Advocacy Group Calls for "Proper Public Debate" Before NZ Considers Joining Security Alliance

A leading foreign policy group has called for Ministers Andrew Little and Nanaia Mahuta to consider a fuller public debate before holding international discussions and considering joining the recently established US-UK-Australia military alliance, AUKUS.

In recent days Defence Minister Andrew Little has suggested that New Zealand is considering joining “Pillar II” of the AUKUS alliance, allegedly a non-nuclear component of the partnership. It was also reported that Minister Little’s view was “that foreign or local voices against the deal would not be a factor in potential membership”.

Te Kuaka (previously known as NZ Alternative) wants Minister Little to clarify these remarks and firmly objects to any claim that public opinion should be ignored in such significant foreign policy decision-making.

“It is remarkable for a political leader to suggest that public opinion could be dismissed in this way when considering the stance New Zealand takes in the world. We need a proper public debate before New Zealand considers joining this reckless security deal,” says Dr Arama Rata, spokesperson and member of Te Kuaka.

Amidst further reports that the NZ government is considering attending a NATO meeting that the Australian Prime Minister has reportedly declined, Te Kuaka also calls for greater public consideration of New Zealand’s relationship with NATO, which is a military alliance that explicitly embraces the use of nuclear weapons under certain circumstances as part of its doctrine of “nuclear deterrence”.

“New Zealand is not a NATO member and the Government should again be open to further public debate before intensifying military cooperation with an alliance that considers weapons of mass destruction a legitimate security tool. In the case of both AUKUS Pillar II and NATO, the Government risks sleepwalking into military arrangements that seriously jeopardise the Government’s purported commitment to independent foreign policy,” adds Rata.

Te Kuaka has previously campaigned for New Zealand to support an exemption to intellectual property rights to enable a People’s Vaccine in response to Covid-19, a position eventually adopted by the Government following US support in early 2021. The group has also produced reports on NZ playing a greater role in peace mediation globally, and on reforms to the New Zealand Defence Force’s approach to civilian casualties.

“For too long foreign policy has been shaped in closed circles without proper debate, and we think it’s time that foreign policy is brought out of the shadows - especially as New Zealand determines its position on developments in the Pacific and Ukraine, in decisions that are crucial for the future positioning of our government and our country,” adds Rata.

ENDS

For background about Te Kuaka / NZ Alternative please see nzalternative.org