ACT leader David Seymour has given rare praise to Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for her speech to NATO leaders on Thursday morning (NZ time).
Ardern delivered a historic speech at the NATO Leaders' Summit, becoming the first New Zealand Prime Minister to address the event.
Seymour is normally a stern critic of the Prime Minister, but in a rare occurrence, he praised Ardern on AM Early.
"I think the Prime Minister has some major issues at home. We have enormous problems with crime, the cost of everything is going up, this co-governance agenda is out of control and it's very divisive and dangerous for New Zealand, but equally the world has changed security-wise," Seymour told AM Early fill-in host Nicky Styris.
"We do need to be building connections with friends around the world who share our values. If you look at the values underpinning NATO. NATO is an organisation for people who believe in free and democratic societies and while I'm generally a bit critical of Jacinda Ardern, I'm very pleased that New Zealand's Prime Minister has been invited to speak at NATO.
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"I think it's very important for New Zealand's long-term security."
Ardern crammed several heavy topics into her short three-minute speech, including the war in Ukraine, climate change and called for global nuclear disarmament.
She told NATO leaders the war in Ukraine must not fuel an arms race.
"In all of this, we stand alongside those who share our same values. And here I want to acknowledge the leadership shown by NATO," Ardern said.
"But I also come with a request: that we do not allow the legacy of the war in Ukraine to become an arms race, or an even more polarised and dangerous world.
"Our solidarity with Ukraine must be matched by an equal commitment to strengthen international institutions, multilateral forums, and disarmament."
