Wellington | New Zealand has suspended millions of dollars in budget funding to the Cook Islands, it said on Thursday, as the relationship between the two constitutionally linked countries continues to deteriorate amid the island group’s deepening ties with China.
A spokesperson for Foreign Minister Winston Peters said in a statement that New Zealand had decided in early June to suspend payment of $NZ18.2 million ($16.8 million) in core sector support funding for 2025-26 as this “relies on a high trust bilateral relationship”.
