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I see the great continuities in New Zealand history as being decency and common sense and up until now when we've confronted these things we've been able to talk them through, and I'm sure we will with this issue as well.

I have more engagement with New Zealand than people might think. Unlike the impression I have of the American president, who sits in the Oval Office and people come to them.

This is the difficulty about talking about it without sounding big-headed, but you cannot speak of New Zealand now without my involvement in what it has become.

I've had a quiet fascination with New Zealand for most of my life.

New Zealand's been pretty quiet on human rights issues, which we will be taking rather more interest in, and in international labor issues.

In terms of having views and being prepared to express them, yes, I think New Zealand's had a leadership role in a lot of things.

I think that's what all New Zealanders who are fair-minded want - a good chance for everybody to get ahead, whether it's education or housing.

If the people of New Zealand want to be part of our world, I believe they should hop off their islands, and push 'em closer.

There's a very go-to kind of attitude in New Zealand that stems from that psyche of being quite isolated and not being able to rely on the rest of the world's infrastructure.

I think that generally New Zealand is respected for the positions it takes because it thinks them through.