New Zealand’s spy service yesterday branded China a “complex intelligence concern” and warned that the nation was vulnerable to foreign interference.
In an annual threat report, the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service said that several countries were undertaking “malicious activity” on its shores, but called out China’s attempts as “complex and deceptive.”
In particular, Beijing was accused of using front organizations to connect with local groups to replace authentic and diverse community views with those approved by the ruling party.
Photo: AP
In one example, a Chinese-language community news outlet parroted Beijing’s talking points, it said.
“These front organisations will often appear to be community-based ... but their true affiliation, direction and funding sources are hidden,” the report said.
The unusually blunt language comes as New Zealand’s recently elected center-right government tilts the nation’s foreign policy more closely toward traditional Western allies. This comes after years of growing economic ties with China — New Zealand’s biggest trade partner.
In March, Wellington publicly said that a Chinese state-sponsored group was behind a 2021 malicious cyberattack that infiltrated sensitive government computer systems.
Beijing dismissed allegations of hacking and accused New Zealand critics of being puppets of the US.
Asked about the spy report, Beijing yesterday said that it would “never interfere in the internal affairs of any other country.”
“We hope the New Zealand side will maintain a rational and objective understanding of China, and create favorable conditions for the development of healthy, stable relations between the two countries,” Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokeswoman Mao Ning (毛寧) said.
New Zealand’s spy agency said the country’s geographical position and role in the Pacific region made it “vulnerable” to other countries striving for greater influence.
That included Russia, which “likely monitors the public statements and social media accounts” of people, it said.
In another case, an unnamed country contacted a local New Zealand council and offered to pay for a community event if they agreed to restrict a particular religious group.
The report aimed to be upfront about threats facing the country, Security Intelligence Service Director-General Andrew Hampton said.
“The point is not to alarm anyone, but to alert New Zealanders to the threats so that we can work together to manage them,” he said.
Earlier this year, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said the country could no longer depend on the “splendid isolation” provided by its geography.
China remains New Zealand’s biggest trading partner — exporting dairy, meat and wood products that exceeded NZ$21.39 billion (US$13.2 billion), official data showed.
Luxon has warned that although China was “a country of undoubted influence,” different values mean “there are issues on which we cannot and will not agree.”
‘CROWN JEWEL’: Washington ‘can delay and deter’ Chinese President Xi Jinping’s plans for Taiwan, but it is ‘a very delicate situation there,’ the secretary of state said US President Donald Trump is opposed to any change to Taiwan’s “status quo” by force or extortion and would maintain that policy, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio told the Hugh Hewitt Show host on Wednesday. The US’ policy is to maintain Taiwan’s “status quo” and to oppose any changes in the situation by force or extortion, Rubio said. Hewitt asked Rubio about the significance of Trump earlier this month speaking with Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (台積電) chairman C.C. Wei (魏哲家) at the White House, a meeting that Hewitt described as a “big deal.” Asked whether the meeting was an indication of the
‘RELATIVELY STRONG LANGUAGE’: An expert said the state department has not softened its language on China and was ‘probably a little more Taiwan supportive’ China’s latest drills near Taiwan on Monday were “brazen and irresponsible threats,” a US Department of State spokesperson said on Tuesday, while reiterating Washington’s decades-long support of Taipei. “China cannot credibly claim to be a ‘force for stability in a turbulent world’ while issuing brazen and irresponsible threats toward Taiwan,” the unnamed spokesperson said in an e-mailed response to media queries. Washington’s enduring commitment to Taiwan will continue as it has for 45 years and the US “will continue to support Taiwan in the face of China’s military, economic, informational and diplomatic pressure campaign,” the e-mail said. “Alongside our international partners, we firmly
KAOHSIUNG CEREMONY: The contract chipmaker is planning to build 5 fabs in the southern city to gradually expand its 2-nanometer chip capacity Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, yesterday confirmed that it plans to hold a ceremony on March 31 to unveil a capacity expansion plan for its most advanced 2-nanometer chips in Kaohsiung, demonstrating its commitment to further investment at home. The ceremony is to be hosted by TSMC cochief operating officer Y.P. Chyn (秦永沛). It did not disclose whether Premier Cho Jung-tai (卓榮泰) and high-ranking government officials would attend the ceremony. More details are to be released next week, it said. The chipmaker’s latest move came after its announcement earlier this month of an additional US$100 billion
Authorities yesterday elaborated on the rules governing Employment Gold Cards after a US cardholder was barred from entering Taiwan for six years after working without a permit during a 2023 visit. American YouTuber LeLe Farley was barred after already being approved for an Employment Gold Card, he said in a video published on his channel on Saturday. Farley, who has more than 420,000 subscribers on his YouTube channel, was approved for his Gold Card last month, but was told at a check-in counter at the Los Angeles International Airport that he could not enter Taiwan. That was because he previously participated in two
RSS