Month: January 2026

Former NZ Associate Minister of Foreign Affairs and Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control calls on NZ government to uphold international law by condemning the US attack on Venezuela and the kidnapping of its President.

Parliament should be recalled to vote on condemnation of this act of war with sanctions to be placed on the US 05 January 2026 Auckland New Zealand – “New Zealand is a minnow in terms of economic or military strength in the world. But it earned worldwide respect for its morality in defying the US and upholding the UN Charter and international law when it condemned the US invasion of Iraq in 2003.

“In doing so it was defending the international rule of law not the rule of might ”, said former Associate Foreign Minister in the Helen Clark government, the Hon Matt Robson.

“Now, following on the craven decision of New Zealand to win Washington’s blessings by not opposing the US and Israeli genocide in Gaza and the West Bank and not voting for a Palestinian State , the New Zealand government by noy condemning the US invasion of Venezuela and seizing its President, is complicit in the ripping up of the UN Charter by the Trump administration ” continued the former Minister.

“The NZ government has stripped New Zealand’s credibility to any claim to adherence to international law and the UN Charter by its cowardice in not demanding the release of President Maduro and his wife and an end to the US aggression and the crippling sanctions and illegal seizure of Venezuelan oil.“

“The US ambassador needs to be summonsed and the illegality of the US aggression to be conveyed to the US administration in the strongest terms”.

“It is now over to opposition parties in New Zealand and any coalition MPs with a shred of decency to demand an urgent sitting of Parliament with 4 items on the agenda to vote on:

1. The call for a special sitting of the UN General Assembly to discuss sanctions on the US for its aggression against Venezuela.
2. For NZ to unequivocally condemn the US aggression.
3. To call for the immediate release of President Maduro and his wife.
4. For sanctions to be placed on the US by New Zealand until it ends its aggression.