New Zealand foreign policy under the Clark government: High tide of liberal internationalism

Abstract

The foreign policy of the current New Zealand government has strongly reflected the Labour Party’s Liberal Internationalist ideology. Indeed, it is probable that this government has been the most Liberal Internationalist of all New Zealand Labour governments. The government of Prime Minister Helen Clark has placed considerable emphasis on the promotion of human rights internationally; it has strongly supported the role of the United Nations; it has championed nuclear disarmament and restructured the New Zealand armed forces to prioritize peacekeeping; and it has vigorously promoted free trade. Like all New Zealand governments, however, the Clark government’s foreign policy has not always reflected its ideological predisposition, although the exceptions have been relatively few so far.