Mark Brown on China deal: ‘No need for New Zealand to sit in the room with us’
The Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown says New Zealand is asking for too much oversight over its deal with China, which is expected to be penned in Beijing next week.
Brown told RNZ Pacific the Cook Islands-New Zealand relationship was reciprocal.
“They certainly did not consult with us when they signed their comprehensive partnership agreement [with China] and we would not expect them to consult with us,” he said.
“There is no need for New Zealand to sit in the room with us while we are going through our comprehensive agreement with China.
“We have advised them on the matter, but as far as being consulted and to the level of detail that they were requiring, I think that’s not a requirement.”
This.
Is.
Completely.
Unacceptable.
“There is no need for New Zealand to sit in the room with us while we are going through our comprehensive agreement with China.
Ummmmm.
Yes.
Yes we should be in the room and you shouldn’t be even thinking of this without negotiation with us first BECAUSE the Cook Islands is part of the Realm of NZ, constitutionally we are bonded and this represents a perverse encroachment by China into our affairs.
This is the crisis that Winston Peters was born for, we need Winston right now to escalate this issue the way he has been forced with Kiribati.
If our Pacific Neighbours want to trade in their whanau links with us in New Zealand and all the goodwill that brings for a despotic Communist Authoritarian regime who will over run them and rob them of their economic sovereignty and mana, they are welcome to, but don’t expect New Zealand to be quiet about such a tragic and doomed choice.
It is also a burning reminder that while we don’t want to be anywhere near Trump’s America, we can’t pretend China is no longer benign and we urgently need to wake up to the influence of Chinese business interests in New Zealand and our Trade dependence on Beijing driven by a Farming lobby with far too much political muscle and no Plan B.
Having an Independent Foreign Policy demands we spend more on our military.
Neutrality and a far more savvy economic sovereignty platform should be our goal rather than being dictated to by Xi or Trump.
That fight begins in our Pacific Neighbourhood.
The Cook Islands is constitutionally part of the Realm of NZ, that they are cutting a secret deal with the Chinese without talking to us about it is an enormous slap in the face to NZ from an Island that is our constitutional responsibility to help them with defense, foreign affairs, and disasters!
This deal with China is VERY MUCH inside our wheel house and without any oversight or agreement with us represents a National Security issue.
I am not surprised the media aren’t leading with this because the media are very stupid.
This is a political crisis in our Realm which most journalists in news rooms don’t know existed in the first place.
Increasingly having independent opinion in a mainstream media environment which mostly echo one another has become more important than ever, so if you value having an independent voice – please donate here.
Yep China’s been quietly applying soft power through everywhere from South America, Middle East, Africa, Pacific. First they come with their trade, then their ports, then their war ships; that’s how it works.
China wants to expand in the pacific and partnering with these small and dependent Island nations is low hanging fruit for them to escape from the West’s containment posture against China.
I wonder if Trump will try to coerce NZ to make the Cook Islands change their decision if we would like to get into AUKUS similar to how they forced Panama to.
I certainly wouldn’t blame the Chinese. The Cook Islands PM doesn’t appear to understand the basics of his role. Although the Cook Islands are a drain on our hard working taxpayers, the PM knows we won’t retaliate by cutting funding. He needs a kick up the back side from the King (or Camilla?)
I agree 100%
Kim Hill would have been onto this and I suspect she would even agree with your summation that Winston is born for this sort of crisis.
Ok then if it’s so important where is “ wally “ sorry Winston . Is he getting over his hangover or still looking for some ferries sunshine
Aonz foreign policy should be based on our location and leadership role in Polynesia. Winston is perfectly endowed to drive such a policy if he could untangle his own tendency towards
a colonial view and the bone headed thinking of his coalition partners.
New Zealand doesn’t ask for oversight from the Cook Islands with our agreement with China so why should the Cook Islands. Peters trying to play the big brother bully here when he is but a speck of dust compared to China. Butt out I say.
We don’t have to do that because we are the senior member in that relationship, we are Constitutionally obliged to oversea their foreign policy, it’s not the other around – the Cook Islands don’t have any right to influence NZs interacts.
What’s your point, though? Winston Peters has no interest in being a ‘nice bigger brother’, he’s just a zionist puppet. He has no right to tell human beings what to do.
Mark Brown is a politician and so his main motivation is :” What is in it for me?” THEREFORE he does not desire oversight from Aotearoa, or even his own people, when negotiating his paycheck with China.
