New Zealand Prime Minister Michael Joseph Savage attended, with High Commissioner Bill Jordan and civil servant Carl Berendsen (who recalled that neither Ireland or South Africa were represented). The New Zealand government was opposed to appeasement and Italy's invasion of Abyssinia (Ethiopia). Savage criticised appeasement at the conference, saying "Is your policy peace at any price; if it is so I cannot accept it". Anthony Eden replied "No, not at any price, but peace at almost any price", to which Savage replied: "You can pay too high a price even for peace".