Key tones down war talk
Labour has slammed Prime Minister John Key for suggestions New Zealand could go to war with North Korea.
With New Zealand having previously supported the United Nations-backed South Korea in the Korean War, and allies the United States and Australia likely to do the same in any new conflict, Key appeared to suggest we would follow a similar path this time.
“I wouldn’t want to speculate, but obviously we have got a long and proud history of coming to the support of South Korea,” he said in comments reported on TV3.
“Taken to the extreme, and without interventions and resolutions to the issues, that is of course possible.”
I couldn’t work out if it was Gower not content to manufacture a leadership coup at the Labour Party Conference trying to manufacture a war with North Korea or if John Key really is this stupid.
That Key would automatically state support for America in a war with North Korea and suggest that war was a possibility when every other leader is scrambling to take the heat out of this escalation, is just another example of our dumb arse Prime Minister speaking before he engages his brain.
After his knuckle head tantrum with the media last week where he threatened to not answer journalists questions until he’d had a ‘think’ about them, you would have hoped he would’ve been honest to his word and not just brain farted answers out of the vacuum of the space between his ears where so many issues around security seem to be forgotten with the regularity of a John Banks political donations list.
Sorry planet, our PM is a bit of a clown. Don’t take any notice of him. We try not to.
I could not believe it when I heard him on the news talking about the possibility of a war with North Korea and whose side we might be on. The only reason I could think of for the fresh bout of madness is that he is desperately trying to deflect attention away from “fletchergate”.
“No, I’m not telling porkies…. oooh look, over there, a war!”
No John Key doesn’t want a war with North Korea. Settle down!
Why do people think NZ is a war mongering country? we send our military overseas to trouble spots to re build and help the locals. NZ troops intention is not aggregation. it is a re build attitude.
Sorry JT, but how is Keys warmongering an opening for our troops to go clean up after a nuclear war? Is this going to be the basis for NZ supporting a war with North Korea? That we should support a war as we are a good clean up team?
I would say that increasingly Key is taking a page out of George W. Bush’s play book by using distractions of war to divert attention. How many have to die to distract NZ from Key?
And where is the evidence anyway that our troops in Afghanistan actually re-built anything? I keep waiting for the photos and the reports on the rebuild but it all seems a great big secret. Why would a rebuild be a secret? if our troops were just rebuilding what the Yanks destroyed why aren’t we shouting about it from the tops of the rebuilt schools, roads, hospitals and bridges?
Eh? If Kiwiland is in rebuild mode, why, then, send military people? Actually, New Zealand does have a fine record in the respect of rebuilding and rehabilitating war torn countries. East Timor comes to mind, and mine clearing activities in places like Namibia.
But they were not Occupational activities such as in Iraq and Afghanistan. There, New zealand is an Occupying Power and therefore subject to the consequences of being an Occupying Power. One of those consequences is to be thought of as a war-mongering country.
I guess John Key wants to both stick it to China and be their new best mate by inviting them to invest in NZ – a war with North Korea will involve China in some capacity. At any rate, I’m sure he’ll be fighting the war from the safety of his house and dancing Gangnam Style to prove his “proud history of coming to the support of South Korea”.
He refused to say what path New Zealand would take if the situation escalated into war, saying only that it would consider its options in the event of conflict.
When questioning continued, Key moved to shut down the issue, telling reporters: “Look, I think you’re just so far off the planet, don’t worry about it.”
Oh John. Your elegant way with words always impresses.
Oh wait, I meant the other thing. Disappoints. Yeah, that’s it.
Sorry, the second paragraph should be in italics as well as it’s part of the same quote.
Yes, not only does he say New Zealand would support South Korea in a war with North Korea but he says it in China on a goodwill trip. Doesn’t he know that when it looked like North Korea was going to lose, China sent its troops in and pushed back the predominantly American forces?
He’s essentially saying New Zealand will support a war against its second largest trade partner while on a trip to that country to encourage more trade between New Zealand and China.
The current round of military posturing in Korea I’m sure delights US defence contractors and their investors, the jittery hypersensitive market delivering the precious profits. Such statements of blind obedience by Key that express little regard for diffusing tensions and potentially fuelling them, suggests he’s a person that values profits over peace.
Uncle Sam has a poodle named John Key its litter box is called New Zealand.
wasnt part of his south american mission/jaunt him trying to persuade those countries to vote for nz to be able to have a seat at the UN council? well john keys, i think you have stuffed that up. do you think many countries would vote for nz when you have just told the world we would follow & support the usa into war.
If war did start. I hope nz sends troops on a combat role. Let’s follow our allies in to war!!! Let’s keep the Anzac sprite going.
What’s an Anzac sprite? Some kind of forest elf in a lemon squeezer?
It’s an ANZAC spirit where the NZ has been removed (except on ANZAC day when we can all pretend that Ozzies do actually give a shit about their trans-Tas cuzzies)
The man is an opportunist half wit, with no cultural political capital whatsoever. He propbably doesn’t even realise that it was the ‘United Nations’ that went to the support of South Korea and not America nor Britain, nor Australia. Do not allow this man to sell us an imperialst narrative on behalf of any single national position.
Why would anyone be suprised that New Zealand would stand by nations it has military alliances with????
“I couldn’t work out if it was Gower not content to manufacture a leadership coup at the Labour Party Conference trying to manufacture a war with North Korea or if John Key really is this stupid”.
Bomber – I’m afraid it really IS the latter. The clothes really have been imagined – probably because people wanted to see the Armani suit in the vain hope that they too might one day be able to wear one.
What’s underneath though really is quite ugly.
The answer to your first question: well, you supplied it. He really is that stupid.
War I say! Lets invade Denmark now – we slapped the buggers down in WW2 lets do it again – once a Nazi loving state always a Nazi loving state.
OK jokes aside – John Key is never in the country – no wonder he can’t get anything right.
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