Ardern meets key allies
Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern has taken part in a hastily-arranged meeting with United States Vice-President Kamala Harris and the prime ministers of Japan, South Korea, Canada and Australia, after North Korea fired a suspected intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) into Japanese waters.
The meeting was arranged on the sides of Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (Apec) in Bangkok within hours of a missile being sent into Japan’s waters. Ardern was initially scheduled to have a one-onone meeting with Harris.
‘‘We join with others in strongly condemning the actions of DPRK [North Korea],’’ Ardern said at the meeting. ‘‘I do want to particularly acknowledge the anxiety that deep concern . . . the increasing use of missiles poses to Japan and South Korea.’’
Ardern arrived in Bangkok, Thailand, late on Thursday, for a meeting of leaders of the 21 economies that make up the Apec forum.
As Apec leaders assembled yesterday afternoon, Japanese officials confirmed North Korea had fired a suspected ICBM that landed 200 kilometres off Japan’s coast.
Such a missile could feasibly reach the United States. North Korea tested a shorter-range missile the day before.
Harris, Ardern, Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida, South Korea’s Prime Minister Han Duck Soo, Canada’s Justin Trudeau and Australia’s Anthony Albanese all gave statements condemning the missile testing at the opening of the meeting.
‘‘We strongly condemn these actions, and we again call North Korea to stop further unlawful, destabilising acts,’’ Harris said.
‘‘On behalf of the United States I know for our ironclad commitment to our IndoPacific Alliance.’’
Kishida said there was a possibility that North Korea would launch further missiles.
‘‘I want to demonstrate the will of all of us as to condemn these acts in the strongest possible terms,’’ he said, through a translator.
Ardern also met one-on-one with Indonesia President Joko Widodo, before attending closed-door sessions at Apec.
At an Apec meeting, she announced New Zealand would contribute $5.75 million over three years to a climate fund administered by Apec.
She was to have a bilateral meeting with Chinese leader Xi Jinping late last night.