New Zealand is part of the answer to China's rise, says Hillary Clinton
Hillary Clinton is hopeful for a denuclearised Korea, but not as confident as the POTUS.
OPINION: If you are looking for a reason behind the Government's dramatic boost to its foreign affairs budget, look no further than former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's blunt warning on China.
Speaking in Auckland, Clinton sounded the alarm about China's efforts to gain political power and influence in policy decisions in New Zealand and the wider region - but said New Zealand was also part of the answer.
New Zealand was punching above its weight in many ways but the world was facing new challenges in geopolitical strategy, Clinton said.
Why boost our foreign affairs spending to $1b? Hillary Clinton's warning gives a clue.
She referred in particular to China being much more active in the region and warned that it was intent on dominating its part of the globe through soft power and the projection of its military capabilities. Recent reports have linked China to a naval base in Vanuatu.
READ MORE:
* Why Jacinda Ardern's win mattered to Hillary Rodham Clinton
* Live: Former US first lady Hillary Rodham Clinton speaks in Auckland
* Hillary Clinton meets with Jacinda Ardern
Clinton cited the work of Christchurch academic Anne Marie Brady who has warned of New Zealand being targeted by a concerted political interference campaign by China.
Former New Zealand Prime Minister Dame Jenny Shipley thanks Hillary Clinton in Auckland.
But New Zealand, as a strong vibrant democracy and successful economy, could "be a leader in making sure there's an answer to that", Clinton told Stuff.
In talking up New Zealand's ability to counter China's rising influence in the region, Clinton can state publicly what the New Zealand government can't.
We have relied for years on our relationships and cultural ties to the Pacific for influence in the region, but they have waned in competition with China's open cheque book.
The $714 million increase over four years to New Zealand's aid budget announced by Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters on Tuesday evening is still just a drop in the bucket. But Peters hopes it will be viewed as a symbol of New Zealand's re-engagement with the region, and give us at least a little more clout around the table, even if that is to facilitate aid from other partners in the region like the EU and Australia.
Politically it could be a hard sell, however, with National pitching the extra funding for MFAT as coming at the expense of domestic policies like cheaper GP visits.
Clinton's comments resonate here because concerns about China's rise in the Pacific were also what drove the "big thaw" between New Zealand and the US nearly a decade ago.
Hillary Clinton can state publicly what the New Zealand government can't.
Hard as it is to believe now, it was only eight years ago - 2010 - when as Secretary of State, Clinton signed the Wellington declaration, paving the way for the resumption of military exercises and training between New Zealand and the US after a decades-long freeze in response to New Zealand's anti-nuclear legislation.
America's "pivot" to Asia was belated recognition that China had made huge inroads in the Pacific while it was focused elsewhere, in Iraq and Afghanistan.
New Zealand's voice among Pacific nations gave us greater strategic importance to the US.
Former US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has hailed New Zealand as a vital, multicultural democracy and an example to the rest of the world. Close to 3000 people packed into Auckland's Spark Arena last night to hear insights from the United States first female presidential candidate.
Speaking to Stuff while in New Zealand on a speaking tour, Clinton also talked about wider tensions in the region, and admitted she did not share US President Donald Trump's optimism over a breakthrough with North Korea.
Trump has revealed that a date and venue for his landmark summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has been decided, and will shortly be made public.
But Clinton - while "not pessimistic" - was sceptical about North Korea's intentions. She was taking a "wait and see approach".
"People going back to my husband's [former US President Bill Clinton] administration and even before they have tried to negotiate with the North Koreans and they've made promises which they didn't keep.
"They've made all kinds of overtures politically that did not particularly mean anything. So I would love to see a true de-nuclearisation of the Korean peninsula but I'm not at all sure that's where we'll end up."
- Stuff
Comments