Both Australia and New Zealand play crucial yet similar roles in the Pacific. But when it comes to the wider diplomatic stage they part company.

SCOTT BURCHILL, DEAKIN UNIVERSITY: Well, New Zealand takes a more independent line. On the one hand it's not privy to the same level of intelligence sharing with the United States that Australia gains access to but on the other hand, it has more freedom to manoeuvre.

Nothing demonstrated that more clearly than New Zealand's refusal to join the coalition of the willing in Iraq last year.

HELEN CLARK, NEW ZEALAND PRIME MINISTER: My government fears for the widespread resentment that would provoke in the Middle East against Western nations in general, for the likely stimulus terrorist organisations would gain from that resentment.

This policy was born two decades ago when Prime Minister David Lange declared New Zealand a nuclear free zone.

SCOTT BURCHILL: Well New Zealand made the decision in the 1980s that it would be a more safe and secure country if it prevented the visit of nuclear armed and nuclear powered US ships to its harbours. But that doesn't mean that New Zealand was anti-American or wanted to exclude itself from the general US alliance.

Tomorrow Helen Clark leaves for Samoa to chair the 35th Pacific Islands Forum.

SCOTT BURCHILL: Well I think New Zealand has a bit more leverage over the countries of the south-west Pacific because it's not seen to be the big brother on the street corner bullying the small players and keeping them in line, and that's in some quarters the reputation that Australia has.

Meanwhile, New Zealand has been given the cold shoulder by the US as Australia prepares to sign its free trade agreement. Is this the cost of foreign policy independence?

PHIL GOFF, NEW ZEALAND FOREIGN MINISTER: New Zealand has worked alongside the United States consistently for trade liberalisation, possibly more consistently than any other country in that sphere, but we have never regarded the two arguments as overlapping. We have never agreed that there should be some exchange of trade benefit in terms of putting combat forces in a particular arena.

SCOTT BURCHILL: There also may have been some punishment there from Washington's point of view to remind New Zealand that there is a cost to their policy of banning the visits of nuclear armed and nuclear powered ships.

But it's not all downhill for New Zealand. It still exerts enormous influence in the Pacific - a region which Australia, America and China all now view as vital and the Chinese are courting New Zealand hard with a major trade deal on offer.