VZCZCXRO0051
RR RUEHDT RUEHPB
DE RUEHWL #0145/01 1192002
ZNR UUUUU ZZH
R 282002Z APR 08
FM AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 5208
INFO RUEHNZ/AMCONSUL AUCKLAND 1659
RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 5164
RUEHDN/AMCONSUL SYDNEY 0668
RHHMUNA/CDR USPACOM HONOLULU HI
RUCNARF/ASEAN REGIONAL FORUM COLLECTIVE

UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 02 WELLINGTON 000145 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR STATE FOR EAP/PD,EAP/P,EAP/ANP 
PACOM FOR J01E/J2/J233/J5/SJFHQ 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: OPRC KMDR KPAO IO NZ
SUBJECT: NZ DEFENSE MINISTER COMMENTS ON MILITARY REBUILDING AND THE 
U.S.-N.Z. RELATIONSHIP 
 
WELLINGTON 00000145  001.2 OF 002 
 
 
¶1. BEGIN SUMMARY: On April 27 New Zealand's Defense Minister Phil 
Goff was interviewed on the Sunday 
morning current affairs program "Agenda TV". 
 
Minister Goff emphasized that New Zealand is pouring billions of 
dollars into rebuilding its defense 
capacity and he focused on the cooperative dynamic of 
the bilateral relationship. 
 
In response to questioning he expressed frustration 
about the delay receiving approval to sell the A-4s 
and reiterated a long-standing invitation for the U.S. 
to send a ship to New Zealand. 
 
The program also featured an arts segment highlighting 
an exhibition on shared U.S.-N.Z. history; an 
exhibition on the many positive memories of the 
presence of U.S. Marines in New Zealand during WW II 
that received its seed funding from Embassy 
Wellington's grants budget. END SUMMARY. 
 
¶2. THE BILATERAL RELATIONSHIP 
 
Defense Minister Goff noted U.S-N.Z. cooperation 
saying, "We've got New Zealanders on American ships at 
the moment in the Pacific doing humanitarian work, we 
have cooperation over proliferation security 
initiatives, we have very close cooperation over the Pacific where 
the United States has said that it 
relies on New Zealand and Australia to do the work 
that we're doing in Timor-Leste in the Solomons and 
Tonga and so on." 
 
On the nuclear issue, the Minister referenced comments 
by Secretary Rice and refocused on cooperation 
"...that's the rock in the road.  What, as Condoleezza 
Rice has said recently, we're working our way around 
the rock in the road at the moment, we're working 
quite closely with the United States where our 
objectives are the same, whether it be in humanitarian disaster 
relief, Afghanistan, proliferation Security Initiative and so on." 
 
¶3. DEFENSE BUDGET INCREASES 
 
Minister Goff emphasized that New Zealand continues to rebuild its 
defense force "both in terms of equipment 
and in terms of personnel" noting that New Zealand is 
"836 defense personnel up on where we were three or 
four years ago " and that he was "talking about the increases of 
literally tens of millions of dollars 
each year going into the budget." 
 
Goff says he thinks "New Zealanders would feel that 
we're spending enough on defense.  In the long term development plan 
we put in 3.3 billion dollars over 
10 years, in the defense sustainability initiative 
both these plans running over 10 years we put in 4.4 billion 
dollars." 
 
The Minister also took the opportunity to announce an increase to 
defense pay packets aimed at staff 
retention. "It will on average be about 10% ...some will 
get significantly more than the 10% but the biggest 
number of people will get around the 10 to 12%." 
 
¶4. SKYHAWKS 
 
In response to questioning and the assertion that the 
sale of New Zealand's A-4s "has been a complete 
failure" the Minister expressed frustration and made 
 a nod at the fiscal implications saying: 
 
"You know that what holds it up is an American process whereas we 
cannot sell the A-4s without the approval 
of Congress, the problem is within their system, it's 
very frustrating for us, I've got 125 million dollars sitting there, 
I've got potentially two buyers within 
the United States, we can sell as soon as the Congress 
and the State Department give approval.  For reasons internal to 
their system that I can't go into in 
detail we have had that on hold, that is not the fault 
of New Zealand there is nothing more...(interrupted by journalist) 
 
¶5. SHIP INVITATION REITERATED 
 
 
WELLINGTON 00000145  002.2 OF 002 
 
 
The Minister was asked to confirm that there's a 
standing invitation for a U.S. ship to visit New 
Zealand and was asked to re-issue that invitation. 
Asked "if the United States proposed to send a non 
nuclear armed, non nuclear powered vessel to New 
Zealand before the election, and I emphasize before 
the election, would you say yes both to the visit and 
the timing and would you welcome it at the wharf?" 
 
Minister Goff replied: "Yes, they are welcome to come 
and have been welcome to come over the last many years 
on the same conditions that any other vessel from any 
other navy in the world comes. We make a judgment as 
to whether it's likely to be nuclear powered or armed. 
We know that the only surface vessels in the American 
Navy that are nuclear powered for example are aircraft 
Carriers; we know that surface ships don't carry 
nuclear weapons. The invitation is there for the 
Americans as with the Brits or the French or for that 
matter any other country that comes, to come on that 
basis. The ball is in their court...I've said that on 
many occasions. People have said would the American 
Navy be welcome here and I always say yes on the same 
basis as we welcome the other navies. We make a 
judgment as to whether it meets our legislation, I'm 
sure all their surface ships but the aircraft carriers 
meet those requirements, the United States is aware 
that they could ask for a vessel to com at any time, 
but that is their call at this point." 
 
¶6. A full transcript is available at: 
http://www.agendatv.co.nz/Site/agenda/transcr ipts/ 
2008/Apirl 1-27.aspx 
 
Keegan