China lodged a formal diplomatic protest with New Zealand on Thursday after Foreign Minister Winston Peters told Chinese-born opposition lawmaker Lawrence Xu-Nan to go back to your own country
during a parliamentary debate on the COVID-19 pandemic, escalating a domestic race dispute into international friction.
Parliamentary Clash Over Pandemic Response and Race
The diplomatic confrontation stems from a fiery debate in New Zealand’s parliament on Wednesday regarding the government’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the proceedings, Foreign Minister Winston Peters, who leads the populist New Zealand First party, targeted Green Party representative Lawrence Xu-Nan with hostile remarks.
Xu-Nan, an opposition lawmaker born in the northern Chinese city of Tianjin who grew up in East Auckland, faced heckling that prompted Peters to lash out. According to reporting from Reuters, Peters told the lawmaker to leave the country.
Peters continued his attack by branding the opposition politician a loudmouth
and asserting that the chamber operated under a democratic system unlike what you’re used to
. Prime Minister Christopher Luxon subsequently criticized the remarks as inappropriate attention-seeking comments, while Xu-Nan accused the foreign minister of scapegoating the migrant communities to distract from the government’s policy record.
Beijing Lodges Formal Protest Through Ambassador
The domestic political brawl quickly crossed into international diplomacy when Beijing intervened on Thursday. China lodged formal diplomatic representations with New Zealand officials over the negative remarks made in parliament.
The official protest involved a rare social media statement and a direct meeting between the Chinese embassy and New Zealand’s foreign affairs ministry. Wang Xiaolong, the Chinese ambassador to New Zealand, took to the platform X to voice his disapproval of the incident.
In its official Thursday statement, the Chinese embassy in Wellington urged New Zealand to treasure the equal and mutually beneficial relationship between the two nations. The embassy also called on Wellington to respect and protect the legitimate rights and interests of the local Chinese community while creating an open, inclusive, and non-discriminatory environment. Simultaneously, the Chinese foreign ministry in Beijing cautioned relevant political figures in New Zealand not to play up China as an issue in its domestic politics.
Peters Doubles Down Amid Economic Stakes
Rather than walking back his statements, Peters doubled down on his rhetoric. He dismissed his critics as pearl-clutchers
and communist shills
. According to a statement released by his own ministry, Peters was fully briefed on the conversation between the foreign ministry and the Chinese embassy but chose to stand by his comments, framing them as an act of defending New Zealand’s democracy.
This diplomatic friction hits a sensitive economic nerve for Wellington. China stands as New Zealand’s biggest trading partner, with bilateral trade surpassing NZ$41 billion ($23.83 billion) in the year ending September 2025.
Worth a look
