China agrees to consider concerns about live-fire drills, NZ says

Beijing: China has agreed to consider concerns that its military did not give enough notice before staging live-fire exercises in the waters between New Zealand and Australia last week, the foreign minister of New Zealand has said.

The drills prompted passenger flights between the two countries to divert mid-flight after Chinese naval vessels warned pilots they were flying above a live-fire exercise.

People’s Liberation Army-Navy Renhai-class cruiser Zunyi, and Fuchi-class replenishment vessel Weishanhu in the Tasman Sea.Credit: Australian Defence Force

“I think it would be true to say that he took our concerns on board,” Foreign Minister Winston Peters said after meeting his Chinese counterpart Wang Yi in Beijing.

The head of the Australian Defence Force, Admiral David Johnston, has said the military only learnt about the drills 40 minutes after they began after Airservices Australia alerted them and that it took another 50 minutes for the New Zealand Navy, which was monitoring the three Chinese ships in the Tasman Sea, to inform the ADF.

Airservices Australia officials said they found out about the live-firing exercise after a midair alert by a Virgin Australia pilot flying through the area, who heard a broadcast from the Chinese ships.

The New Zealand delay in informing Australia has prompted sharp questions in Canberra about the trans-Tasman allies’ surveillance capabilities.

Peters said he had put the issue to Wang in the context of the close ties that the two countries have developed since 2008. China is the biggest export destination for New Zealand and Australia.

“We’re in the second decade of this arrangement, and this is a failure in it at this time, and we’d like to have it corrected in the future,” he said. He added, “That is something which we believe is under consideration.”

Australia has complained more vociferously about the lack of notification. Foreign Affairs Minister Penny Wong said she sought an explanation from Wang when the two met in Johannesburg last Saturday after a gathering of foreign ministers from the G20.

At issue is how much in advance militaries should issue such warnings. China only gave “a couple of hours’ notice”, New Zealand Defence Minister Judith Collins told Radio New Zealand, rather than the expected 12 to 24 hours. A longer lead time would give airlines time to plan alternate routes.

China’s official Xinhua News Agency made no mention of the issue in an initial report on Peters’ meeting earlier in the day with Chinese Vice President Han Zheng.

A Chinese Defence Ministry spokesperson defended Beijing’s actions on Sunday, saying the drills were in compliance with international law and did not affect aviation safety.

In his talks in Beijing, Peters said he also explained the unique relationship his country has with Cook Islands, which signed a series of agreements with China earlier this month that have raised concern in New Zealand.

The government was angered when Cook Islands Prime Minister Mark Brown refused to share the text of a draft co-operation agreement with China ahead of its signing.

People’s Liberation Army-Navy Fuchi-class replenishment vessel Weishanhu, and Renhai-class cruiser Zunyi.Credit: Australian Defence Force

Citizens of Cook Islands have New Zealand passports, and New Zealand helps the small Pacific nation with its military and foreign affairs. In return, the Cook Islands government is required to consult New Zealand on matters that could affect the latter.

“They need to understand the constitutional arrangement, which they said they did now,” Peters said of China.

AP, with staff reporters

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