US security official to visit NZ

Rose Gottemoeller will meet New Zealand counterparts when she visits Wellington next month. Photo / Getty

A senior US security official will visit New Zealand next month as part of a tour of the Asia-Pacific.

The announcement comes two days after the New Zealand government declared it would send Defence Force personnel to Iraq to help train troops in the battle against Islamic State extremists.

Rose Gottemoeller, Undersecretary of State for Arms Control and International Security, will travel to the Philippines, Vietnam and Australia before visiting Wellington, the US State Department said.

Ms Gottemoeller will meet Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade and Ministry of Defence officials in Wellington on March 9 to discuss international security issues.

She will also speak to local students about science, technology, engineering and mathematics education, and deliver remarks at the New Zealand Institute of International Affairs.

Before her New Zealand visit, Ms Gottemoeller will visit Australia and meet security officials there.

She will meet counterparts from Australia's Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade and the Department of Defence in Canberra on March 4 to 5 to discuss US-Australia defence co-operation, regional security, and other international security topics.

On March 5, she will also deliver the Robert O'Neill Lecture at Australian National University. The title of the speech is Stemming the Nuclear Tide: The Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty at 45.

The next day MS Gottemoeller will deliver remarks at the University of Sydney. Her speech is titled The Role of the United States in Asia-Pacific Security.

- AAP