to take the most direct route to the Partnership Forum -- via Geneva. There I met with my friends, the North Koreans and I must say, as difficult as that process has been, we did come away with some progress. I know this is an issue of great interest here in New Zealand, as it is elsewhere. Tomorrow a team of technical experts from the United States, Russia and China – the three member of the Six Party process – the three nuclear weapons states in the Six Party process -- will arrive in North Korea -- at the DPRK’s invitation. They will begin to survey nuclear facilities that are slated to be disabled as part of the Six-Party process. We are expecting this disabling of these facilities to take place by the end of the year. By that time, we would also expect to have a comprehensive list of all of North Korea’s nuclear programs, nuclear facilities, and very importantly, nuclear materials. It is a process we have embarked on a step-by-step basis. We don’t expect the North Koreans to fall out of bed one morning and decide to give up all their weapons. It’s going to take a step-by-step process, but we’re very much engaged. For us, part of the engagement in the Six Party process, and getting the North Koreans to do away with these weapons has been a process that has been leading, I think, to a greater sense of community in North East Asia -- a part of the world that I think has really lacked a sense of community. The United States is working more closely with China than ever before in its diplomatic effort. We are working on some of the problems in the region which in some respect have led to this horrific nuclear problem that we are dealing with. We are dealing with problems of relationships between China and Japan, relationships between the Republic of Korea and Japan, relationships that really go beyond the U.S. relationship with Korea – the bilateral relationship. So the Six Party process is a pretty broad, pretty sturdy platform or on which we are trying to build a number of structures. And if we can get through this issue of the nuclear weapons, our hope is that we can move on to finding a permanent peace mechanism for the Korean peninsular, to replace the DMZ, which has so much barbed wire on it. To replace it as an international border. We are looking forward to creating a North East Asia peace and security mechanism, again to take the Six Parties as the beginning of a forum where people can exchange views and things don’t always have to go to bilateral channels, but can go to multi-lateral channels. So we have a long way to go there, but we are making a step, a good positive step. So after Geneva, I then went to, I guess you would call it the West Island here, to Sydney where we had, I think, a very good APEC meeting. The 21 leaders who were there, including Prime Minister Clark, discussed how to guide the Pacific region into the future. How to integrate our economies. How to build a secure and stable region. We need to continue to build a sense of community. I think a close and constructive partnership between the United States and New Zealand is a part of achieving these aspirations in the Pacific. Although we find ourselves at a transformational moment – transformation is a favorite word in Washington, by the way – I think it is vital to understand what brought us here. Our bilateral ties are strong and they have stood the test of history. We were partners and allies during the long and bitter Cold War in places like Vietnam and Korea. During World War II, only a little more than 60 years ago, New Zealand hosted the U.S. Marine Second Division, a vital contribution in winning the Pacific war. Our young people fought side by side in the Italian campaign in 1943. Of course, over the weekend there was another Italian campaign fought by New Zealanders didn’t need any of our help. But just because our ties are durable does not mean the relationship does not need to be modernized. Together we need to be prepared to deal with the difficult new challenges the world faces. We need to adjust to these challenges and seize the opportunities they present as well. Terrorism, nuclear proliferation, dramatic economic swings, natural disasters – none of these things exist in a vacuum, nor will they be solved on their own. By pursuing active diplomacy and working together, we can meet these tests – and succeed. There is no question that the United States has a good partner in New Zealand, and it is widely recognized and appreciated throughout the government, from the very top, that New Zealand makes valuable contributions to peace, stability, and economic growth in the Asia-Pacific region. The United States and New Zealand are working together in Afghanistan. No one -- no one -- thinks the road ahead in Afghanistan is going to be easy. It requires patience, a strong commitment, and respect for local people, traditions and conditions. We have been very pleased with New Zealand’s participation in that endeavor; with its Provincial Reconstruction Team which we believe is one of the models for the area. In fact, a colleague of mine, a U.S. Foreign Service Officer, David Jea, who was in Wellington recently to have consultations with New Zealand government officials, before he traveled on to Afghanistan to take up a job in Bamiyan with the New Zealand PRT. We are really working together, and I think together we are going to make this work. New Zealand’s efforts closer to home – in Timor-Leste and the Solomon Islands – are indispensable to creating a peaceful and prosperous Pacific. Our close consultations matter a lot in the Asia-Pacific as a whole. When Secretary Rice met Foreign Minister Peters in Sydney just a couple of days ago, they discussed North Korea and what needs to be done to get the DPRK to give up its nuclear weapons and programs, and they discussed how we can work together on that. To continue building our close relationship in this transformational moment, we need to solidify ties in many areas. In about an hour I am going to sign a visa agreement that will allow young people from the New Zealand to live and work in the United States and do their OE or ‘Overseas Experience’. In keeping with the goal of integrating our economies, those of you with college age kids will now need to learn how to send money to those kids in the United States. In fact, the past eighteen months have seen a gratifying improvement in dialogue and cooperation between the United States and New Zealand on a range of security, economic and foreign policy objectives. I do believe that a high point was achieved with Prime Minister Clark’s visit to Washington in March. We share many of the same values and interests, and the stage is now set for us to expand our engagement further and solidify our cooperation on a wide range of issues. We work together on counterterrorism and nonproliferation. We appreciate New Zealand's strong leadership in these areas and its support for efforts to address nuclear concerns with North Korea. One of the problems with North Korea is that they have turned the nuclear program into a kind of identity issue, and New Zealand has taken another path, and so perhaps New Zealand will be a very good partner, in convincing the North Koreans to take the New Zealand path. One of our strongest bonds is our commitment to freedom and innovations to promote democracy, both regionally and internationally. In business, we already have close economic ties with New Zealand. We are your second-largest trading partner after Australia. We both want to improve the global trade system and are working together in the WTO and regionally. The United States and New Zealand have been exploring through our Trade and Investment Framework Agreement (TIFA) how to deepen bilateral economic relations and how to advance regional economic growth. The July 9-10 TIFA meeting between USTR and MFAT concluded with agreement that our two countries would develop a cooperative work plan to address specific trade issues. I think as we go further we are going to be able to make progress and to keep an eye on what we all want to see eventually, which is , at some point, a free trade agreement. Against this positive backdrop, this Forum will look at ways that we can increase cooperation even further in areas vital to both of our countries: regional security and stability and sustained, productive economic development in the Asia-Pacific region. In short, the stage has been set for our two countries to work together well in the future. Our governments have recognized that we have much more in common and much to gain by working together to promote our shared values and interests rather than dwelling on issues where we do not see eye to eye. I think it’s clear we have new momentum in the relationship and this momentum continues to build. In January of this year, we had a good reason to celebrate. Since 1957, we have worked together on the frozen continent. Our explorers have ventured across Antarctica while our scientists worked together to unlock its secrets. The Ice may look barren, but it tells the history of our planet, particularly the history of our atmosphere, in extraordinary ways. To mark a half century of extraordinary joint work, Prime Minister Clark led a delegation to The Ice that included Sir Edmund Hillary and senior officials from both countries. Where was I during that week? I had a much better offer – I was in a Beijing Guest House sitting at a green felt table with a lot of cigarette smoke in the air and a lot of mineral water, talking to my North Korean colleagues. It was just an offer I could not refuse! I missed the experience on The Ice – but they brought me back a postcard. During the Prime Minister’s visit to Washington in March she and the President had good discussions about what we’re doing in Afghanistan, they talked about some global issues and some regional issues. The Prime Minister also met with the Secretary of State and the Secretary of Defense during her visit. I think these meetings were at such a level as to allow us to move forward in the future. Our partnership in the Pacific is very important to us, and for that reason we have worked in 2007 to make this “The Year of the Pacific”. A highlight of our “Year of the Pacific” was the hosting of the East-West Center’s Pacific Island Conference of Leaders meeting in Washington this past May. During that time we were able to focus on a wide range of security, scientific, trade, and commercial issues. A couple of areas where we have been working together: the US has recently created two regional offices covering the South Pacific: one covering environmental, oceans, and science issues in Suva, and another focused on public diplomacy and increased educational and cultural exchanges. We don’t expect New Zealand to go it alone in the South Pacific and we want to be there with New Zealand