New High Commissioner to the UK named
A former New Zealand ambassador to Japan, Russia, and Turkey has been appointed as the new High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, replacing Phil Goff in the post after he was sacked earlier this year.
Hamish Cooper, who has 40 years of experience at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, will take up the role in September.
Foreign Minister Winston Peters said New Zealand's relationship with the United Kingdom was "one of our most important".
"Mr Cooper is one of New Zealand's most senior and experienced diplomats and is eminently well-qualified to take on this significant role."
Chris Seed, who previously served as the New Zealand High Commissioner to Canberra and Port Moresby, was named in the role in an acting capacity.
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Goff made the comments which led Foreign Minister Winston Peters to declare his position "untenable" at a Chatham House event. (Source: Chatham House/YouTube) (Source: Supplied)
Goff was fired after making comments on US President Donald Trump in a question he posed at a live-streamed Q&A event with Finland's foreign minister Elina Valtonen.
He asked the speaker: "I was re-reading Churchill's speech to the House of Commons in 1938 after the Munich Agreement, and he turned to Chamberlain, he said, 'You had the choice between war and dishonour. You chose dishonour, yet you will have war.'
"President Trump has restored the bust of Churchill to the Oval Office. But do you think he really understands history?"
Peters said the comments were "seriously regrettable" and made Goff's position "untenable".
"When you are in that position — you represent the Government and the policies of the day. You're not able to free think. You are the face of New Zealand," Peters said.
He did say it was a disappointing decision to have to make.
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"I've worked with Phil Goff, I have known him for a long time, I've worked in government with him, but it's just one of those seriously disappointing decisions one has to make."
Former London representative says he was more than willing to pay the price for speaking out against US President Donald Trump. (Source: 1News)
'No regrets'
Goff said he had "no regrets" about questioning Donald Trump's understanding of history, in his first public statement since being sacked from his diplomatic role.
Goff said he asked the "serious and important question" about Trump — that led to his dismissal — because silence would have made New Zealand "complicit" in the US president's "disgraceful bullying" of Ukraine and its president Volodymyr Zelensky.
He defended his actions in a lengthy letter, released to 1News. Goff said New Zealand could not remain silent while the Trump administration made "dishonest" and "untruthful" statements about Russia's invasion.
"As one untruthful statement followed another like something out of an Orwell novel, I increasingly felt that the lies needed to be called out," he stated.
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