Influence lost in ship row, says Mr Bolger

Press, 5 July 1986, Page 8

Influence lost in ship row, says Mr Bolger

PA Wellington New Zealand concerns will inevitably receive less weight by. members of the Western alliance as a result of the A.N.Z.U.S. row, said the Leader of the Opposition, Mr Bolger, yesterday. He warned there was “a real concern” that the next step by the Government would be to declare New Zealand a nonaligned nation and to establish closer links with the Third World. The Prime Minister, Mr Lange, met the United States Secretary of State, Mr Shultz, in Manila last week. They failed to agree on a formula for visits by United States nuclear-armed or nuclearpowered ships..

Mr Shultz said New Zealand and America had parted company. Mr Lange later refused to budge from comments he made that Washington was prepared to reach an accommodation with other countries over nuclear-ship visits but not with New Zealand. The American Embassy rejected those claims. Mr Bolger said that there was no suggestion there; would be official trade bans or sanctions resulting from -the warship visits row. But inevitably New Zealand’s concerns would receive less weight by members of the Western alliance and its cause would be more easily overlooked.