100% this is very serious put this way, thank you. So where is the noise from our government? Peters? The other thing is while NZ has not immediately compensated the villagers in Samoa who can no longer fend for themselves fishing for their livilhood, the embassy of China in Samoa has given them $30,000. This is totally crappy, what the fuck is NZ doing here. When the PM was in Samoa he didn’t even bother to visit this community, apologize it give any immediate compensation. Wake up dumb ass government, you are losing hearts and minds in the Pacific at a rapid rate and guess who is stepping in.
Simple:
Provide a ultimatum: sign the deal and lose NZ citizenship, all aid and also slap a $250 departure tax on all flights to Rarotonga to recoup sunk costs.
Then watch the Cooks come scuttling back.
Alas no political actors in this country have the appetite for transactional diplomacy.
FTT, if we cut the funding, the Cook Islands government will ask China for support. I suspect NZ won’t actually want that.
Chinese sellouts like Helen Clark, John Key, Mike Smith and Don Brash set us up for this passive hostile takeover. Mahuta was missing in action fir 6 years.
I disagree with you on one point though – there is no such thing as an independent foreign policy, we are either with the west and US or with China and Russia. That is todays world.
With the West….you obviously don’t have a clue about the emerging multipolar world. Do you really think China, India and Russia are friends? Or that EC countries are anything but US vassals?
Thats what happens when you treat people like rubbish and just a source of cheap labour for decades .Nz has just bossed them around for our benefit .The only time we showed any care was during covid when we had a caring government .No we have white supremist government that is shedding its brown ministers and senior public servants such as Maggie Appa .The point that the PM could not even bother to visit the Samoan village where we are dumping a ship to rot ,yet China could donate 30k which is not a lot but better than what we never gain .
Yep
Maybe we and Oz need to have a hard look at our engagement with the Pacific. We were first cabs off the rank, it reflects on our efforts or lack thereof that China even has an audience.
Well said Nick, bit of imperialism going on. I’d have thought it behoves the Cook Island Govt to do the best in the interests of its citizens. If nz and aus aren’t offering the best then so be it.
This seems to be lost on many here Nick J and Johnr. Many are putting blame on the Cook Island government.
It’s akin to being offered the same job by different companies except one is offering you a much better deal, lifestyle etc, what would you do?
The Pacific is a giant game board, China is playing Go while the West is playing Checkers.
What’s up with MFAT that this is a surprise?
The New Zealand government is cosying up to a “despotic American Authoritarian regime” which must make the Cook Islanders feel rather uncomfortable. It probably makes the majority of New Zealanders feel uncomfortable as well, though there is not much the New Zealand public can do about it. However the people of the Cook Islands have a degree of autonomy from New Zealand, and it seems they are prepared to use it. Good on them. The US is a rogue state. By contrast, in its external relations the PRC is a model of political sobriety and conformity to the rules-based order. The Cooks are making the right decision. New Zealand is not.
Yes, so it would be seeming to play out with Trump, Musk etc al and project 25 taking over and wreaking havoc over the people of the US and in the world, rattling sabers and generally taking the piss in revisiting white imperialism, threatening countries left right and center. All in two weeks of taking power. China seems the very picture of a saner form of government in comparison, political prisoners and oppression of its peoples and censorship not withstanding. They use soft power, Trump is the opposite. The middle kingdom may rise again as Trump destroys the US…so if you pay tribute and keep your mouth shut China may be the better option.
it’s either the chinese or the russians – yanks fuck around too much. mine the nodules. relieve the burden of tourism and fisheries on the community. NZ should invest in the Cook Islands. Get in first. Matua Shane up there doing seabed mining. We could all profit from a small part of the sea bed that we will never see or be able to protect. take it now while it’s there. fuck greenpeace and I vote green. progressive for a reason, conservative for a reason. amen.
‘LOL, have you visited China recently? Its visa free now.’
Yes foreigners should try travelling through Xinjiang or Tibet outside of a state organised tour group.
When I was working in China I had a work permit saying I could freely visit all parts of the country.
I believed it and was picked up at the police checkpoint into Tibet.
The police there told me they did not care what my visa said, I was getting on the next bus to Lanzhou.
I was in China again last year,nothing changed, same gang of thugs in charge. Same propagandists here.
Comments are closed.