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Chinese Premier Li Qiang to visit New Zealand as the country eyes Aukus defence pact
- New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon says he looks forward to ‘warmly welcoming’ Li amid ‘challenging global outlook’
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Chinese Premier Li Qiang will visit New Zealand this week, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said on Monday.
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Luxon said he looked forward to “warmly welcoming” Li in New Zealand this week and his visit would be a “valuable opportunity for exchanges on areas of cooperation between New Zealand and China”.
“New Zealand and China engage where we have shared interests, and we speak frankly and constructively with each other where we have differences. Our relationship is significant, complex and resilient,” Luxon said.
“The challenging global outlook makes it vital that we are sharing perspectives and engaging China on key issues that matter to New Zealand.”
Luxon added that his country aimed to “expand trade everywhere” and that he was “confident that trade with China will continue to grow”, while also noting that his focus was on “peace and stability” in the Indo-Pacific region.
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The visit is expected to include bilateral talks and an official dinner in Wellington. Li is also expected to have engagements in Auckland focused on business, agritech, education and people-to-people connections.
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