Defence Minister Peeni Henare has made the first visit by a New Zealand minister to Ukraine since Russia’s invasion.
He travelled to Kyiv where he met Ukrainian Minister of Defence Oleksii Reznikov and paid tribute to people who had lost their lives in the conflict at the the Wall of Remembrance of the Fallen for Ukraine.
Henare said the visit sent a “strong message that New Zealand stands with the people of Ukraine and that our support for the Ukrainian defensive effort against Russia’s illegal invasion is unwavering”.
“I reiterated New Zealand’s strong support for Ukraine’s territorial integrity, and its people, and affirm our ongoing unequivocal condemnation of Russia’s aggression,” he said.
He said it was “humbling” to “hear first-hand the sacrifice of Ukrainian citizens when fighting for their territorial integrity”.
“It also highlights why the New Zealand Government continues to show its support,” he said.
Henare said Reznikov “expressed his gratitude” for New Zealand’s decision to extend the defence force’s mission to train Ukrainian troops in the UK out to 2023.
Henare said Reznikov noted the mission was “making a difference on the ground.
“Mr Reznikov said the number one challenge for them is winter and getting through it, however they have been extremely successful so far due to their mindset of ‘we can win, we will win, and we must win’,” Henare said.
Since the invasion began, New Zealand has sanctioned over 1200 Russian individuals and entities and provided over $60 million in military, diplomatic, legal and humanitarian assistance to Ukraine.
Most recently, Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta focused sanctions on Russia’s defence and security sectors. The sanctions have seen all New Zealand MPs banned from Russia.
Henare told Reznikov the Government would continue to look at ways to support Ukraine during the conflict, as well as helping the country rebuild.
“We agreed to continue to have open conversations into the future around what more we can do to help Ukrainian resilience and the rebuild effort,” Henare said.
Henare said the support paid to Ukraine was “paying off”, noting that Ukraine is making advances and recapturing lost territory.
Ukrainian forces recently recaptured the city of Kherson, which was lost to Russia in March, early in the conflict.
Henare reiterated that New Zealand troops would not enter Ukraine. This would be seen as a significant broadening of New Zealand’s role and a widening of the conflict. It would risk New Zealand being seen as a combatant in the war.
“I want to be clear that while the New Zealand Defence Force will not be entering Ukraine to fight, we remain committed to contributing our skills and expertise to the defensive effort.
“But there is one quick way for this conflict to end and that is for Russia to reverse course and immediately withdraw from Ukraine,” Henare said.
“Principles matter, and while Aotearoa might be on the other side of the world and far removed from the fighting, we are committed to upholding the rules of international law and the United Nations Charter and do what we can to support - that is what this visit was about,” he said.
Henare also visited Poland, where he met Minister of National Defence Mariusz Błaszczak.
He said the “recent missile strike in Poland was an unfortunate incident and underlines the dangers created by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine”.
“I expressed New Zealand’s condolences for the loss of life from the incident,” Henare said.
An investigation concluded that the missile, which landed in Poland, killing two, was likely fired by Ukraine in an attempt to shoot down a Russian missile. Ukraine denies this.
“New Zealand and Poland share the same values on Ukraine, and so Mr Blaszczak was very appreciative of the assistance from NZ to Ukraine,” Henare said.