New Zealand PM highlights great potential for NZ-China trade

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key said Tuesday there are great potential for New Zealand-China trade and the two countries' leaders have agreed to double two-way trade to 20 billion NZ dollars by 2015.

Key made the remarks in his "New Zealand in the World" speech to the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs.

Key said the trade volume between New Zealand and China has increased significantly since the two countries signed free trade agreement in 2008. The two-way trade stood at 10 billion NZ dollars (7 billion U.S. dollars) in 2009.

Diplomats and former politicians were among a 300-strong audience at Victoria University in Wellington on Tuesday afternoon.

Key said multilateral partnerships like Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), the Pacific Islands Forum, Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting, United Nations and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations were serious about commitments which New Zealand benefited from.

Key said New Zealand needed to get better at promoting itself.

He also talked about New Zealand's commitment to Afghanistan. The Government plans to reduce its commitment in Bamiyan province of Afghanistan over time and is yet to decide whether to extend beyond March any of the Special Air Services (SAS) troops in the Afghan capital Kabul, where they are mentoring the Afghan Army's Crisis Response Unit (CRU).

On climate change, Key said the last meeting in Copenhagen was very disappointing and he did not hold out much hope for the next talks in Mexico.

Source: Xinhua