After the latest mass shooting in the United States, President Joe Biden sought counsel from New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern on Tuesday, but the White House also admitted its limitations on gun control in comparison to its close friends.
Biden mentioned the 51 people killed in horrific shootings targeting Muslims in Christchurch, New Zealand, during his meeting with Ardern in the Oval Office. Following the carnage, New Zealand banned military-style rifles and implemented a successful gun buy-back programme.
Biden’s statements
“We need your advice,” Biden added, alluding to a “global effort to confront violence and extremism online,” as well as the broader US-New Zealand alliance. “I’d like to collaborate with you on that, ” he continued.
Biden said there was a “awful lot of pain” and that “much of it is preventable” when he visited the Texas town, Uvalde on Sunday to mourn the loss of 19 children and two teachers who were killed by a gunman using an assault-style weapon.
Biden had also visited the site of another mass shooting in New York state, targeting African Americans, less than two weeks prior.
New Zealand’s Prohibition on firearms sale
However, given the abundance of privately owned firearms in the United States and the Constitution’s protection of the right to bear arms, the Democrat has an uphill battle in Congress to have even the greatest modest additional restrictions adopted.
New Zealand’s political opposition to meddling with access to firearms contrast sharply with those of the United States’ closest friends in Europe and Asia, as well as neighbouring Canada. Despite the fact that his country has significantly fewer mass shootings than the United States, PM Justin Trudeau recommended prohibiting firearm sales on Monday.
“Our experience in the field is our own, and if there’s anything we can contribute that’d be of any use, we will be here to share it,” Ardern said of the Texas & New York murders.
