Nuclear ships not an issue, English

Visits of US Navy ships into New Zealand waters are not an issue, Acting Prime Minister Bill English says.

Former Prime Minister Sir Geoffrey Palmer said at the weekend that ships should be allowed to return as long as they did not breach New Zealand's nuclear-free legislation.

Under that legislation, the Prime Minister has to approve that any warship that comes in is not carrying any nuclear explosive device, and is not nuclear-powered.

Sir Geoffrey, who was deputy prime minister during the David Lange years and the nuclear-free debate in the 1980s, said attitudes had changed since the controversial legislation led to New Zealand's exclusion from the Anzus military alliance with Australia and the US.

Mr English said today allowing the ships to visit had not been discussed.

"The New Zealand policy position hasn't changed for over 20 years now and it's been pretty clear cut with the US," he told Newstalk ZB.

"What has happened, going back to the early 2000s under the previous Government, is that the US and the New Zealand Government decided to improve the relationship, despite the fact there were differences over nuclear ships and practical problems with the policy on both sides.

"The effect of that positive approach has been that the relationship has improved slowly for a while, and then under President Obama and John Key, improved quite quickly, so we are quite happy with progress in the relationship with the US and don't really see the ships as an issue."

Prime Minister John Key is in Washington attending a nuclear security summit.

- NZPA