Rt Hon Winston Peters
Deputy Prime Minister
Minister of Foreign Affairs

26 February 2025

Opening remarks by New Zealand Foreign Minister Winston Peters in meeting with China Foreign Minister Wang Yi, in Beijing on 26 February 2025:

Thank you, Minister, for your warm welcome tonight.

It is a pleasure to return to Beijing, after our last visit in 2018. And thank you for your hospitality then, as now, and to a number of people on your side whose faces we recognise across many, many years.

This reciprocates your visit to Wellington last year. Our personal connection, built over many years, enables us to exchange candid perspectives on developments in our long-standing bilateral relationship and to continue to build our mutual understanding.

The New Zealand-China relationship continues to benefit, as you said, from our mutually beneficial and significant trade and economic relationship and the comprehensive, regular two-way exchanges by our people, which are again growing following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Our relationship also benefits from a resilient bilateral architecture that has been built up over many years of hard work and commitment by both sides, from regular high-level political exchanges to technical dialogues covering issues from trade and agriculture, to education, science and innovation, and indeed the environment.

Our long-standing connection enables our frank and comprehensive discussions on areas of disagreement, including those that stem from our different histories and different systems. Indeed, it is a sign of healthy relationships that we can and do express disagreement on important issues.

For New Zealand, you will be well aware of our ambition for the Pacific region to be peaceful, prosperous, and focused on Pacific-led institutions and solutions. Our connections to the Pacific are deep, particularly in the Realm of New Zealand which includes the Cook Islands, Niue and Tokelau. Indeed, it’s in the name: Pacific.

Alongside this, our deep and abiding support for the rules-based international order and stable security, defence, and political engagement in the Indo-Pacific region are fundamental to our interests.

Turning to the global picture, we are meeting at a time of great uncertainty and strain, with the conflict in Ukraine having just entered its fourth year, and the Middle East turning to rebuild and addressing the immense humanitarian need on the ground.

Our dialogue with China on bilateral, regional and international issues is more important than ever. We encourage China to use its influence, weight and role as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council to work towards resolution of global issues.

We look forward to discussing these matters further with you this evening and in the following years.

Thank you.

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