Leaders of China, New Zealand discuss trade, Pacific security

The Star

3 hours ago

Visiting New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon with Chinese President Xi Jinping prior to their bilateral meeting in Beijing, on June 20, 2025. - AP
BEIJING/SYDNEY: The leaders of China and New Zealand discussed on Friday (June 20) the role of trade in boosting ties, while New Zealand also pressed its interests for peace and security in the Pacific, government statements showed.
President Xi Jinping and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon met in the capital's Great Hall of the People as China's influence grows in the Pacific, challenging the traditionally stronger security foothold many Western nations have had there.
On his first visit to China since taking office in November 2023, Luxon discussed the need for stability, less tension in the Indo-Pacific and New Zealand's "enduring support for Pacific-led priorities", his government said in a statement.
Luxon's meeting with the leader of New Zealand's biggest trade partner was "constructive", he said in a post on X.
"We discussed the depth of the New Zealand-China relationship - from trade and people-to-people ties to our shared global responsibilities," he said.
"In a complex world, open dialogue is more important than ever."
The remarks came after New Zealand aired concerns this year when Cook Islands, with which it has constitutional ties, signed pacts with China without first consulting it, including one for cooperation on the economy, infrastructure and seabed mining.
Luxon also backed up the role of the Pacific Islands Forum, an inter-government body seeking to foster cooperation among Oceanic countries and territories.
Without making specific reference to any issue, Xi called for both countries to seek common ground and view differences "accurately", state news agency Xinhua said.
"There are no historical grudges or conflicts of interest between China and New Zealand, so we should respect each other, seek common ground," Xi told Luxon, it said, adding that both must accurately look at and tackle disagreements.
During his four-day visit to the commercial hub of Shanghai and the capital, Beijing, Luxon has championed an agenda of boosting business, travel and education for New Zealand.
Xi also talked about deepening trade and investment ties, as well as scope to work on science and technology, climate change response and infrastructure along with education exchanges - echoing most of Luxon's goals.
Luxon documented his meetings on Instagram, posting video messages to fellow citizens reinforcing his mission of getting "money into your back pocket".
He clinched travel-related pacts and pushed New Zealand's tertiary education as well as its exports of meat, a key item of trade with China after dairy.
Its exports to China were NZ$20.85 billion ($12.51 billion) in 2024, comprising goods worth NZ$17.75 billion and services of NZ$3.1 billion, the foreign ministry said on its website.
Chinese tourists are New Zealand's third-largest group of international visitors, though official data show their numbers are still nearly a fifth lower than in 2019, before the Covid-19 pandemic.
China Eastern Airlines will launch more flights with New Zealand from December, the New Zealand government said on Wednesday.
Days before the visit, New Zealand unveiled a 12-month trial of visa waivers from November for Chinese passport holders arriving from Australia with valid visas from its neighbour. - Reuters