PM visit to Beijing seen as contributing to regional stability after pandemic

The visit of New Zealand Prime Minister Chris Hipkins to China starting Sunday is expected to enhance bilateral relations and contribute to post-pandemic regional stability, according to analysts.

The six-day visit, the first by a New Zealand prime minister in four years, will provide a "valuable chance for both countries to discuss a wide range of issues directly and openly", said Executive Director of the New Zealand China Council, Alistair Crozier.

He said it was also an opportunity for the prime minister and the 29-member trade delegation traveling with him "to understand how China's economy and society have further evolved over the last few years, and how this could impact our important bilateral trade and business relationship".

"I'm looking forward to meeting with China's leadership through various face-to-face bilateral meetings," Hipkins said in a statement on June 19. "China represents nearly a quarter of all our exports, was our second-largest source of tourists pre-COVID and is a significant source of international students, so it's a critical part of our economic recovery."

The New Zealand delegation traveling with the prime minister will include representatives from the tourism and education sectors which were severely hit by the COVID-19 pandemic. Before the pandemic, China was the major source of foreign students and tourists.

Jason Young, associate professor of political science and international relations at Victoria University in Wellington, New Zealand, said the positive is resuming in-person high-level meetings that have been disrupted by the pandemic.

"These are important for strengthening cooperation and managing issues in the bilateral relationship as well as for signaling direction in the relationship with people and businesses," he said.

There are a number of important in-person official dialogues on the Pacific, climate change and foreign affairs that are important for exploring areas of future cooperation and managing bilateral and regional challenges, added Young, also director of the university's New Zealand Contemporary China Research Center.

A spokesman for Export NZ said one of the issues the Chinese are expected to raise in talks with Prime Minister Hipkins will be China's application to join the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership, or CPTPP, which involves 11 countries.

In a statement issued after meeting New Zealand Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta in Beijing in late March, China's Foreign Minister Qin Gang said: "China is ready to work with New Zealand to continue the sound momentum of high-level exchanges and increase political mutual trust."

Delivering benefits

Mahuta said the New Zealand-China comprehensive strategic partnership goes beyond the scope of economy and trade, and delivers tangible benefits to the two sides. And New Zealand is firmly committed to the one-China policy, and expects to strengthen high-level interactions and cultural and people-to-people exchanges, expand cooperation in various fields, and leave more stories of success.

The two countries have been on good terms since the establishment of diplomatic relations in December 1972.

Qin said the two sides "should earnestly follow through on the common understandings and strive for greater development of the China-New Zealand comprehensive strategic partnership in the new era".

David Wu, a local Chinese businessman who has engaged in sectors, including healthcare products and real estate, said the Chinese community in New Zealand believes the PM's visit can bring tangible benefits to both sides.

The two countries' advantages have been complementary, he said. China has strengths in infrastructure construction, transport, etc, while New Zealand has an edge in dairy, bee products, other agricultural produce, as well as seafood and wine.

China is going to be a fundamental trading partner for this country for the foreseeable future, Peter Chrisp, chief executive of government-funded international business development agency New Zealand Trade and Enterprise, was recently quoted as saying by a Reuters report.

Contact the writers at karlwilson@chinadailyapac.com