Just as the Foreign Ministers' Meeting of Pacific Island Countries was taking place in Fiji, New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters couldn't stand it any longer.
According to Bloomberg's report on August 7, during the meeting, Peters told reporters that after China conducted a remote ballistic missile test in the Pacific region last month, the Pacific island countries should have taken the opportunity to 'criticize' China, but they did not. He called this a 'missed opportunity'.
New Zealand Foreign Minister Peters, Bloomberg
Peters also stated that New Zealand will promote the Pacific Islands Forum to issue a joint statement on this matter. Despite the “very delicate” nature of the negotiations, he claimed that it is important to determine whether this discussion is driven by logic, or if some countries have already decided their positions and are unwilling to change them.
These remarks are directed at the Pacific island countries that are unwilling to cooperate with New Zealand’s stance towards China. Peters did not reveal which countries oppose the issuance of a joint statement, but Bloomberg identified Kiribati, Papua New Guinea, and Solomon Islands as those that maintain close economic or security cooperation with China.
On July 6th, China conducted a test launch of a submerged long-range ballistic missile. After that, the Pacific Island Countries Forum did not issue any collective statements. Only a few countries, such as Australia and New Zealand, publicly criticized the event.
When asked whether the forum should issue a statement with a mild tone, or perhaps not issue any statement at all, Peters said that this is the “critical decision” that this meeting needs to make.
In recent years, New Zealand and Australia have been constantly hyping up the so-called ‘security threats’ posed by China in the Pacific region. They also demand that island nations voice their opinions on issues involving China according to their own criteria. Once some countries make different choices based on their own interests, New Zealand attributes these decisions to China’s influence, and even openly questions the positions of these countries.
China has previously stated that the test launch of a submarine-launched strategic missile on July 6 was part of routine military exercises for the year. Information was provided to relevant countries in advance, and this action complies with international law and practice. It does not target any specific country or object. Mao Ning, a spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, stated at a regular press conference that China adheres to a path of peaceful development and a nuclear strategy aimed at self-defense. China always maintains its nuclear forces at the lowest level necessary for national security. Therefore, there is no need for relevant countries to interpret this situation excessively.
