By Stephen Olsen for NZPA
Prime Minister John Key's decision to join the citizens of French town Le Quesnoy in their annual commemorations of Anzac Day has started a new chapter in what Mr Key has called "a precious link with the town".
In welcoming Mr Key, Le Quesnoy Mayor Paul Roault recalled the successive generations of New Zealanders who have returned to the region to commemorate the heroic action taken by New Zealand soldiers in the last days of World War 1 in November 1918, to relieve the town of German occupation.
Mr Key described the story of how the riflemen of the New Zealand infantry courageously mounted the fortified walls of the town as "a story worth retelling".
During his visit, Mr Key joined Mr Roault to visit the special memorial to the day that 122 New Zealanders died on 4 November, 1918, and retraced the path taken by the New Zealand soldiers 93 years ago. He walked with a large entourage from one side of the town to the other, viewing the large fortifications still in place.
"Being united in honouring our forebears who fought for us was deeply moving," Mr Key said.
At an official reception for Mr Key, Mr Roault said he wanted Mr Key to know and understand New Zealanders visiting the town were "automatically at home and anything that affects New Zealand, such as the Christchurch earthquakes, touches us here in Le Quesnoy".
Mr Roault said he hoped the ties between Le Quesnoy and New Zealand "will continue to grow even stronger into the future".
"Initiatives such as the launching of the building of a New Zealand museum and hotel in Le Quesnoy, to be jointly designed by French and New Zealand architects, will provide a more tangible aspect to this permanent relationship," he said.
Mr Key acknowledged the jointly driven local memorial project and said New Zealand drew comfort from the kiwi-friendly relationship provided in Le Quesnoy.
The memorial project would be partially funded by a public fund-raising project in New Zealand, where the public would be invited to donate $50 for memorial bricks for the museum and boutique hotel. The fund raising is being organised by a group of Auckland military historians led by Herb Farrant.
NZPA