Strange goings on in the Tasman these days - nuclear waste shipments; a nuclear protest flotilla¹ and the not so well publicised ³a chunk of the ocean off New Zealand will become a simulated war zone over the next fortnight as a flotilla of warships from New Zealand, Australia and France, a submarine and maritime aircraft converge on the area² (Judith Martin, NZDF, 5 March 2001). NZ warships and warplanes have indeed been simulating a war zone with French warships and warplanes - two of them being the very ones which were not welcomed in Wellington.

The captain of one of those warship said ³ During the period of the French nuclear tests we were embarrassed to come into this region, but since they have halted we are seen with a more benevolent eye and are welcomed everywhere we go.² (Jeanne d'Arc's, Captain Phillippe Combes). Guess he got that idea from the NZ government or Wellington City Council who welcomed the warships here to Aotearoa. Perhaps he is not aware of the new safety fears about the stability of Moruroa atoll, cracking and fissuring as a result of the French government¹s nuclear weapons blasts - it¹s likely the not even the Œnuclear free¹ Wellington City Council or Œnuclear free¹ NZ government will welcome the Jeanne d'Arc again if Moruroa collapses ... for more information about the safety of Moruroa, see PMA Newsletter, March 2001 A French nuclear submarine has been visiting Perth, FNS Perle.

It is one of the French Rubis Amethyste class nuclear powered attack submarines, ³one of which has recently been withdrawn from service after the discovery of more radioactivity than expected in the main circuit of the vessel¹s nuclear reactor² (Laurie Brereton press release, 24 November 2000). These are anti-shipping submarines equipped with Exocet missiles, 14 x 21² torpedoes, or with 32 mines. Perle was commissioned in 1993, and has 66 crew. On 30 March, 1994 FNS Emeraude had an accident with a burst steam pipe resulting in 10 deaths. FNS Rubis, commissioned in 1983, collided with a tanker on 17 July, 1993 (information from the Anti-Nuclear Alliance of Australia). The latest in this sorry saga - according to Australian media reports, the NZ Skyhawk warplane which crashed into the sea off coast of Western Australia last night was ... ³taking part in exercises with the Royal Australian Navy² and ³training with the French nuclear submarine Perle when the incident happened² (NZ Herald, 21 March 2001).

So in summary, the current NZ government is happy to have the NZ armed forces play wargames not only with the French armed forces, but with French nuclear submarines! This despite the French government being an unapologetic nuclear weapons proliferator; who are in military occupation of our nearest Pacific neighbour Kanaky (New Caledonia)., Te Ao Maohi (ŒFrench¹ Polynesia); and who have created a toxic nuclear nightmare of as yet unknown proportions in the Pacific because of their insane pursuit of nuclear weapons development. Shame on the lot of them. As you may be aware, the government¹s Defence Policy Framework (June 2000) stated that ³New Zealand will not engage in military co-operation or exercises with the armed forces of states which sanction the use of their armed forces to suppress human rights.²