Updated: 10:50am – Former US President Barack Obama will finally go ahead with his promise to visit New Zealand on a trip in March.
The Herald on Sunday understands Obama will visit on about March 21 arranged by Air New Zealand.
It is understood the contract is due to be finalised and the visit announced next week.
The reason for the visit is unknown but there has been speculation Air NZ is about to launch a new route to the United States, likely Chicago which is Obama’s home town.
Former Prime Minister Sir John Key is now on the Air NZ board and will have been instrumental in securing the high-level visit due to his relationship with Obama when the two were leaders.
Key and Obama played golf together in Hawaii in 2014 and it is understood a rematch is on the agenda for Obama’s New Zealand visit – likely in Key’s favorite spot of Queenstown.
The visit will likely carry a stiff price tag for Air NZ. According to US media Obama was securing about $400,000 in speaking fees alone in the the United States.
Obama has often promised to travel to New Zealand but did not do so while he was in office.
Key and Obama were elected within a week of each other in 2008; both had holiday homes in Hawaii and they spent five hours on the golf course in 2014 in Hawaii as well as rubbing shoulders at international summits.
Obama shared his thoughts about Key during a conversation with Australian Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull during the APEC Summit in Manila in 2015.
-NZH
