China bans four New Zealand MPs over Taiwan visit

In a first, China has banned 4 New Zealand Members of Parliament for a twelvemonth implicit their sojourn to Taiwan, New Zealand's overseas ministry says.

The MPs learned of the prohibition - which the Chinese Embassy said could beryllium reduced oregon waived with an apology - erstwhile they returned from the travel successful May, section media reported connected Thursday.

China claims the self-governed land of Taiwan arsenic its territory, and has tried to restrict the island's overseas engagements.

But this is the archetypal clip China has imposed question bans connected New Zealand MPs for visiting Taiwan - a determination that "surprised" overseas curate Winston Peters, a ministry spokesperson said successful a connection to the BBC.

"New Zealand MPs person visited Taiwan for decades and specified visits are not inconsistent with New Zealand's One China policy," the spokesperson said.

The sojourn successful May comprised lawmakers from the ruling conjugation - Maureen Pugh, David Wilson and Laura McClure - arsenic good arsenic Duncan Webb from the absorption Labour Party.

McClure, from the ACT party, said the question prohibition was "a benignant of overseas interference" and that she was "not going to apologise for visiting Taiwan", the New Zealand Herald reported.

She told Radio New Zealand that she was "quite amazed and shocked" by the prohibition arsenic akin visits had happened for years previously.

She added that New Zealand MPs "have the close to question freely astir the globe".

"That is portion of surviving successful a escaped democracy," she said.

New Zealand overseas curate Peters has instructed overseas ministry officials successful Beijing and Wellington to sermon the substance with Chinese authorities to "better understand" the "departure from past practice", the spokesperson said.

New Zealand established ceremonial diplomatic ties with Beijing successful 1972 and has since maintained a One China argumentation - the diplomatic acknowledgement of China's presumption that determination is lone 1 Chinese government. New Zealand has ceremonial ties lone with Beijing, and not with Taipei.

But similar galore countries, New Zealand has besides maintained regular exchanges with Taiwan.

Last year, a radical of New Zealand MPs met Taiwanese President Lai Ching-te during a travel to Taiwan. The Chinese embassy successful New Zealand criticised the trip, describing the MPs arsenic "colluding with 'Taiwan independence' separatist forces".

Beijing besides antecedently condemned a radical of New Zealand lawmakers for attending a reception hosted by Taiwan's de facto embassy successful Wellington past October.

Taiwan has antecedently accused China of trying to intervene successful its diplomatic ties with different countries.

Last month, Taiwan President Lai Ching-te visited Eswatini - Taiwan's lone diplomatic state successful Africa - days aft his authorities said a travel had been cancelled owed to China pressuring African countries to barroom him from flying implicit their territories.

That Eswatini sojourn was aboriginal brought up by Taiwan's overseas curate Lin Chia-lung successful a station astir the New Zealand delegation's visit.

"President Lai's caller sojourn to Eswatini has erstwhile again made the satellite consciousness the challenges facing Taiwan's diplomacy," helium wrote connected Facebook.

Lin further noted that the sojourn by the New Zealand MPs "not lone showed the enactment of the New Zealand Parliament for Taiwan, but besides made the relationship betwixt Taiwan and New Zealand stronger".

China has sanctioned US lawmakers successful the past for visiting Taiwan, including erstwhile House Speaker Nancy Pelosi successful 2022.

The pursuing year, China sanctioned US Representative Michael McCaul, claiming that his sojourn to Taiwan sent a "serious incorrect awesome to Taiwan independency separatist forces".