Abstract
The focus of this article is the "friendship" between Lyndon Johnson, president of the United States, and Keith Holyoake, prime minister of New Zealand, and how it influenced the diplomatic relationship their two countries had with one another. Johnson and Holyoake were the masters of their political systems and dominated the political life of their countries in the 1960s. With similar rural backgrounds and professions, they understood one another and treated the foreign policy of their two countries as a series of political deals. Johnson’s most important concern was garnering support for the United States’ initiative in Vietnam, while Holyoake wanted to make sure that New Zealand had access to American markets for its agricultural exports.
