Source: Radio New Zealand
Finance Minister Nicola Willis isn’t impressed with Donald Trump’s threats to destroy Iran’s civilisation. RNZ / Samuel Rillstone
The Finance Minister says she’s “alarmed” at “unprecedented” rhetoric by the US President Donald Trump, while the Foreign Minister says concern would occur if “people keep on heightening the effect of a comment like that”.
Early on Wednesday morning, Trump warned “a whole civilization will die” in Iran if the country does not heed his cutoff time to open the Strait of Hormuz, as Tehran reported US-Israeli attacks on its infrastructure were already underway.
Peters met with his counterpart, the US Secretary of State Marco Rubio just hours after Trump posted on social media, but Peters wouldn’t be drawn on Trump’s comments.
“I don’t comment on what presidents and prime ministers and secretaries of state and other people say, which are not part of the conversation that I was in,” Peters told RNZ.
He said there had been numerous comments in the past that have “changed dramatically” within one or 24 hours.
“So it’s time to be experienced. It’s time for cool heads and to not make a rush to judgment that we will regret. That’s what’s important now.”
But speaking on Morning Report’s Political Panel a short time after, Nicola Willis said the comments were “alarming for the whole world”.
“We are all very concerned with the trajectory of this conflict, and it is really unprecedented to see a US president using that sort of rhetoric, which obviously would have massive implications for the people of the Middle East and for the world,” she said.
She called for de-escalation saying New Zealand wanted to see the “basics of humanitarian law upheld, and that does not include endorsing attacking civilians and civilian infrastructure”.
“I don’t like waking up in a world where what the US president says on Twitter will actually affect the fortunes of billions of people,” Willis said.
She did however acknowledge Peters’ comments around not rushing to a judgment.
“As Winston Peters said, we do need to see whether there’s any bite behind these tweets today. We won’t know till midday whether these are words or threats or actually will result in actions.”
Carmel Sepuloni wants the government to be more forceful in its condemnation of the US President. RNZ / Angus Dreaver
Labour’s deputy leader Carmel Sepuloni said the government needed to be calling out the comments made by the US president.
“They are outrageous” and would “further inflame” what was already a “horrific situation”, she said.
Peters and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon needed to be “much stronger and resolute” on what New Zealand’s position was and “what we deem acceptable and what we deem to be absolutely unacceptable”.
“I don’t think we’ve seen that strength of voice so far,” Sepuloni said.
She hoped Peters was “being a bit stronger” in his language “behind the scenes”.
The call for de-escalation from Willis echoed the Prime Minister’s comments in his post-cabinet media conference on Tuesday, in which he said the US and Israel had undertaken “unilateral, independent action without engaging any of their partners”.
“New Zealand’s position is clear, this is not a time for escalating rhetoric or actions. It is critical that the parties find a way to de escalate and come to a negotiated solution quickly,” Luxon said.
“New Zealand expects all parties to comply with international law and international humanitarian law, which includes the protection of civilians and civilian infrastructure,” he said on Tuesday.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters meets with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio earlier today. Supplied
No response to PM’s views from Peters
On Wednesday morning, Peters wouldn’t be drawn on Luxon’s previous comments, in which he stated New Zealand had the same position as Australia in regards to the attack that started the war.
“If you’re talking to the Prime Minister, please question him about his comments,” Peters told RNZ, “I’m not going to respond to what the Prime Minister said.”
He said he was responding to what he knows as the Foreign Minister, and the information he was briefed with “by a seriously good team”.
“That’s what drives my answers, not what some other person said, dare I say it was the Prime Minister, the Minister of Finance, or anybody else.”
During the meeting between Peters and Rubio, there was no discussion about the legality of the United States and Israel’s strike on Iran, which began the war.
Peters told RNZ New Zealand had never expressed support for the war.
The purpose of his trip to Washington DC was not to declare support in any way. The US did not seek for New Zealand to express support, and made no requests for rhetorical or material support for its actions.
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– Published by EveningReport.nz and AsiaPacificReport.nz, see: MIL OSI in partnership with Radio New Zealand
