By Lucy Kramer
WELLINGTON (Reuters) – The Chinese embassy in New Zealand has slammed New Zealand Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern for comments she made at a NATO summit about Chinese assertiveness, calling them “misleading” and “wrong”.
Ardern said in Madrid on Wednesday that China has “recently also become more assertive and more willing to challenge international rules and norms”.
“We have taken note of the relevant comment made by the New Zealand side at the NATO session, which included some false accusations against China,” an embassy spokesman said in a statement on its website on Thursday. “This statement is wrong and therefore regrettable.
“It is obvious that such a comment is not beneficial for deepening mutual trust between the two countries,” the statement said.
New Zealand, which is heavily dependent on China for trade, often avoids direct criticism of Beijing.
However, it has recently hardened its tone on both security and Beijing’s growing presence in the South Pacific following the recent signing of a security pact between China and the nearby Solomon Islands.
The embassy statement also referred to Ardern’s comments about attempts to disrupt and destabilize the Pacific and said any escalation of tensions in the Pacific “cannot be caused by China’s cooperation with its island partners to advance sustainable development “.
Such cooperation has nothing to do with the militarization of the region, the statement said. “If militarization does exist in the South Pacific, it is clear to all who and what is fueling such tensions.”
(Reporting by Lucy Cramer; Editing by Richard Poulin)
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