RNZRSA is proud to support Seeing Red: New Zealand in the Cold War Conference to be held at the National Library, Wellington,
6-8 July 2007.

The Cold War was the dominant feature of world politics in the second half of the twentieth century. At its most intense, it brought the world to the brink of nuclear Armageddon; it was the primary cause of two major wars, in Korea and Vietnam, and a host of smaller conflicts; and it permeated relations between states at many levels – political, economic and cultural. Alliances based around the super-powers the United States and the Soviet Union threatened each other with nuclear annihilation. Behind the screen of nuclear deterrence, they manoeuvred for advantage and fought each other by proxy. For New Zealand the outcome of this grim struggle was vitally important. Firmly in the Western camp almost to the end, it sent troops to fight communists in Korea, Malaya and Vietnam, and prepared to send a major force to the Middle East to combat a possible Soviet advance.

The conference will focus on New Zealand’s response to this forty-year confrontation, but the international dimensions will not be ignored. Speakers will provide perspectives on the development of the international framework. New Zealand’s wide-ranging involvement in the Cold War will be addressed, including its impact on defence and foreign policy.

RNZRSA is proud to sponsor the keynote speaker, distinguished Canadian military historian Professor Jack Granatstein OC, author of over sixty publications and recipient of the Order of Canada. Other speakers include: Dr Kathryn Weathersby (Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars Washington DC); Prof Jeffrey Grey (Australian Defence Force Academy, Canberra); Prof David Lowe (Deakin University, Melbourne); Prof Roger Dingman (University of Southern California, Los Angeles) and a range of New Zealand experts on aspects of the Cold War.

Conference Details:

Venue: National Library Auditorium, Aitken Street, Wellington

Dates: Registration and Reception, Friday 6 July 2007, 5.30pm, followed by the Keynote Address. Conference Sessions on Saturday-Sunday, 7-8 July 2007.

Fee: $120 per person (includes Friday night reception and all lunches, morning and afternoon teas)

How to Register

Please download the Registration Form (17kb PDF).
Requires Acrobat Reader

Return Registration Form with payment (cheques made out to NZ Military History Committee) to:

Seeing Red Conference
PO Box 9724
Marion Square
Wellington 6141

(Direct Payment by Electronic Funds Transfer can be arranged.)

(The full-colour brochure is available for download Seeing Red Brochure. Warning: Large File 2.1MB PDF)

For further information about the Conference please contact Dr Stephen Clarke stephenc@rnzrsa.org.nz or (04) 384 7994 at

RNZRSA National Headquarters
PO Box 27248
Marion Square
Wellington 6141

The New Zealand Military History Committee is a not-for-profit organisation with the objective of raising awareness about New Zealand's military history through conferences and publications. Its members are Dr Ian McGibbon (General Editor War History, Ministry for Culture and Heritage), John Crawford (New Zealand Defence Force Historian), Peter Cooke (Independent Historian), and the RNZRSA's own historian Dr Stephen Clarke.

Other Conferences organised by the NZ Military History Committee:

2003 Zealandia's Great War: New Zealand in the First World War

Proceedings edited by John Crawford and Ian McGibbon published as New Zealand Great War: New Zealand, the Allies and the First World War (Exisle, 2007)

1999 - One Flag, One Queen, One Tongue: New Zealand and the South African War

Proceedings edited by John Crawford and Ian McGibbon published as One Flag, One Queen, One Tongue: New, Zealand, the British Empire and the South African War (Auckland University Press, 2003)

1995 Kia Kaha: New Zealand in the Second World War

Proceedings edited by John Crawford published as Kia Kaha: New Zealand in the Second World War (Oxford University Press, 2000)