UNCLASSIFIED
New Zealand Ministry of
Foreign Affairs and Trade
Manatū Aorere
195 Lambton Quay
19 December 2024
Private Bag 18−901
Wellington 6160
New Zealand
T +64 4 439 8000
F +64 4 472 9596
Yasir Shaikh
OIA 29836
[FYI request #29299 email]
Tēnā koe Yasir Shaikh
Thank you for your email of 22 November 2024 in which you request the following under
the Official Information Act 1982 (OIA):
International Criminal Court (ICC) Arrest Warrant:
1. Does the New Zealand Government recognize and accept the decision of the
International Criminal Court (ICC) and the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to
issue an arrest warrant for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu?
2. If Prime Minister Netanyahu were to visit New Zealand, would the New Zealand
Government execute the ICC arrest warrant as per its legal obligations under the
Rome Statute? If not, please provide a detailed explanation for this decision.
Trade and Business Transactions with Israel:
3. Given the arrest warrant issued by the ICC, is New Zealand currently engaged
in trade or business transactions with Israel? If such engagements continue,
please explain the reasoning behind this policy, especially in light of the warrant
against Prime Minister Netanyahu.
Foreign Relations and International Commitments:
4. Has the New Zealand Government made any formal statements or taken any
specific actions in response to the ICC’s decision to issue the arrest warrant for
Prime Minister Netanyahu?
5. How does the New Zealand Government balance its international legal
obligations with its ongoing diplomatic and economic relations with Israel?
New Zealand’s positions on a range of Israel-Palestine related matters, including a full
list of national statements and votes at the United Nations, and responses to frequently
asked questions including on international law, can be found here:
www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/middle-east/israel-hamas-conflict/.
UNCLASSIFIED
Page 2 of 2
New Zealand has consistently supported the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) role in
upholding international law, including allegations of crimes in Gaza. The Ministry is aware
of the decision by the ICC to issue arrest warrants for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin
Netanyahu, former Defence Minister Yoav Gallant, and Hamas Military Commander
Mohammed Deif.
As the Prime Minister said publicly on 2 December 2024, New Zealand would uphold its
legal obligations, with respect to an ICC issued arrest warrant. The Prime Minister’s
comments regarding the ICC’s decision to issue the arrest warrant for Prime Minister
Netanyahu are at minute 24.25 of the following clip:
www.youtube.com/watch?reload=9&v=tgDQpZcCnTA
Information on New Zealand’s trade with Israel is available on the Statistics New
Zealand website
: statisticsnz.shinyapps.io/trade_dashboard/
Consequently your request is refused under section 18(d) of the OIA, as the information
requested is publicly available.
Please note that it is our policy to proactively release our responses to official
information requests where possible. Therefore, our response to your request (with your
personal information removed) may be published on the Ministry website:
www.mfat.govt.nz/en/about-us/contact-us/official-information-act-responses/
If you have any questions about this decision, you can contact us by email at:
[email address]. You have the right to seek an investigation and review by the
Ombudsman of this decision by contacting
www.ombudsman.parliament.nz or freephone
0800 802 602.
Nāku noa, nā
Owen Thornber
for Secretary of Foreign Affairs and Trade
