The Chinese Embassy in Wellington has made a formal complaint to New Zealand's foreign affairs ministry over comments made by Foreign Minister Winston Peters during a debate in Parliament on Thursday, 30 July 2026. (RNZ)

During the exchange, Peters told Green MP Lawrence Xu-Nan, who has lived in New Zealand since 1994, to "go back to your own country." Peters also said: "This is called a democracy, unlike what you're used to." Xu-Nan is a New Zealand politician of Chinese descent. (RNZ; Channel News Asia)

The Embassy said it was concerned about "negative China-related remarks made by a certain politician in the New Zealand Parliament." It urged New Zealand to value its relationship with China and to "do more things conducive to bilateral relations rather than the other way around." The Embassy also called on New Zealand to create "an open, inclusive and non-discriminatory environment" for the Chinese community to "study, live and work in New Zealand." (RNZ)

China's Ambassador to New Zealand, Wang Xiaolong, posted about it on social media. Wang said New Zealand's domestic politics were not China's concern, but added: "sometimes, a statement says more about the person that makes it than anything or anybody else." (RNZ)

A spokesperson for Peters confirmed he was told about a conversation between a foreign affairs official and the Chinese Embassy on the same day the complaint was made. Peters has been Foreign Minister across several terms and has visited China seven times, most recently in late 2025. (RNZ)

Xu-Nan called Peters' conduct "repeated behaviour and racism" and asked the Prime Minister to hold Peters to account. He was elected to Parliament through the party list system, where parties get seats based on their share of the vote. He has lived in New Zealand for over thirty years. (RNZ)

Foreign embassies in Wellington normally watch what happens in Parliament, but it is rare for one to make a formal complaint to the foreign affairs ministry about something an MP said during a debate.

Peters has been willing to speak publicly about differences with China. In May 2024, he described the New Zealand–China relationship as "complex." In February 2025, before a visit to Beijing, Peters said he planned to question Chinese naval activity directly with his counterparts. (Reuters; Reuters)

What makes this unusual is that three things are happening at once. Peters made a personal attack in Parliament based on an MP's ethnicity. The Chinese Embassy has framed its complaint as being about the welfare of Chinese people living in New Zealand, not just a dispute between governments. And Peters is the minister whose job is to manage New Zealand's relationship with China — the very country now complaining about him. How the government handles this, and whether the Speaker of the House or Parliament's privileges committee takes any interest in what Peters said, are the things to watch.

How the foreign affairs ministry deals with the complaint, and whether Peters responds further, will determine whether this stays in the news briefly or becomes a longer-running issue.