Foreign Minister Murray McCully has welcomed the announcement by Colombian President Juan Manuel Santos of the conclusion of a peace agreement between the Colombia Government and the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia-People’s Army (FARC) guerrilla movement.

“This is an important development for Colombia and for the region, that will afford the people of Colombia greater stability and prosperity in the years to come,” Mr McCully says.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully will travel to Europe next week to visit the United Kingdom, Slovakia, France, Hungary, and Russia. 

“Slovakia is the current European Union President and this visit is an opportunity to meet with Foreign Minister Miroslav Lajčák, and gain his perspective on the early discussions around Brexit,” Mr McCully says.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully will travel to Suva tomorrow for the Pacific Islands Forum Foreign Ministers’ Meeting.

“The Foreign Ministers’ Meeting is an important opportunity to discuss regional priorities such as climate change, fisheries, and economic integration,” Mr McCully says.

“The Ministerial level meeting will also help inform the agenda for the Pacific Forum Leaders Meeting which will take place in the Federated States of Micronesia later this year.”

Foreign Minister Murray McCully has named diplomat Stephen Payton as New Zealand’s next ambassador to Japan.

“New Zealand has long-standing and strong ties with Japan, underpinned by a close network of personal and business relationships,” Mr McCully says.

“A major focus for the Ambassador will be on helping to promote New Zealand interests in the areas of food and agriculture, security, and energy.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully travels to Laos next week to attend the ASEAN-NZ Ministerial Meeting, the East Asia Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting and the 23rd ASEAN Regional Forum.

“New Zealand has long-standing ties with ASEAN and we enjoy close cooperation with member states across a range of regional issues,” Mr McCully says.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully has called on all parties to respect the Arbitral Tribunal ruling on maritime rights in the South China Sea.

“While New Zealand does not take a position on the various territorial claims in the South China Sea we have consistently stated that the differing interests in the region should be managed peacefully and in accordance with international law,” Mr McCully says.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully will travel to Mongolia this week to attend the 11th Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) Summit.

“The ASEM Summit brings together representatives from 53 European and Asian nations to foster closer relations between the two regions,” Mr McCully says.

“The membership includes some of New Zealand most important trading partners and represents nearly 60 per cent of the world’s GDP and population.

Defence Minister Gerry Brownlee and Foreign Minister Murray McCully today announced that this year’s Tropic Twilight Exercise will be conducted in Tonga’s Ha’apai group of islands.

“Tropic Twilight is an annual exercise in the Pacific which tests the readiness of the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) to work with the military and governments from around the region on humanitarian assistance and disaster relief,” Mr Brownlee says.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully today announced that New Zealand will provide a further $2.8 million in funding for the Afghan National Police and the Central Prison Department.

“Afghanistan continues to face a number of serious challenges particularly around security and the maintenance of law and order,” Mr McCully says.

Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully has named diplomat Greg Andrews as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Belgium. He will also be accredited to Bulgaria, Luxembourg and Romania.

“New Zealand’s relationship with Belgium is important, as a large proportion of New Zealand's exports to the European Union enter through the Belgian ports of Antwerp and Zeebrugge,” says Mr McCully.  

Foreign Minister Murray McCully today announced that New Zealand will make a $1.4 million contribution to help rebuild communities damaged by fighting in Iraq. This latest funding takes New Zealand’s humanitarian assistance to those affected by conflict in Syria and Iraq to $23.9 million over the past five years.

“Restoring core services and infrastructure in Iraq is crucial to ensuring that people displaced by conflict are able to return to the towns and cities retaken from ISIL,” Mr McCully says.

Economic Development Minister Steven Joyce and Foreign Minister Murray McCully today announced that an agreement has been reached between the Governments of New Zealand and the United States of America covering the safeguards associated with the use in New Zealand of controlled U.S. rocket technology.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully travels to Norway this weekend to participate in the Oslo Forum, and will then travel to Finland, Latvia and Lithuania.

“The Oslo Forum is an annual meeting focused on conflict mediation and resolution,” Mr McCully says.

“The Forum provides a further opportunity for New Zealand to push for the resolution of key global conflicts, building on our efforts in the UN Security Council, and to reiterate New Zealand’s calls for a greater global focus on conflict prevention.”

New Zealand and the European Union today welcomed the successful conclusion of the Pacific Energy Conference in Auckland which saw donors commit over $1 billion for sustainable energy projects in the Pacific.

“The $635 million committed at the 2013 Pacific Energy Summit has translated into over $900 million of investments across 70 projects,” New Zealand Foreign Minister Murray McCully says.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully has announced a new partnership between the European Union, New Zealand and the Government of Vanuatu, aimed supporting sustainable agricultural development.

“New Zealand and the EU have a strong track record of working together with Pacific Governments to deliver development gains,” Mr McCully says.

“The Partnership we have entered into today will see the EU and New Zealand providing support to Vanuatu’s agricultural sector, and it is a model for further cooperation between the EU and New Zealand in the region.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully has announced Steve Marshall as New Zealand’s next Ambassador to Myanmar.

“New Zealand’s engagement with Myanmar has expanded significantly since the country embarked on its political and economic reform process in 2011,” Mr McCully says.

“New Zealand continues to support Myanmar’s transition to democracy and we upgraded our resident Embassy Office in Myanmar to a full Embassy in 2014.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully and the European Commissioner for International Cooperation and Development Mr Neven Mimica will lead a joint mission to the Pacific this week, accompanied by Minister for Climate Change Issues Paula Bennett.

The NZ EU Pacific Partnership Mission departs 1 June and will travel to Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu, Kiribati, and Tuvalu.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully travels to Tehran this weekend to meet with Iran’s Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif and other members of the Government, and then to Turkey for the World Humanitarian Summit.

“My visit to Tehran follows a successful visit to New Zealand by Minister Mohammad Zarif earlier this year,” Mr McCully says.

“Our discussions will cover a range of Middle East regional security issues and trade and economic relations between our two countries.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully has announced $2.5 million in matched funding for New Zealand based non-government organisations, to help scale up their response to the Syrian refugee crisis.

“The fighting in Syria has killed more than half a million people and forced 11 million from their homes,” Mr McCully says.

“Neighbouring countries, such as Jordan and Turkey, are bearing the brunt of this refugee crisis and the funding we have announced today will help deliver practical support to displaced Syrian communities across the region.

Foreign Minister Murray McCully travels to New York next week for meetings of the United Nations General Assembly and the United Nations Security Council.

“The United Nations General Assembly has called for a high-level debate on the peace and security challenges that the UN currently faces,” Mr McCully says.

“This is an opportunity to make the case for the UN to invest more in conflict prevention, in order to address threats to security before they escalate.