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- Date published:
11:56 am, March 3rd, 2026 - 22 comments
Categories: Christopher Luxon, Donald Trump, International, israel, Peace, spin, the praiseworthy and the pitiful, uncategorized, us politics, war, you couldn't make this shit up -
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A prime minister who does not understand how vulnerable New Zealand’s economy is to a Middle Eastern war as we have now, is a Prime Minister who should be removed from office.
In clear advice from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade from July last year, the risks to New Zealand of a war we have now, were set out in black and white.
The basic headlines from the official advice were and are:
An escalating conflict between Israel and Iran would have major implications for global energy markets. Around 20% of the world’s oil trade transits the Strait of Hormuz, which was at risk of disruption in a prolonged or wider regional conflict.
While New Zealand no longer imports crude oil directly from the Middle East, a surge in the global oil prices would still push the price of fuel and inflation higher. Increasing fuel prices don’t just show up at the pump but pervade the economy.
Rising energy costs would weigh on consumer spending, economic activity, and may force the Reserve Bank of New Zealand to hike interest rates in response. Higher interest rates would lift debt servicing costs and further weigh on activity and employment.
The New Zealand economy is also exposed to global financial market fluctuations. Commodity-based currencies, such as the New Zealand dollar, tend to depreciate during times of adverse global events. A weaker currency would exacerbate the inflationary impact of a deepening Middle East crisis, as it would push up the prices of imported goods and services.”
Prime Minister Luxon’s response to the attacks by the United States and Israel on Iran are summarised here.
Luxon does not mention the economic or social consequences upon the nation that he is tasked with leading. In subsequent comments he’s still failed to mention its impact here.
Until this point the Gulf states including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Oman and Bahrain represent 2.9% of New Zealand’s exports, and they were a growing market. It is currently our 12th largest trading partner. We don’t yet know how much of that is at risk, but it is most certainly at higher risk because of the United States attacking Iran.
None of that clear MFAT advice is mentioned in that statement, when it should have been. This is after all advice from his own government.
Most fund manager commentators are advising to just not look at your Kiwisaver accounts for a couple of months, and just presume they recover. If you have half a political brain, I say look and don’t look away. The instability in world sharemarkets now underway is caused by the United States attacking Iran. It will also affect the NZSuperFund in a similar way. And Luxon refuses to defend us on it.
When inflation in oil prices go up as they are now, so does everything in our economy, which means while we earn the same we get less and less in fuel and groceries and power bills. That means we spend less and less, so the governments’ tax take goes down. So that means there’s less to spend in the upcoming May 2026 Budget in 10 weeks. Both Treasury and the NZRB will need to reforecast and fast.
The prices also go up for key roadbuilding items like asphalt, for air fuel and hence airline prices, for fertilisers, tyres, pharmaceuticals, gas bottles, anything that arrives by ship or plane, you name it. It also underscores the folly of deliberately increasing our reliance on LNG because about 20% of world natural gas flows through the Strait of Hormuz.
The United States attacks on Iran are likely to be an economic disaster for New Zealand, in both its public finances and in household budgets.
A Prime Minister who cannot understand the economic consequences of this Middle Eastern war on New Zealand is a leader acting against the interests of New Zealand.
New Zealand needs regime change.
Let’s change New Zealand’s Luxon regime in November.
The world's largest LNG production facility in Qatar has been shut down because of the USA/Israel war on Iran.
Gas prices in Europe have surged by as much as 54%.
Seriously, could this CoC get any dumber? What we really need now is a LNG terminal! /s
At the least, they need to call out the USA/Israel flagrant breach of International Law.
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-03-02/european-gas-rallies-more-than-30-as-qatar-halts-lng-production?embedded-checkout=true
The emperor's clothes, what little remained, are disappearing in a public display of ineptitude and sycophancy to trumpland.
A shocking performance on such basic questions imagine if was ever asked a decent one like how our major trading partner, china, views his coalition support.
"And Luxon refuses to defend us on it."
What do you want him to do that will help New Zealand?
