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Story: Cold War

Trade before rhetoric

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Trade before rhetoric

This 1977 cartoon highlights New Zealand's ambivalent attitude towards its Cold War 'enemies'. Prime Minister Robert Muldoon thunders against the perceived belligerence of the Soviet Union – depicted as a Russian bear – then softens his stance when he realises a renewed trade deal with the Soviets is pending. While New Zealand was willing to fire anti-communist rhetoric, its range was checked by a desire to not endanger lucrative trading relationships with communist nations.

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Alexander Turnbull Library

Reference: A-315-5-002

by Malcolm Evans

Permission of the Alexander Turnbull Library, National Library of New Zealand, Te Puna Mātauranga o Aotearoa, must be obtained before any re-use of this image.

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How to cite this page

Gerald Hensley, Cold War – Cold War beginnings, 1945 to 1948, Te Ara – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand, https://teara.govt.nz/en/cartoon/32689/trade-before-rhetoric (accessed 10 June 2026).

Story by Gerald Hensley, published 7 May 2012.