"Admiral Locklear says climate change is the biggest long-term threat to the Asia Pacific region."
US Commander: US/New Zealand relationship best in thirty years. NZ well qualified for UN Security Council seat
The Commander of U.S. Pacific Command, Admiral Samuel J. Locklear told TVNZ’s Q+A programme that the relationship between the United States and New Zealand is the best it’s been in thirty years.
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‘It's important to not only to have the perspective of the large nations, but of the smaller nations that often have a unique perspective of a part of the globe. One of the things I value very much, even in our relationship, security relationship, with the Armed Forces of New Zealand, is that you all have a very unique view, a very valuable view of the South Pacific, and of this region, the Antarctic region.’
‘If you extrapolate that view into the issues that the UN Security Council are dealing with, I couldn’t see why New Zealand wouldn’t be a great addition to that.’
Admiral Locklear says climate change is the biggest long-term threat to the Asia Pacific region.
The increasing frequency of storms, the increasing likelihood that large tsunamis would impact as we’ve seen in Aceh and we’ve seen in Japan that it will impact large population areas which will put many many people at risk and disrupt the security environment. You add to that the fact that in my area of responsibility 70 per cent of all major disasters occur here.’
He also says there will be a fight for global resources.
http://www.nbr.co.nz/node/155043