VZCZCXYZ0003
RR RUEHWEB
DE RUEHWL #0307 3310530
ZNY SSSSS ZZH
R 270530Z NOV 09
FM AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 0199
INFO RUEHBY/AMEMBASSY CANBERRA 0042
RUEHWL/AMEMBASSY WELLINGTON
S E C R E T WELLINGTON 000307
SIPDIS
SENSITIVE
E.O. 12958: DECL: 2019/11/27
TAGS: NATO PREL MOPS MARR AF
SUBJECT: REQUESTING ADDITIONAL CONTRIBUTIONS IN AFGHANISTAN - NEW
ZEALAND
REF: 09 STATE 120807
DERIVED FROM: Derived from previous message.
1. (S) On November 27, the Charge delivered reftel demarche to
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade (MFAT) Deputy Secretary of
Foreign Affairs (Under Secretary equivalent) for the Middle East
and Africa Peter Hamilton. Drawing heavily on points provided in
reftel, the Charge noted that President Obama would be making an
announcement sometime close to the December 3-4 NATO Foreign
Ministerial Meeting in Brussels on U.S. plans for the way forward
in Afghanistan and Pakistan and that the USG hoped that the
Government of New Zealand (GNZ) would be able to provide strong
public support in the days following the announcement and
additional troop and training contributions in the longer term.
2. (S) Hamilton said the GNZ had been "expecting something like
this (the U.S. request)" for some time and would prepare a
statement of support for public release immediately after it had a
chance to hear and analyze the President's announcement. Hamilton
stressed, however, that a substantive response to the request for
additional contributions would "take a little longer" because "in
our system such a request must be the subject of a joint cabinet
meeting." He noted that there was only one more joint cabinet
meeting scheduled to take place before the holiday recess begins on
December 22.
3. (S) Hamilton said that he would forward our talking points to
Foreign Minister Murray McCully for his review within 24 hours.
McCully is currently in Trinidad attending a Commonwealth
conference and is scheduled to travel from there to Vienna and then
onward to Brussels for the December 3-4 NATO Foreign Ministerial
Meeting. Hamilton added that he would brief the NZ Ministry of
Defense on our meeting and the request for additional
contributions.
4. (SBU) Stephen Harris, Deputy Director, Middle East and Africa
Division, and Eamonn O'Shaughnessy, Senior Policy Officer, Security
and Disarmament Division also participated in the meeting, while
the Charge was accompanied by the Political/Economic Counselor and
the Economic Officer.
CLARKE