The Communist Chinese Party takeover of the Eastern Realm of New Zealand.
*The Cook Islands has become the latest Communist Chinese naval outpost*
After a successful communist Chinese intelligence operation to charm, corrupt, coerce, and control their latest target, Mark Brown Cook Islands PM, the Guoanbu, (China's KGB) has, in violation of the constitutional agreement of the Cook Islands, secured in
Article 3 of the 2025 Deepening Blue Economy Cooperation Memorandum of Understanding the right to navalise and take over the Eastern lynch pin of the Realm of New Zealand.
Communist Chinese People's Liberation Army Navy warships will resupply and repair in the Communist Chinese Cook Island's maritime outpost. To base armed Communist Chinese coastguard (navy) warships there the CCP will builds up ports, wharfs and fuel storage silos. Communist deep sea fishing bases and sea bed mining will plunder the Realm of New Zealand for Communism.
The CCP's takeover of the Cook Island's as a PLAN naval outpost isolates New Zealand from United Navy Support and gives the CCP a direct route into their prized goal - the 44 trillion dollars worth of minerals and oil the Communist Chinese will rip out of Antarctica.
Woah, yes these are valid concerns, however let's pause and assess the landscape in front of us.
Firstly this is a Memorandum of Understanding (i.e. lays out the intentions; isn't necessarily legally binding etc), so this is an outline of what the CCP is wanting to (which was kept a secret until now). No contracts have been signed and a great gray fleet won't be rolling in over the horizon any time soon (ok sure some people from the mainland may visit to scope things out and have talks with the CI govt which is to be expected).
Now that the MOU is in the open I'd imagine there will be the meeting of minds from the mandarins in Wellington and Canberra and other places. The NZG will formulate a response (and in discussion with AusGov etc), look to cues from the respective Foreign Ministers.
Then finally and no doubt the CI govt will need to explain their intentions to the Pacific Island Forum members (after all there will be a host of extreme concerns such as the environmental disaster the CCP will inflict upon the surrounds etc).
Secondary issues. Why is the CI seeking finance from the CCP to replace their aging ferries? Why are they going to the CCP to extract undersea resources? So in response why isn't NZ stepping up and providing funding (or a low interest loan) for replacement ferries via aid funding? Or better still, why isn't there a co-ordinated NZ/Australia (and/or Japan/EU etc) strategy on these critical infrastucture issues (that affects many PI nations)? For example Australia has a shipbuilding industry that could supply the vessels as part of a 10 year plan (or so), so why not use the skills and resources within the wider neigbourhood?
Ditto for natural resource extraction. Why can't NZ, and Australia for that matter, step up and do the extraction and in an environmentally safe manner (I mean Australia have the companies and resources if NZ doesn't). If fact, how about this, perhaps a PPP (Public Private Partnership) perhaps, where NZ/Aus (perhaps with buy in from Japan or possibly China itself), provide the funding (and profits) but that a meaningful proportion of the profits go back to the host (island) nation (compared to current practice where very little does), but get this, also divert a "reasonable" proportion of the profits to wider PI "climate change" and nautural energy resiliance and infrastructre projects meaning "everyone" has a stake. A soverign type fund in other words, for the greater good.
The third issue. The CCP have been active in the Pacific for years providing aid. The likes of NZ, Australia and the US have encouraged this (although they have under-estimated the CCP playing the longer game here and not for the same philanthropic reasons). And of course the CCP have then used this to squeeze Taiwan out (only 3 PI states look to Taiwan now), so my point is familiarity with the CCP is now the norm anyway (so much so they are bullying/corrupting some officials ... this needs to be addressed as the citizens see this manoevering and are aghast).
The other thing is that US AID has been paused under the new USG ... and if this isn't addressed (either by the US itself and/or NZ/AU/Japan etc, stepping up further), then a vacuum will fill and guess who has the chequebook to splash and gain further influence and dominance.
This is all (or actually just some) of the wider background of issues that are inter-linked and if not addressed in a much better co-ordinated manner, and by bringing the PI states in rather than telling them or forcing them, and delivering (instead of talking and promising ... very little) then we will continue to have problem after problem year after year. (Well, unless some decapitation occurs cough cough).
And for balance, it could be that the CCP still plays a part but it has to be pulled back in line (like they would do to us if "we" start flashing chequebooks at the likes of Hong Kong or Tibet etc) allowing those nations traditionally aligned to, and within, the Pacific "family" to lead the way. After all that's what the people of these nations, with their ties to the bigger countries, would want.