【Text by Observers Network, Liu Bai】
Due to a cooperation agreement with China, the Cook Islands has drawn the attention of New Zealand for a long time, even being pressured by New Zealand half a year in advance.
New Zealand Radio (RNZ) noted on September 2 that official documents show that before the Cook Islands reached an agreement with China this year, New Zealand had been pressuring the Cook Islands for at least eight months to view the agreement it had reached with China. The report said that these agreements have now become the core issue of the dispute between the two sides, and New Zealand has also cut off the aid funds of 18.2 million New Zealand dollars (about 76.94 million Chinese yuan) to the Cook Islands.
Cook Islands Prime Minister Brown took a very firm stance, accusing New Zealand of "hypocrisy" and emphasizing that the main motivation for signing the agreement with China was to meet the financial and development needs of the Cook Islands.
The Cook Islands is an autonomous country in free association with New Zealand. It was a territory of New Zealand from 1901 to 1965. After 1965, the Cook Islands achieved internal complete autonomy, enjoying full legislative and administrative powers, but maintaining a "free association" with New Zealand, with defense and foreign affairs assisted by New Zealand.
In February this year, Brown visited China and signed several cooperation agreements covering areas such as deep-sea mining and education scholarships, but not including security relations.
China's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiajun emphasized at the time that China's cooperation with the Cook Islands does not target any third party and should not be interfered with by any third party, which is China's consistent position.
New Zealand still complained about it, stating that the Cook Islands did not consult with New Zealand appropriately before signing the document, thereby violating the agreement between the two countries. But Brown did not think so.
Prime Minister Brown of the Cook Islands (left) and New Zealand Foreign Minister Peters (right)
According to the latest communication documents released by the office of New Zealand's Foreign Minister Peters under the Official Information Act, New Zealand has been pressuring the Cook Islands for months regarding the China-related agreement, demanding to see the agreement the Cook Islands reached with China.
A brief in January stated, "The Cook Islands lack transparency in its foreign relations and have not consulted on mutual concerns and important matters, which is inconsistent with the requirements of the free association relationship." "Interactions with New Zealand on important strategic issues have significantly decreased."
The January brief specifically mentioned the comprehensive strategic partnership between China and the Cook Islands, pointing out that even as early as eight months ago, in May 2024, when Peters met with the Cook Islands Foreign Minister Elikana, he had already asked them to "share the text of the agreement."
The documents also mentioned that the New Zealand High Commissioner in Rarotonga conveyed New Zealand's "deep concern" during meetings with senior officials of the Cook Islands.
In late May, three months after Brown signed the agreement in Beijing, a New Zealand Foreign Ministry brief claimed that these agreements could "damage or threaten" certain parts of New Zealand's development assistance projects for the Cook Islands.
Although the documents released by Peters' office are heavily censored, they still reveal that New Zealand officials closely examined the aid projects, attempting to use this to pressure the Cook Islands.
Over the past three years, New Zealand has provided 194.2 million New Zealand dollars (approximately 817 million Chinese yuan) in aid to the Cook Islands through development assistance programs.
Finally, on June 19, Peters' office issued a statement, suspending the provision of 18.2 million New Zealand dollars in budget funding to the Cook Islands, citing the Cook Islands' deepening relationship with China.
"We will not consider providing substantial new funds until the Cook Islands government takes specific measures to repair the relationship and rebuild trust," the statement added. "New Zealand hopes that the Cook Islands will take swift measures to address New Zealand's concerns, so that this support can be resumed as soon as possible."
The report states that overall, these documents reveal key differences in the bilateral relationship between New Zealand and the Cook Islands. New Zealand believes that the actions of the Cook Islands and its leader Brown directly violate the obligations under the autonomy and free association arrangements.
"A continued attitude of resistance indicates that Prime Minister Brown and his core advisors fundamentally differ from New Zealand on the nature of the constitutional relationship," a brief from March stated. "They believe that despite the free association, shared citizenship, and shared sovereignty, the Cook Islands is still a completely sovereign independent state. They argue that the free association relationship should not constrain the Cook Islands. We completely disagree with this."
The brief also recommended that New Zealand should make it more explicit that if the Cook Islands government continues to lack meaningful interaction, it will be seen as a signal that it is no longer committed to developing the 'free association'.
Later, Peters even urged Brown to hold a referendum, allowing the people of the Cook Islands to decide whether to continue their 'free association' with New Zealand.
Facing relentless pressure, Brown criticized New Zealand as "hypocritical". He emphasized that New Zealand also did not consult with the Cook Islands when developing its own foreign affairs.
He also emphasized that the main motive for signing the agreement with China was to meet the financial and development needs of the Cook Islands.
The Cook Islands Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration previously stated in a statement that there was a disagreement in understanding the obligation of consultation, and the issue was currently being urgently addressed. The Cook Islands is committed to restoring a high level of trust in the relationship with New Zealand and expressing gratitude for the aid from New Zealand.
"The Cook Islands has consistently emphasized that New Zealand remains our closest partner in terms of security and defense, and this position has not changed."
The statement also said that both sides have established a formal dialogue mechanism and held two meetings, and are conducting risk control assessments on the agreements signed by the Cook Islands with China, and have made progress.
It is worth noting that the Cook Islands is not the only victim of New Zealand's hegemonic thinking. In January this year, New Zealand also stopped development assistance to Kiribati in Micronesia.
Despite this, these noises have not affected China's deepening cooperation with Pacific Island countries.
On May 29, the third Foreign Ministers' Meeting between China and the Pacific Island countries that have established diplomatic relations was successfully concluded in Xiamen, Fujian, sending a strong message of win-win cooperation.
"Such a ministerial-level meeting may be one of the most important activities for Pacific Island countries outside the region. China can give them a lot, while Australia and the United States cannot," according to Artyom Galin, a researcher at the Center for Southeast Asia, Australia, and Oceania at the Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences. For Pacific Island countries, China is different from the United States, a global stable security island, a country that is easy to understand, predictable, and committed to mutually beneficial cooperation.
Galin emphasized that China will not "interfere" with how countries in Oceania behave. Instead, China will propose some practical cooperation initiatives to jointly promote economic development and humanitarian projects. For these countries, discussing matters with China is very important, especially facing the tariff pressures from the United States.
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Original: https://www.toutiao.com/article/7545369393044963894/
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