Green MP calls Peters' 'go back to your own country' jibe 'desperate'
China has lodged formal diplomatic concerns with New Zealand following comments made by Foreign Minister Winston Peters to Green MP Lawrence Xu-Nan. Peters told the MP to 'go back to your own country' during a parliamentary debate, sparking calls for his resignation and escalating tensions with New Zealand's largest trading partner.
Why it matters
The incident highlights the fragility of diplomatic relations between New Zealand and China, particularly when domestic political rhetoric impacts international trade and foreign policy.
China's embassy in New Zealand has lodged formal diplomatic concerns with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade over Winston Peters' "go back to your own country" remark to Green MP Lawrence Xu-Nan in Parliament this week. The representation to the ministry marks an escalation from what the Chinese ambassador to New Zealand had earlier described as "domestic politics" into an international diplomacy row with a major trading partner. Peters, who is the Foreign Minister, made the comments as leader of New Zealand First while responding to heckling during a speech in the House on Wednesday. "I know you just came here five minutes ago. Go back to your own country," he said. "That's where they lie like a flatfish, but they don't lie like that here, all right? This is called democracy. This is called democracy, unlike what you're used to."
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