Beijing Criticises US-New Zealand Joint Statement, Threatens NZ Trade

Beijing Criticises US-New Zealand Joint Statement, Threatens NZ Trade
US President Joe Biden (R) meets with Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, of New Zealand, in the Oval Office of the White House in Washington, on May 31, 2022. Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images
Rebecca Zhu
Updated:

Beijing has slammed the joint statement by the New Zealand and the United States governments that expressed “grave concerns” on the Chinese Communist Party’s (CCP) human rights violation record and its current bid to expand influence in the Pacific region.

China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian claimed the statement smeared the CCP’s “cooperation” with Pacific Island countries and that issues in relation to Taiwan, Xinjiang, and Hong Kong were “internal affairs.”