Aotearoa New Zealand is stepping up its diplomatic push in the Pacific as Foreign Affairs Minister Vaovasamanaia Winston Peters completes a landmark tour of the region.
The visits position Wellington as a steady partner at a time of growing geopolitical competition.
Peters this week visited Kiribati, becoming the first New Zealand foreign minister to visit all 18 Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) member countries within a single parliamentary term.
The symbolic milestone comes as Aotearoa prepares to host one of the region’s most important political meetings.
The visit to Tarawa carried added significance. Kiribati had been the final PIF member country yet to receive Peters after efforts to meet President Taneti Maamau failed last year.
The setback prompted New Zealand to review its aid programme to the island nation.
Watch Peters’ arrival into Tarawa below.
While Peters was unable to Maamau during this trip, New Zealand and Kiribati signed a new Statement of Partnership, known as the Te Mauri Dialogue, formalising cooperation across health, labour mobility, security, and climate resilience.
The visit also marked Peters’ second official visit to Kiribati and his first since 2019.
“Being back in Tarawa has underlined both the acute challenges that Kiribati faces, and the serious and important contribution New Zealand can and should make to help meet them,” Peters says.
Cultural performances were held in Tarawa for Peters’ visit. Photo/Supplied
Kiribati’s Vice President, Dr Teuea Toatu, reaffirmed his country’s commitment to the relationship and stressed the importance of shared values and regional identity.
“The Te Mauri Dialogue reflects the strong and enduring ties between Kiribati and New Zealand, founded on mutual respect, friendship, and trust, grounded in a shared Pacific identity and culture,” Toatu said in a statement.
“It also recognises the growing connections between the peoples of both countries and their shared interests within the Blue Pacific Continent.”
From Kiribati, Peters travelled to Palau, which will host the PIF Leaders Meeting later this year. The summit has taken heightened political importance after controversy at last year’s meeting in the Solomon Islands where dialogue partners were excluded.
Speaking to media in Palau, Peters confirmed New Zealand would assist with preparations for the meeting.
“If we are able to do things, either in a monetary way or provide travel utilities, then we will do it to ensure that it is the success it deserves to be,” Peters says.
Peters and Palau’s President Whipps. Photo/Supplied
“We want this to be not just everybody attending from the Pacific Islands Forum, but a number of other countries who are described as potential partners, we need to turn that potentiality into actuality and advance the Pacific in that way.”
Palau’s President, Surangel Samuel Whipps Jr., recently re-elected, says Pacific priorities must remain central.
“This is the Pacific, and the priorities should be the Pacific,” Whipps says. “External partners should not be dictating what the Pacific interests are and we should do what’s good for the Pacific, because we are a family.”
Peters wrapped up his first Pacific tour in Fiji, holding talks with senior ministers before meeting with Pacific Islands Forum Secretary General, Baron Waqa.
Discussions focused on partner engagement in the region and New Zealand’s preparation for hosting the PIF Leaders’ Meeting next year.
Peters returns to New Zealand on Thursday evening, having sent a clear signal that Wellington is seeking to strengthen Pacific relationships, not just through aid and security but by backing Pacific leadershio at a time when regional unity is under pressure.
