New Zealand ‘Uncomfortable’ With Expanding Five Eyes to Confront China: NZ Foreign Minister
In a move likely to appease Beijing, New Zealand’s foreign minister is distancing the nation’s foreign policy away from close democratic allies, preferring to chart its own course on relations with the Chinese Communist Party (CCP).
Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta was speaking in her second major address since assuming office at the New Zealand China Council on Monday, where she outlined what the nation’s “contemporary relationship” with China would look like.
While Mahuta warned local exporters of the need to diversify their trade markets and raised concerns on Beijing’s expansion in the South Pacific, she indicated that the Ardern government preferred not to align with the Five Eyes’ nations on issues outside of intelligence-sharing.