Winston Peters and Mark Brown. Photo: RNZ/Pacific Islands Forum/123RF
New Zealand has paused nearly $20m of core sector support funding for the Cook Islands, after its government signed partnership agreements with China earlier this year without consulting New Zealand.
The Foreign Affairs minister informed the Cook Islands government of the decision in early June.
However, it only became public on Thursday (19 June) after media reports in the Cook Islands.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon is currently in China on his first official visit, and is due to meet with President Xi Jinping shortly.
The Cook Islands operates in free association with New Zealand.
It governs its own affairs, but New Zealand provides assistance with foreign affairs (upon request), disaster relief, and defence.
The 2001 Joint Centenary Declaration signed between the two nations requires them to consult each other on defence and security, which Winston Peters said had not been lived up to.
In February, Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown signed a "comprehensive strategic partnership" with China, said he had not consulted with New Zealand over the deals or ensured shared interests were not put at risk.
New Zealand reviewed its development programme in the Cook Islands as a result, and in early June informed Brown the funding would be paused.
Over the past three years, New Zealand has provided nearly $200 million to the Cook Islands through the development programme, which Peters said relied on a "high-trust relationship."
The amount on pause is $18.2m in development assistance for the 2025/26 financial year.
Speaking to reporters on Thursday morning, Peters said the Cook Islands had failed to give satisfactory answers to New Zealand's questions about its agreement with China, and so the decision to pause the funding was made.
"We have made it very clear in our response to statements that were being made ... what New Zealand's position is, on behalf of the Cook Islands people who we have responsibilities to, and above all to the New Zealand taxpayers to whom we are answerable," he said.
Officials would be working through what the Cook Islands had to do so New Zealand was satisfied the funding could resume.
"When we made this decision, we said to them our senior officials need to work on clearing up this misunderstanding and confusion about our arrangements and about our relationship," Peters said.
Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown, left, and Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters in Rarotonga on 8 February 2024. Photo: RNZ Pacific / Eleisha Foon
Not connected with China' - Peters
Asked about the timing of Luxon's visit to China, and what he thought the response from China might be, Peters said the decision to pause the funding was not connected to China.
"It's connected with our special relationship with the Cook Islands, like we have with Niue, like we have in a different setting with Tokelau islands. These things go back decades and decades and decades."
He said he had raised the matter with his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi, when he last visited China in February, and said Wang understood New Zealand's relationship with the Cook Islands.
Peters earlier this year said there was an expectation the Cook Islands government would not pursue policies that are "significantly at variance with New Zealand's interests" and has a responsibility to "fully and meaningfully" consult New Zealand on all major international actions.
Cook Islanders also hold New Zealand passports entitling them to live and work in the country.
The Cook Island's government floated the idea of its citizens having their own passports.
However, that was dropped after New Zealand warned it would threaten the two countries' constitutional ties.
'Deeply concerned' - Cook Islands opposition
Cook Islands opposition leader Tina Browne was "deeply concerned" about New Zealand pausing funding to the Pacific nation, and wants answers from her own Prime Minister.
Browne said she was informed of the funding pause on Wednesday night by local media, and was worried about the indication from Peters that it might affect future funding.
She has requested full copies of the agreements with China to probe what the issues might be and what impact they might have on funding to the Cook Islands.
"The Prime Minister's been leading the country to think everything with New Zealand is being repaired, hunky-dory etc, trust is still there. Wham bam, we get this in the Cook Island News this morning, what does that tell you?"
"The indication from the spokesperson of the foreign affairs minister in New Zealand is that depending on how we move forward, it may affect future funding as well.
"Am I concerned? Deeply concerned, what is next?" she said.
Loss of NZ funding 'surprising' for Cook Islanders
Cook Islands News editor Rashkeel Kumar, who broke the story, told Midday Report the committee tasked to scrutinise their government's budget briefly mentioned concern with the declining funding from New Zealand which made up "quite a core of the budget", which sparked him to look into it further.
He said the funding from New Zealand usually goes towards supporting the Cook Island's public sector for areas such as health, education and tourism.
"It was surprising for a lot of people because this was something that hasn't come to the public attention," Kumar said.
While news outlets have not heard from the Cook Island government yet, a ministerial statement on the funding pause is expected in Parliament on Friday, Kumar said.
Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero, a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
