NZ Minister for Foreign Affairs Murray McCully and Secretary Clinton sign an agreement to further collaboration on nuclear non-proliferation.

US-NZ Relationship Moves from Strength to Strength

Meeting New Zealand’s Foreign Minister McCully in Washington D.C. the U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton remarked that "the US-New Zealand relationship is the best it has been in 25 years and we look forward to building on the progress we have already made".

Minister McCully agreed saying, “It was an excellent meeting. I came away confident that the impetus and commitment the New Zealand government intends to bring to this important relationship will be reciprocated,” Mr McCully said. “Discussions covered a range of issues, including Asia, the Pacific, Afghanistan, nuclear non-proliferation issues relating to North Korea and Iran, and cooperation in Antarctica."

Mr. McCully also welcomed President Obama’s recent leadership on the elimination of nuclear weapons.  At the conclusion of today’s meeting, he and Secretary Clinton signed an agreement for New Zealand’s fourth contribution to the G8 Global Partnership Against the Spread of Weapons of Mass Destruction.

“This is a practical way for New Zealand to assist international efforts to prevent the smuggling of nuclear material, and therefore reduce the potential for nuclear weapons to end up in the wrong hands.”

New Zealand’s latest contribution supports collaborative work between the United States and New Zealand to secure nuclear and radioactive materials that could be used in a nuclear or radiological weapon and to detect and deter illicit trafficking in these materials by improving monitoring capabilities at priority border crossings, airports, and seaports.

New Zealand is one of eleven partners that has joined the United States in supporting anti-nuclear smuggling projects through a project called the Nuclear Smuggling Outreach Initiative (NSOI).