Matua Winston goes full Trump on Phil Goff’s righteous criticism of his Government’s Foreign Affairs cowardice
‘Grow some balls’: Phil Goff targets Winston Peters amid silence on Trumps NATO comments
NZME
Matua Winston has gone full Trump on Phil Goff’s righteous criticism of his Government’s Foreign Affairs cowardice…
…lots to unpack here…
Phil Goff has accused Foreign Minister Winston Peters of failing to stand up for New Zealand soldiers after US President Donald Trump said allied troops “stayed a little back” during the war in Afghanistan.
In a sharply worded Facebook post on Saturday, the former high commissioner to the United Kingdom said Peters’ silence in response to Trump’s remarks was “deafening”.
…Phil is of course 1000% correct.
This Governments appalling cowardice in the face of Trump has been a stain on our collective honour and mana.
The decision to side with war criminals and not recognise Palestine, the refusal to criticise Trump’s illegal kidnapping of Madura and seizing of Venezuela’s oil, not denouncing Trump’s obscene ‘Board of Peace’…
…and now silence as Trump denigrates the sacrifice of our soldiers?
Trump’s comments came last week in an interview with Fox News in Davos, Switzerland, when questioned whether NATO allies would support the US if it were attacked.
“‘Will they be there, if we ever needed them?’ And that’s really the ultimate test. And I’m not sure of that,” he said.
“You know, they’ll say they sent some troops to Afghanistan, or this or that. And they did – they stayed a little back, a little off the front lines.”
The remarks sparked outrage among US allies, including the UK, whose prime minister, Keir Starmer, described them as “insulting and frankly appalling”.
Goff contrasted those responses with what he said was silence from New Zealand’s leadership, singling out Peters and his role as foreign minister, for not defending that record.
“No comment has come from any government leader,” he wrote.
“Peters, who claims to lead the patriotic party in NZ, has been typically silent as he has whenever Trump has lied outrageously,” Goff wrote.
Goff said the comments were an affront to New Zealand’s sacrifice in the 20-year conflict.
“For Trump, a man who dodged the draft five times, to belittle the efforts of those who came to the assistance of the US after 9/11, and sacrificed their lives is disgraceful.”
New Zealand lost 10 service personnel in Afghanistan.
Goff, a former foreign affairs and defence minister, said Trump’s remarks were deeply personal.
“Ten New Zealanders died in the war. I attended the funerals of several of them, including my nephew Matt, and saw the grief and pain of their loved ones,” he said.
He also pointed to the actions of Willie Apiata, who was awarded the Victoria Cross for bravery during a 2004 operation in Afghanistan.
“Willie Apiata was behind the front line when he won his VC, deep in enemy territory,” Goff wrote, rejecting Trump’s claim that allied forces avoided combat.
The Right love to dry hump ANZAC Day yet no word against Trump smearing the honour of those we lost in Afghanistan???
How selective is your outrage?
This Government are cowards when it comes to Trump, they belittle us all with their spinelessness.
Phil Goff has more mana in his little finger than the entire NZ First Party combined.
Maybe Phill should return to the house and stir these COC arseholes up daily .He would keep them in there NZ LANE ,and out of the self interest lane they are on right now .
I have no time for Trump but we are small and we need friends and their money .
Labour caused years of isolation from the USA with the nuclear ban and really it made no difference to the World just cost us z lot of money from US sailors .
Trevor is there some kind of self debasement fetish involved here? “We need friends and their money”. To what lengths will you stoop? As for the nuclear ban, what are you on about? Has there been a National lead administration that had tried to repeal this?
“Ill informed”. That’s another bullshit excuse from Peters. We are not deaf. We all heard what the orange douche bag said
NZ First means Winston alone.
No the Maori Party want to join up with Winston.
Winston and Luxon are both as weak as piss .Winston would love to invade the pacific islands and bring them to heel ,but we dont have the forces needed to do that so he resorts to the Trump method of cutting aid .
Mean while China has stepped up the soft diplomacy and shouted the Fijian leader a new Limo and so new roads for him to drive on .
When Winston wakes up ,woke ,it will be too late as there are at least 3 pacific nations in the Chinese fold already and not a single shot fired or a leader kid napped
Winston is desperately in need of a rest home. His derangement syndrome has become so unhinged, he needs psychotic treatment.
Quite clearly Winston Peters is now an old man: grumpy, inflexible and tunnel visioned. A prime example of staying well beyond his ability.