SYDNEY (Reuters) – The Cook Islands said on Saturday that it signed a comprehensive strategic partnership deal with China – a move expected to raise concerns in New Zealand with which it has constitutional ties.
The deal was signed by Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown during a visit to Beijing.
Brown said this month that he was heading to China seeking a partnership in national development including infrastructure, trade and the economy – drawing ire from New Zealand, which is increasingly cautious about China’s growing presence in the Pacific region.
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A spokesperson for Brown said a comprehensive strategic partnership deal had been signed with China, without providing details. A media statement would be issued later on Saturday, the spokesperson added.
The office of New Zealand Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters said in a statement on Saturday that “once available, New Zealand will consider the agreements closely, in light of our interests and our mutual constitutional responsibilities”.
The Cook Islands, a self-governing Pacific country which sits halfway between New Zealand and Hawaii, can interact with the international community as an independent state. But New Zealand provides budget support and commits to defend the island nation, whose people are New Zealand citizens.
New Zealand has said its concerns about Brown’s visit to China stem from not having seen the agreements that he plans to sign ahead of the trip, even though it asked to review them.
In China, Brown has held talks with institutions on marine science, climate resilience and economic cooperation, he said in a Facebook post on Thursday.
(Reporting by Sam McKeith in Sydney; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)
Mark Brown, strategic partnership, Cook Islands, New Zealand, China
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