New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters meets US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in Washington DC on 19 March 2025. Photo: Supplied
Winston Peters' meeting with US counterpart Secretary of State Marco Rubio has concluded, after running over time.
RNZ understands the foreign minister viewed it as extremely positive, and he remains confident in the strength of the US-New Zealand relationship.
It's hoped the face-to-face will lead to positive cooperation between the two countries in the future.
Peters will speak to media from Washington DC later this morning.
It comes after a range of meetings between Peters and members of the Trump administration.
Peters said "expectations" from the United States of New Zealand were made clear.
"We came here to ask them, what do they want of us?"
But he said he would not outline what they wanted of New Zealand until he discussed that with his Cabinet colleagues. He said he was not concerned about what they were.
"I came here fully expecting that those would be their expectations."
Trump's policies around trade and potential cuts to aid funding in the Pacific could have an impact on New Zealand and the wider Pacific region.
Peters said he had got a better understanding of the impacts of cuts to aid funding in meetings yesterday.
"We had a very frank and open discussion about that.
"They get our point of view in terms of how essential it is in the blue continent, or the Pacific, and what our collective role should be in it."
Today will be an opportunity to state his case for New Zealand's interests.
"We're going to get the best we possibly can out of this series of meetings for a country called New Zealand."
Peters and Rubio in Washington DC. Photo: Supplied
He said he will make sure they know how New Zealand feels before he leaves.
International relations expert Robert Patman told RNZ Peters had a "difficult task," because "he can't shirk from defending New Zealand's interests, and at the moment, the Trump administration is challenging our national interests on the international stage."
He said a peace deal favouring Russian leader Vladimir Putin would set a disastrous precedent that would be "unacceptable" to New Zealand - and that Peters should also be urging the United States not to follow Trump's suggestion of annexing Gaza, which would amount to "ethnic cleansing".
The opportunity for China to fill the void left in aid funding for the Pacific, and Trump administration moves to pull out of the Paris climate agreement, would be of particular concern for Pacific nations, he said. US foreign policy in Europe was yet more cause for concern for New Zealand.
Peters also has meetings with Democrat and Republican representatives.
On Tuesday NZT he met with senior Trump administration officials, including Morgan Ortagus, the deputy special envoy for the Middle East, and assistant to Steve Witkoff who is leading the administration's Middle East strategy and met with Putin to discuss a potential ceasefire.
Winston Peters at the NZ Ambassador's residence in Washington DC with senior Trump administration officials Sebastian Gorka (deputy assistant to the President, senior director for Counterterrorism), and Morgan Ortagus (Deputy Special Envoy for the Middle East). Photo: RNZ / Lillian Hanly
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