Xi Jinping praises ‘friend’ NZ at meeting with Prime Minister Chris Hipkins | CPT PPP Coverage
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Xi Jinping praises ‘friend’ NZ at meeting with Prime Minister Chris Hipkins appeared on www.skynews.com.au by Reilly Sullivan.
Xi Jinping has praised the “great importance” of China’s relationship with its “friend and partner” New Zealand during his first sit-down meeting with Prime Minister Chris Hipkins.
Mr Hipkins is on a five-day visit to China, his first since becoming Prime Minister, to promote trade amid growing geopolitical tensions.
“China always views New Zealand as a friend and a partner,” President Xi told reporters as the two leaders met in the Great Hall of the People.
“Both countries should continue to see each other as partners rather than adversaries and opportunities rather than threats,” the Chinese leader said in remarks published by local outlet Xinhua.
“Your visit this time is very meaningful,” Mr Xi added, addressing Mr Hipkins directly.
“The international community, especially countries in our region, have been following your visit very closely.”
In turn, Mr Hipkins emphasised the “significant” relationship between the two countries and called for stronger “bilateral ties”.
“New Zealand’s relationship with China is one of our most significant and wide-ranging, so I was pleased to meet President Xi and reaffirm our important bilateral ties,” he said.
Tuesday’s visit was the first time New Zealand’s prime minister has met with Mr Xi since Jacinda Ardern had a meeting with the President on the sidelines of the APEC summit in Bangkok last November.
China has grown to become New Zealand’s largest trading partner in goods and second largest trading partner in services after the country recognised the communist-led People‘s Republic of China (PRC) in December 1972.
Supposedly, then-Prime Minister Norman Kirk hesitated recognising the communist government until his second term but changed his mind after his Australian counterpart Gough Whitlam normalised ties with the PRC.
Four years later, Robert Muldoon became the first New Zealand Prime Minister to visit Beijing, where he met with Premier Hua Guofeng and Chairman Mao Zedong.
Mr Hipkins and Mr Xi’s friendly visit on Tuesday contrasts with China’s frostier relationship with Canberra following a raft of trade sanctions on Australian exports introduced in 2020 and 2021.
The escalating trade war was likely sparked after then-prime minister Scott Morrison endorsed an inquiry into the origins of COVID-19, which angered China.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has not made a trip to Beijing since becoming leader in May 2022 but is expected to make his first official visit to China later this year.
The Albanese government is under growing pressure from the Coalition to negotiate the abolition of China’s trade sanctions before agreeing to a date.
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This article originally appeared on www.skynews.com.au by Reilly Sullivan – sharing via newswires in the public domain, repeatedly. News articles have become eerily similar to manufacturer descriptions.
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