and do all we can to help. We have also decided to second a State Department officer on a temporary assignment to the Secretariat of the Pacific Community (SPC) in Nouméa, New Caledonia. We are also looking at ways to spur economic development in the Pacific as a result of the pending relocation of over 8,000 U.S. military members and their families from Okinawa to Guam. This is a multi-year, multi-billion dollar undertaking – probably the largest U.S. military construction project since World War II. While a number of details need to be worked out, we are hopeful that some of the beneficial impacts of the project – jobs, increased regional commercial activity, a rise in tourism – will flow to Pacific Islanders. We have some difficult challenges – the P.M. mentioned how we are trying to face the challenge in Fiji and coordinate our response. The United States has repeatedly called for the protection of human rights and the return to democratic government in Fiji as soon as possible. In response to the coup, the U.S. took a number of measures in accordance with U.S. law and policy, including the cessation of assistance to the government of Fiji, a halt on military sales, and visa bans against those involved in the coup. The region itself, under the auspices of the Pacific Islands Forum, has taken a strong and unified stance on the coup. We look forward to pursuing a coordinated approach at the Forum meeting next month in Tonga to advance with the Pacific Island leaders an agreed approach to return Fiji to democracy. In addition to these diplomatic initiatives, our two countries have been working together extraordinarily well “on the ground” in the Pacific. Both countries are supporting maritime law enforcement efforts in the region. We want to work closely with Pacific Island countries and other regional players to expand and strengthen regional maritime law enforcement cooperation, including on fisheries, illicit narcotics, alien smuggling, firearms smuggling, and violence in maritime navigation. New Zealand has played a leading role in improving the maritime security capability of the Pacific Islands. We want to work together to build upon those efforts. Just last month, we welcomed six New Zealand Navy medical personnel aboard the USS Peleliu for Pacific Partnership 2007, a humanitarian operation. The New Zealanders joined us as we visited Papua New Guinea and the Solomon Islands to build hospitals and schools, teach preventive medicine, and provide medical and dental assistance Together we sought to carry the ‘aloha’ spirit of caring, commitment and compassion with them on this deployment to assist our Pacific neighbors. Additionally, Royal New Zealand Navy officers are now on board the U.S. Coast Guard Cutter Walnut in Honiara, as the vessel patrols the Economic Exclusion Zones of several Pacific states and territories. While the Walnut is in the South Pacific, it will participate in Operation Kurukuru, an annual multilateral maritime surveillance operation focusing on detection and enforcement response to illegal maritime activity. Scientific and technical cooperation will remain an enduring foundation of bilateral cooperation, as it has over the past 50 years, particularly in Antarctica. U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard units are resident in Christchurch from October through February every year to resupply American and Australian bases in the Antarctic. These service members will be arriving again soon. They have always been warmly welcomed and supported every year by the people of Christchurch. We are grateful to the “Mainlanders” for their hospitality. I am impressed by some understated but significant efforts that New Zealanders have undertaken to commemorate the friendship and cooperation between our two countries. Acknowledging 50 years of uninterrupted cooperation in Antarctica is one as I’ve mentioned -- but in Wellington the Prime Minister honored the United States on our Memorial Day in May by opening an exhibition in historic Old St Paul’s church. The exhibit tells the story of what it was like for regular New Zealanders in World War II when thousands of U.S. Marines and other servicemen were stationed here training for the terrible battles they would fight in the Pacific. Also recently in Washington, Ambassador Ferguson invited US Marines veterans of World War II who had spent time in New Zealand to a party at his residence, and I think he’s still dining out on some of the stories he heard from those Marines. Another example is a memorial on the top of Mt. Victoria in Wellington to American Antarctic flying pioneer and explorer Admiral Richard Byrd. It is appropriate that the memorial commemorates the life of an explorer. We are both nations of explorers, pioneers, and innovators. There are many innovators here today. As we commemorate the story of our shared history, we should never forget that we are friends who take the time to understand and appreciate shared experiences and sacrifices by previous generations. All of you at the Partnership Forum are helping to lead us into the next chapter of our shared story. And looking out at this group, I feel very optimistic about our future together. It has been my great honor to join to share my thoughts, and I look forward to the rest of my time here before I go back to Foggy Bottom. Thank you very much. [↑]
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Ambassador
