U.S. President Obama Thanks New Zealand PM John Key, China Guarantees Nuclear-Free Ships in Auckland

U.S. President Barack Obama thanked New Zealand Prime Minister John Key for leading the Trans Pacific Partnership Meeting attended by participating countries at the APEC meeting in Bali, Indonesia. Mr Key took Mr Obama's place as the latter could not make it to Bali due to more pressing matters of the U.S. federal budget crisis, including the government shutdown.

The Trans Pacific meeting plans aims to draft a free trade and investment treaty before 2013 ends.

Prime Minister Key has previously said that talks for the Asia Pacific trade bloc are right on track. However, he was quick to warn that even if a deal will be done I in a few months, it would still take time before New Zealand's exports will have completely free access to nations like Japan and the U.S.

Meanwhile, the U.S. government shutdown continues on its tenth day. No deal emerged from the 90-minute meeting at the White house between President Obama and the Republicans.

The Republicans offered Mr Obama a plan to postpone the U.S. debt default on Oct. 10 as a possible indication that would end the standoff between the two sides which caused the partial government shutdown and tainting America's creditworthiness.

Chinese destroyer in Auckland

New Zealand Prime Minister John Key announced that China has guaranteed its three ships docking in Auckland will remain nuclear-free in compliance with New Zealand's anti-nuclear law. Mr Key also said that U.S. ships are welcome in the country if they observe the criteria of being neither armed nor powered by nuclear energy.

Auckland will be expecting a Chinese destroyer due to arrive within the day, along with a supply ship and frigate. This is not China's first time to visit New Zealand and complied with the country's anti-nuclear laws. The British and French navy visited New Zealand in the past.

However, China is the first country to explicitly guarantee that it has no nuclear weapons aboard its ships in observance of New Zealand law.

In the case of the United States, it has a long-standing policy of neither confirming nor denying its nuclear capabilities. On the other hand, China has openly vouched for its ships as nuclear-free.