Complain about the US behaviour? Do you really think that that will have a positive effect? Will Israel or the USA change what they are doing? I suggest the answer is No.
What could happen? We get the US mad at us and they ban our imports? Is that going to help us? Again I suggest the answer is No.
So what are you proposing that will have an effect and help us?
Any prime minister of New Zealand that had a spine, was not a puppet and had some political nous would do and say exactly what prime minister at the time Helen Clark said and did when the US illegally invaded Iraq in 2003………one of the best decisions that the Clark-Labour government made was to take a rational and careful approach……..
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/308164/nz-made-%27right-judgement%27-over-iraq
They also sent some NZ forces to the country.
"New Zealand contributed a small engineering and support force to assist in post-war reconstruction and provision of humanitarian aid. The engineers returned home in October 2004 and New Zealand is still represented in Iraq by liaison and staff officers working with coalition forces."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Zealand%E2%80%93United_States_relations
Helen also had the nous to give an apology to the US Government for her comments about Iraq.
"New Zealand diplomats have apologized to Washington after Prime Minister Helen Clark said the war with Iraq would not be occurring if Al Gore were in the White House.".
She got a bit carried away with her anti-US views and backed down.
https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2003-apr-07-war-briefs7.3-story.html
If we were silly enough to have a hack at The Donald we would, I hope do the same.
Ah yes, it's always best to give the play yard bully your lunch money, in the hope he'll be satisfied and won't come back for more!
Adolf approves.
New Zealand is so small its views about the right of women to vote won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about the right to no-fault accidents won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about compensating native peoples for war crimes and land theft won’t matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about the right to free public education won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about the Vietnam War won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about South African apartheid won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about free trade won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about testing nuclear weapons in the atmosphere … or in Pacific atolls … or having weapons on warships in our own seas ,,, won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about banning semiautomatic rifles won't matter.
New Zealand is so small its views about how to minimise COVID deaths won't matter.
Anyone else remember that dumb game?
New Zealand is so small that it should roll over and lick the bully master’s feet.
David Lange did something very close to that when he sent back to the French the two agents we had caught and jailed after the Rainbow Warrior was sunk. Geoffrey Palmer said
"But he and Lange could see the much bigger writing on the wall – a French veto blocking New Zealand's vital access to the British lamb and butter market, which was up for renegotiation in Brussels.
"It was clear New Zealand could not win a trade war against France."
In June 1986 Lange formally announced the dispute would be mediated by United Nations Secretary-General Javier Perez de Cuellar. In fact, New Zealand officials, led by the late Chris Beeby, had already been secretly hammering out a deal with French counterparts in Geneva, but the secretary-general's imprimatur was required for the settlement to carry weight."
We let them go because we couldn't afford what France would do to us.
https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/reality-behind-the-rainbow-warrior-outrage/5U2NIK3HXRVQYUS3CHW6HF6YUI/
That’s what you’re proposing? Then, you’ve answered your own question. Well done, grasshopper.
Good God. A David Carradine fan. You must be the first person I've heard of that watched more than one episode of that rubbish.
However why, given you don't appear to be capable of discussing my opinions, do you simply try and insult me? I thought that this site didn't approve of that.
I have addressed your opinion and given my view on it without wasting any more time than strictly necessary.
Your opinion is, essentially, that we cannot/must not do something if/when we can’t afford it and TINA. This is neo-liberal dogma. Did Kate Sheppard stop doing the right thing because NZ couldn’t afford it? Should we not reinstate the pay equity principles to the 2020-situation because it’ll cost a lot of money? Should we not care about Kiwis with disabilities and needing special care so that Nicola Willis can balance her shitty books (https://newsroom.co.nz/2026/02/27/nzers-with-disabilities-expedient-collateral-in-cancelling-pay-equity-deals/)? While we’re discussing the cost of things, should we ditch the minimum wage, NZ Super, public health, social welfare? Et cetera.
You’re a typical moral coward hiding behind price tags and I was being nice to you by labelling you a little grasshopper.
