Non Attendance At Talks Defended

Press, Volume CV, Issue 30979, 8 February 1966, Page 24

Non Attendance At Talks Defended

(New Zealand Press Association) WELLINGTON, February 7. The Prime Minister (Mr Holyoake) said today no significance could be read into New Zealand’s non-attendance at the Hawaii talks between American and South Vietnamese leaders.

Commenting on a statement by Messrs C. V. Bollinger and A. Webster of the Committee on Vietnam, he said the United States-South Vietnamese talks were perfectly proper bilateral talks between two countries with a wide range of pressing, common interest.

The omission of New Zealand Government representatives from the talks would confirm for many New Zealanders futility of our military involvement in Vietnam, spokesmen for the Committee on Vietnam said today. The statement said our Government had said that New Zealand troops in Vietnam provided us with a bargaining counter for peace. “New Zealand’s exclusion from the Honolulu talks sug-

gests that the United States merely regards our troops as cannon fodder,” said the statement, “who share the moral responsibility for the war, but who in no way influence its direction.” Mr Holyoake said New Zealand could, and did, have bilateral talks in the same way from time to time. “The committee on Vietnam spokesmen have conveniently not made any reference to New Zealand’s support in bringing the matter of Vietnam before the Security Council —the proper forum for New Zealand at the moment,” he said.

Mr Holyoake said neither Korea nor Australia—which like New Zealand, had troops in South Vietnam —had been invited to the talks in Hawaii.