Cook Islands-New Zealand Ties Tested as China Expands Pacific Reach

For more than 60 years, New Zealand and the Cook Islands have shared a rare bond of a "free association" that gave the islands self-rule while keeping Wellington in charge of defense and foreign affairs. But that arrangement, long seen as a model of post-colonial cooperation, now appears to be under strain.

Tensions erupted after the Cook Islands tried to issue their own passports and later signed a strategic agreement with China, both moves made without consulting New Zealand.

This put the free association agreement that has governed relations between New Zealand and the Cook Islands for over 60 years under strain. Underpinning this tension is China's burgeoning influence in the Pacific region and suspicions that its economic collaborations mask deeper objectives of military expansion.

Pushing the Limits of Self-Governance

Since gaining self-government in 1965, the Cook Islands have operated with a high degree of autonomy. They have their own parliament