THE PRESS THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 1980. Dutch Minister’s visit

Press, 10 April 1980, Page 20

THE PRESS THURSDAY, APRIL 10, 1980. Dutch Minister’s visit

Dr Christoph van der Klaauw, -the Dutch Foreign Minister, who arrives in Christchurch today from the North Island, is one person on quite a long list of high-level European politicians and officials to come to New Zealand. Dr Hans Apel, the West German Defence Minister, has barely left; Mr Kjeld desen, the Danish Foreign Minister, was here not long before him; Sir William Whitelaw, the British Deputy Prime Minister, will be in New Zealand soon, as will Mr Willhelm Haferkamp, the European Economic Community’s Commissioner for External Relations. Late last year Dr Kurt Biedenkopf, the deputy leader of the Christian Democratic Union of West Germany was in New Zealand. With the exception of Dr Biedenkopf, because his party is at present in opposition, all these men- are intimately concerned with decisions, through their respective Cabinets or other associations, which affect New Zealand trade and other concerns. They have all been guests of the New Zealand Government. When New Zealand is discussed in their own countries it is rarely likely to be anything more than incidental to the subject at hand. Yet the decisions might have a marked impact on New Zealand. If New Zealand is lucky, it may acquire someone who will speak for the country with some concern and interest. The visits should certainly give guests from abroad a basic grasp of New Zealand and enable these decision-makers to understand how various actions are likely to affect this country. An informed view of New Zealand is all the more important this year because New Zealand’s butter agreement with the E.E.C. will expire soon and measures are being considered in Europe that will affect the bigger exports of lamb. Historically, New Zealand has relied on the links of family and war associations in its relations with Europe. Such sentiment is to be found in parts of Britain still; elsewhere it is no longer an effective way of bringing New Zealand to the attention , of Europe. That is hard enough at the best of times. Europe has always shown a great

tendency to concentrate on its own affairs to the exclusion of other problems. When tension within the European .Economic Community is high, as it is now over Britain’s contribution to the E.E.C. budget, or when tension rises over the Soviet Union, as it has because of the invasion of Afghanistan, it is - hard to make Europe take other problems into account. The E.E.C. Ministers who recently negotiated with the Association of South-East Asian Nations seemed astounded, for instance, to discover that the countries within that organisation were as concerned about events in Indo-China as Europe was about events in Afghanistan. If the historical links carry less weight now, what other links are being forged? Apart from the Maori and Pacific Island people, most New Zealanders are of European extraction. The country has many European traditions and shares many European values. A broader relationship than the old New Zealand-Britain relationship has been developing, and the visits of eminent Europeans are part of the process. In the instance of the Netherlands the heavy immigration from there in the immediate post-war years established links that are outside the English, Scottish, and Irish links. Dr van der Klaauw has seen something of the dairy industry of New Zealand. Dutch immigrants or people of Dutch extraction are heavily represented among dairy farmers. One of the ways in which New Zealand, at a Government level at least, would like to be seen, is as a country helping to bring stability to its own region. The E.E.C. already has links with the Pacific through its special trading arrangements with developing countries. Seen from Europe. New Zealand is tiny; seen from the Pacific Islands, New Zealand is large and wealthy. There is a role which some European leaders would like to see New Zealand play in the Pacific and this gives New Zealand a special place in Europe’s policies. If nothing else, this provides a" pleasant break from the constant concern with tonnages of butter.