On April 28th, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce hosted New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern as part of our International Security, Trade, and Economic Platform (InSTEP) series, which explores the topics and trends influencing U.S. and international economic policy.
 
In conversation with U.S. Chamber Executive Vice President and Head of International Affairs Myron Brilliant, the Prime Minister talked about lessons learned from managing the pandemic and the challenge of global vaccine distribution, momentum on global efforts to combat climate change following the recent Leaders’ Summit and the upcoming UN Climate Change Conference, managing friction points with China, and more.

On the issues of vaccine diplomacy and vaccine equity: “If we were to view the need for vaccine distribution across the globe as either an act of aid or an act of diplomacy, than we are looking at it through the wrong lens. It needs to be viewed as just as important as our own domestic response to COVID.”

On key takeaways from the Leaders’ Summit on Climate: “One of my reflections was how important it is for all of us to see a continuity in response. How do we ensure that, regardless of political cycle, we see a consistency over a series of years in our response to the global challenge? Because the globe cannot afford a yo-yo-ing of climate policy.” 

On raising human rights issues with China: “Part of our independent foreign policy will mean that we will raise issues of human rights concerns. I myself have raised concerns with the Chinese leadership, [including] our concerns over Xinjiang and the Uyghur people, and we will continue to do so. Our view is that we must continue to broaden, as much as possible, the platform of engagement from countries who share those concerns.”
 

For more information on the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s International Affairs Division (IAD), visit us on the web. To watch more InSTEP events and other IAD programming, check out our Youtube channel.