The free trade agreement (FTA) between India and New Zealand was hailed by the Prime Ministers of both nations. But the foreign minister of New Zealand struck a chord of discontent on the same day by opposing the trade deal between the two countries. New Zealand's foreign minister, Winston Peters, expressed his discontent through a lengthy X post.
What did Winston Peters write?
Winston Peters wrote on X that his New Zealand First (NZF) party "is regrettably opposed to the India Free Trade Agreement announced today." "We consider the India-New Zealand Free Trade Agreement to be neither free nor fair. Regrettably, this is a bad deal for New Zealand. It gives too much away, especially on immigration, and does not get enough in return for New Zealanders, including on dairy," wrote Peters.
He added, "New Zealand First urged its coalition partner not to rush into concluding a low-quality deal with India, and to use all three years of this Parliamentary cycle in order to get the best possible deal. We also indicated we felt it would be unwise for National to sign up to a deal with India when a Parliamentary majority for that deal was uncertain." He continued, "Unfortunately, these pleas went unheeded. National preferred doing a quick, low-quality deal over doing the hard work necessary to get a fair deal that delivers for both New Zealanders and Indians."
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'Not justifiable to rural communities'
Winston Peters wrote that New Zealand First had said that when Cabinet approval for the India trade deal was sought last week, it invoked the "agree to disagree" provision of its coalition agreement and made it clear that it would oppose the enabling legislation if and when it is introduced in Parliament. He wrote that the party argued that while New Zealand would fully open its market to Indian products under the agreement, India would not lower the high tariff barriers faced by New Zealand's major dairy exports. It said the deal was not in the interests of New Zealand farmers and could not be justified to rural communities.
The New Zealand foreign minister further wrote that New Zealand First noted that the India FTA would be the country's first trade agreement to exclude key dairy products such as milk, cheese, and butter, which were worth about $24 billion in exports in the year to November 2025 and accounted for roughly 30 per cent of total goods exports. He also claimed that the National Party had made significant concessions to India in areas unrelated to two-way trade, instead focusing on facilitating the movement of people from India to New Zealand and encouraging New Zealand investment in India.
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'Difference of opinion,' says NZ foreign minister
Peters ended his long post by saying, "We have made clear to him that our opposition to the deal is not a critique of the Government of India or its negotiators – but rather the reflection of a difference of opinion between the parties that comprise New Zealand’s Coalition Government. Whether in government or opposition, New Zealand First’s approach to trade deals has been consistent, longstanding and principled."
Yesterday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his New Zealand counterpart, Christopher Luxon, had welcomed the free trade agreement between the two countries. PM Modi wrote on X, "The India-NZ partnership is going to scale newer heights. The FTA sets the stage for doubling bilateral trade in the coming 5 years."
