Chinese media reacts to Winston Peters' Beijing visit

Head of the International Department of the Chinese Communist Party, Liu Jianchao, giving Winston Peters a tour of a traditional Chinese Siheyuan courtyard building

New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters’ recent visit to China came amidst a flurry of news and opinion articles in New Zealand reflecting concern about the security implications of recently signed agreements between China and the Cook Islands and unease at live-fire exercises by the People’s Liberation Army Navy in the Tasman Sea.

Reports on Peters’ visit, which included meetings with China’s Foreign Minister Wang Yi (王毅), Vice President Han Zheng (韩正), and head of the International Department of the Chinese Communist Party, Liu Jianchao (刘建超), tended to highlight these areas of tension.

Peters’ reflection while in Beijing that a lack of sufficient notice from China before its live-fire exercises represented a “failure” in the relationship provided a ready headline for the immediate coverage of the visit.

In China, news and opinion articles on Peters’ visit generally emphasised the strength and longevity of the New Zealand-China relationship. This was summed up by Wang Yi’s reported comments to Peters that “New Zealand-China relations have maintained healthy and stable development. For a long time, the relationship has been at the forefront of China’s relationships with Western countries and has resulted in many ‘firsts’” (中新关系保持健康稳定发展，长期走在中国同西方国家关系前列，创下多个“第一”).

China’s Foreign Minister, Wang Yi: "New Zealand-China relations have maintained healthy and stable development"

Several articles on the Peters’ visit carried the assertion, not uncommon in Chinese media, that China-New Zealand relations are a model for China’s relationships with other Western countries.

On The Paper (澎湃新闻), it was noted that “in the more than 50 years since China and New Zealand established diplomatic relations, the relationship has become a model for the development of mutually beneficial and cooperative relations between China and developed countries” (中新建交50多年来，两国关系已经成为中国同发达国家发展互利合作关系的典范). A similar sentiment was expressed in the Global Times.

Most commonly, coverage of Peters’ visit consisted of republished or summarised versions of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) readout of the meeting between Peters and Wang. Peters’ meetings with Han Zheng and Liu Jianchao received little media attention.  

The reproductions and summaries of the MOFA readout were widely published and focused on China’s willingness to work with New Zealand to strengthen their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. They emphasised “adhering to mutual respect” (坚持相互尊重), “focusing on mutually beneficial co-operation” (聚焦互利合作) and “strengthening dialogue and exchange” (加强对话交流).

Most publications' coverage of Peters’ visit consisted of republished or summarised versions of the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MOFA) readout of the meeting between Peters and Wang

Peters was said to have highlighted China’s position as an “important cooperative partner” (重要合作伙伴), the progress made in the relationship since the signing of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership in 2014, New Zealand’s adherence to the One China Policy, and its hopes of further strengthening ties with China.

While there was little mention of disagreements, the articles that carried the full MOFA readout did record a comment by Wang that “specific differences […] can be properly resolved through constructive dialogue” (具体分歧 […] 可通过建设性对话妥善解决).

A small number of articles went beyond the readout and explored recent “differences” in greater detail, but generally placed them in the context of an enduringly strong relationship.  

Winston Peters meeting with China's vice president, Han Zheng

On the issue of China’s live-fire drills in the Tasman Sea, there was a consensus in the Chinese media that Beijing’s behaviour had been entirely responsible. New Zealand’s complaints about the amount of advance notice given were absent or only vaguely alluded to. There was no mention of the commercial flights that had to be redirected because of the drills.

In an article on Tencent (腾讯网), Zhang Xuekun (张学昆), an associate professor at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, stated that “the People’s Liberation Army’s actions had been in strict compliance with international law, issuing safety announcements in advance, and avoiding civil aviation routes” (解放军此次行动严格遵守国际法，提前发布安全通告并避让民航航线).

According to Chen Hong (陈弘), director of the New Zealand Studies Centre at East China Normal University, “New Zealand […] acknowledged that China had been compliant with international law, but some people have used the situation to send a hardline signal to China” (新西兰方[…]承认中方遵守国际法，但一些人借此发挥，发出对华强硬信号).

China’s agreements with the Cook Islands were registered as an issue of concern for New Zealand. This was generally done with minimal explanation of what New Zealand took issue with beyond its position that the Cook Islands had not “engaged in satisfactory consultation” (进行令人满意的磋商) with it before signing the agreements.

The New Zealand delegation (left) in talks with the their Chinese counterparts led by Foreign Minister Wang Yi

The article by Zhang Xuekun came closest to articulating New Zealand’s concerns, albeit in the process of dismissing them.

Zhang held that China “does not intend” (不打算) to interfere in the Cook Islands’ “internal affairs” (内政) and the two countries have not signed a security-related agreement.

In Zhang’s opinion, “New Zealand has used ‘possible military use’ as a reason to exert pressure and discredit China-Cook Islands cooperation” (新西兰却以“军事用途可能”为由施压，抹黑中库合作).

Further, Zhang argued, “New Zealand’s overreaction will only accelerate aversion towards Western hegemonic logic among countries in the region, harming New Zealand’s interests” (新西兰的过度反应，只会加速地区国家对西方霸权逻辑的反感，不利于新西兰自身的利益)

Tensions in the relationship were generally blamed on New Zealand or the meddling of other Western countries.

In The Paper, Tian Jingling (田京灵), an associate research fellow at the China Institutes of Contemporary International Relations, attributed recent tensions to “adjustments” (调整) in New Zealand’s foreign policy, representing Wellington’s more securitised view of the world.

Tensions in the relationship were generally blamed on New Zealand or the meddling of other Western countries

Tian stated that “in fact, we would prefer that New Zealand's greater consideration of security or other issues does not lead it to take actions that undermine cooperation between China and New Zealand” (我们其实更希望新西兰不要因为更多考虑到安全或是其他一些什么原因，采取一些行动破坏中新两国之间的合作).

In the Global Times, Chen Hong blamed politicians and media in New Zealand and Australia for “hyping up the ‘China threat theory’” (炒作“中国威胁论”) and “seriously interfering” (严重干扰) with both countries’ relationship with China. New Zealand should, Chen argued, “look at China as a friend and partner, not as a rival” (将中国视为朋友和伙伴，而非对手).

In another Global Times article, Chen Xiaochen (陈晓晨), deputy director at East China Normal University’s Institute for International and Area Studies, identified the influence of the United States and other Western countries in New Zealand politics as a major reason for the “ups and downs” (波折) experienced in China’s relationship with New Zealand.

Chinese media coverage of Peters’ visit to China, though not extensive, reflected how differently New Zealand and Chinese media sometimes depict the bilateral relationship.

When it comes to areas of disagreement, these depictions can be mutually incompatible. With Prime Minister Luxon potentially heading to Beijing later this year, we expect to see these issues resurface and will be paying close attention to how they are framed in New Zealand and Chinese media. 

• Read Winston Peters' opening remarks in meeting with China Foreign Minister

The Foundation's Asia in Focus initiative publishes expert insights and analysis on issues across Asia, as well as New Zealand’s evolving relationship with the region.