WELLINGTON, Aug 14 (Reuters) - China on Friday rejected allegations that it is conducting widespread espionage on New Zealand, saying the claim in the country's latest security assessment stemmed from a Cold War mentality.
The Chinese embassy in Wellington said the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service's annual threat report "fabricates and hypes" claims of Chinese interference and threat, and accused unnamed domestic and foreign forces of trying to damage ties between the two countries.
The allegation appeared in the agency's Security Threat Environment 2026 assessment, released on Thursday, which said China was the only country New Zealand had detected conducting espionage "at scale."
"False allegations against China either smear normal exchanges and cooperation as so-called espionage or interference, or are entirely groundless and fabricated out of thin air," the embassy said in a statement.
The intelligence agency's Security Threat Environment 2026 assessment, which is released annually, said China remained the most active foreign-interference actor in New Zealand, while warning that espionage and covert efforts by foreign states to acquire sensitive technology, influence policy and gather information were becoming more common.
China rejected that assessment, saying bilateral ties were based on "mutual benefit and win-win cooperation" and had delivered trade, jobs and people-to-people exchanges.
The embassy said the timing of the report was "no coincidence" and suggested it could itself be the product of foreign interference. It urged New Zealand to work with Beijing to deepen political trust and practical cooperation.
China is New Zealand's largest trading partner, with two-way trade reaching record levels in recent years.
(Reporting by Lucy Craymer; Editing by Stephen Coates)