"Your opinion is, essentially, that we cannot/must not do something if/when we can’t afford it and TINA.".
You are putting words into my mouth that I never said and do not accept.
My comments have nothing to do with the topics you are talking about, and claiming that I believe. I was not commenting on women's right to vote, pay equity, disability support, the minimum wage, Super, public health or social welfare etc. If you think that is what I am saying you haven't read what I wrote.
I was talking about our complaining about the actions of other, much larger, countries where we have no ability to alter what they are planning to do. Why put on a false face and pretend we are important when we have no ability to affect their actions and we only hurt ourselves.
Indeed, you’d want us to take on the face of a moral coward and pretend we have no principles because it might hurt us economically to take a stance that would reflect who we really are or want to be.
As Ad already pointed out, you lack the understanding of history and context, and here you throw off all pretences of being an educated civilised man with moral standards and principles.
They were your words, not verbatim hence no quotation marks and why I used the word “essentially”, but let’s go back a few steps to your comment @ 3.2.1.1:
Barbara Edmonds understands it.
https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/political/588587/new-zealand-not-in-place-to-make-call-on-us-strikes-in-iran-willis-says
You’re a little monkey who sees nothing, knows nothing, and cries over peanuts and then defecates all over the place because it doesn’t like its name-tag & description.
BTW, I assume you’ll have a similar lame excuse for not doing anything about climate change.
Why on earth do you assume that. Because you, as usual, make up things that I have never proposed and claim I believe them.
Your evidence for your assumptions please?
Humph. France wouldn't have ponced around with trade wars. If those agents hadn't been returned, we'd have had a stiff dose of foot-and-mouth arrive on our shores. Never doubted that.
There are only three of those comments that have anything to do with what other countries have done. What we did on entirely internal affairs is nothing to do with whether we are large or small.
Did the ones that attempted to get change in other countries have any effect?
Vietnam? No. The US only changed its approach when the US public got unhappy. We had no effect at all. Vietnam policy by the US Government only changed when the public had decided it was mistaken. "By October 1967, 47 percent of Americans, a plurality, maintained that U.S. military presence in Vietnam was a mistake, according to Gallup surveys."
https://mediamythalert.com/2010/11/20/when-i-lost-cronkite-or-something-to-that-effect/
French testing? Well they kept going with their testing until 1996 which was in fact after they had signed the Comprehensive Nuclear-Test-Ban Treaty. Our effect. Well, nothing really.
SA Apartheid? We started protesting in 1960 or so. They abandoned apartheid in about 1990 and most of the pressure was internal to the country. Did we have wany effect. Hard to see any in my opinion.
The all did.
You just don't understand the history of any of them.
The legacy of the nuclear free South Pacific campaign was in the north.
The USA-USSR removal of nuclear warhead missiles from Europe (then tanks and then the Wall and then the USSR).
(otherwise based on the Cuba stand off, resolved by the USA moving their missiles out of Turkey).
The end of the Cold War meant the ANC was no longer a front for a communist internationale in Africa, thus Pieter Botha got de klerked. And Mandela got released.
(SAL wanted Steve Biko, a pan African nationalist to rule, not some Stalinist)
One thing the NZ government can have total confidence in is that appearing to support Iran, the traditional enemy of the Gulf states, at a point when it's attacking the Gulf states, would be the worst thing an NZ government could do if it wants to continue growing that market after this war.
In response to the LNG debate above (I'm back in NZ and reply is still not working….do I need to empty my cache or something?) IMO that is the most stupid decision this government has made, and there are many contenders for this prize. As Meghan Woods said yesterday the government was specifically told by experts that LNG is not a viable option. But of course Luxon doesn't listen to experts.
Cluxon, Willis, seymour etc need to have an honest conversation with NZ as to what is possibly coming. give people a heads up how the actions of silly little donald trump might play out for us, how the 'recovery' may not arrive this year, how unemployment may not drop, how inflation may climb, how petrol prices may climb over $3 a litre. that is the start of providing leadership. Not holding my breath from "what I say to you" cliche cluxon and "it's all labours fault" Willis