Opinion | New Zealand is unlikely to lift ban on Huawei and woo the Chinese back

China has put its relationship with New Zealand on ice, after Wellington banned Huawei. While New Zealanders would not want their government to blindly follow the US’ China policy, they also would not accept a subservient relationship with China

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Terracotta warrior lanterns are on display outside Museum of New Zealand in Wellington. Photo: Xinhua

Published: 7:00pm, 26 Feb 2019Updated: 7:55pm, 26 Feb 2019

New Zealand is currently facing the most challenging diplomatic situation since the end of the cold war.

Until 2015, New Zealand’s commitment to a liberal rules-based order and determination to pursue an independent foreign policy had helped the country develop close ties with the two superpowers of the 21st century.

In particular, New Zealand’s relationship with China has been a major success story. In 2008, New Zealand became the first developed country to enter into a free trade agreement with China. Since then, China has become New Zealand’s biggest trade partner, with two-way trade valued at more than NZ$28 billion (US$19 billion) in 2018, and Chinese investment in New Zealand growing apace.

Chinese are New Zealand's second-largest and fastest-growing tourism market after Australians, and more than 400,000 Chinese visited the country in 2016.

China’s President Xi Jinping and New Zealand’s Prime Minister John Key are escorted to lunch by a Maori warrior in Auckland in November 2014. During Xi’s visit, the two countries announce their “comprehensive strategic partnership”. Photo: Reuters

China and New Zealand elevated their ties to a “comprehensive strategic partnership” in 2014, which promotes bilateral cooperation, including working constructively in the Pacific region.