Political status of the Cook Islands and Niue

The political status of the Cook Islands and Niue is formally defined as being states in free association within the Realm of New Zealand, which is made up of the Cook Islands, Niue, and New Zealand and its territories, Tokelau and the Ross Dependency. New Zealand carries out defence and foreign affairs on behalf of the two associated states, although some other countries have recognised them as sovereign entities.

Associated states in relation to New Zealand
  1. New Zealand
  2. Niue
  3. The Cook Islands

Sovereignty and self-government
See also: Sovereignty and Self-governance

New Zealand is officially responsible for the defence and foreign affairs of the Cook Islands and Niue. However, these responsibilities confer New Zealand no rights of control and can only be exercised at the request of the Cook Islands and Niue. The Cook Islands and Niue have been recognised as sovereign states by some countries, and maintain diplomatic relations under their own name. The United States recognises the Cook Islands as a self-governing territory, and has signed treaties with the Cook Islands government. Moreover, the Secretary General of the United Nations has determined that the admission of the Cook Islands and Niue into the World Health Assembly means that they have been accepted as states by the international community.[1][2][3][4]

Although the Cook Islands and Niue behave as sovereign states in international law, their constitutional statuses within the Realm of New Zealand (i.e., for matters of New Zealand domestic law) is different from that of a fully independent state, considering that all of Niue's and the Cook Islands' nationals are automatically New Zealand citizens, and both have New Zealand's head of state, Queen Elizabeth II, as their own. On the basis of these arrangements, New Zealand Prime Minister Helen Clark declared in 2001 that if the Cook Islands were to join the United Nations, the act would be interpreted by New Zealand as a declaration of independence, leading Cook Islanders to lose the right to New Zealand citizenship. This was reiterated by Prime Minister John Key in 2015.[5] Some scholars have argued that this position by New Zealand places an effective limit on the ability of the Cook Islands to act as a sovereign entity, while others have argued that the participation of the Cook Islands in international organisations (such as the Pacific Islands Forum) shows that Cook Islands sovereignty is not limited by the free association arrangement.[6][7]

History

Formerly dependencies of New Zealand, the Cook Islands became a state in free association with New Zealand on August 4, 1965; Niue became a state in free association on October 19, 1974, after a constitutional referendum. In 1992, the UN recognised both states' right to establish diplomatic relations with other countries.[8] Since then, both the Cook Islands and Niue have been allowed to attend UN-sponsored conferences open to "all States" as well as sign and ratify UN treaties open to "non-member states".

New Zealand has formally allowed the Cook Islands to independently conduct its own foreign affairs since April 6, 2001.[9] Niue was granted this power in 2007.[10]

The Repertory of Practice of United Nations Organs records that in 1988 "New Zealand stated that its future participation in international agreements would no longer extend to" Niue and the Cook Islands.[11] The Cook Islands and Niue were granted membership of UNESCO by 1993 and of the World Health Organization by 1994. Also by 1994, the UN Secretariat had "recognized the full treaty-making capacity ... of Niue".[11] As of 2016, the Cook Islands, Niue, and Kosovo are the only states that participate in UN specialised agencies, but which are not member states of the UN nor observer states with the United Nations General Assembly. Additionally, the Republic of China on Taiwan participates in the World Health Organization as Chinese Taipei.

Positions taken by states
Main articles: Foreign relations of the Cook Islands and Foreign relations of Niue

Countries with which Cook Islands or Niue has diplomatic relations
State Cook Islands Niue
Established diplomatic relations with both
 Malaysia1992[12]1996
 Australia1994[13]2013
 Nauru1994[14]2004
 Papua New Guinea1995[15]2014
 ChinaJuly 25, 1997[16]December 12, 2007[17][18]
 India1998[19]August 30, 2012[20]
 Fiji1998[21]2015
 France2000[22]2012
 CubaSeptember 2, 2002[23]September 5, 2014[24]
 Italy2002[25]September 21, 2015[26]
 Thailand2005[27]August 27, 2013[28][29]
 TurkeyOctober 28, 2008[30][31]June 7, 2014[31]
 JapanMarch 25, 2011[32][33]May 15, 2015[34][35]
 Singapore2012[36]2012
 Samoa2013[37]2014
 Kosovo[38]May 18, 2015[39][40]June 23, 2015[41]
 BrazilAugust 21, 2015[42]September 2, 2016[43]
 IndonesiaJuly 13, 2019[44]July 13, 2019[45]
Established diplomatic relations with the Cook Islands
 Portugal1995[46]No relations
 Iran1996[47]
 Bosnia and Herzegovina1996[48]
 South Africa1996[49]
 Norway1998[50]
 Spain1998[51]
  Holy See1999[52]
 GermanySeptember 11, 2001[53]
 Timor-Leste2002[54]
 Jamaica2003[55]
 BelgiumAugust 10, 2004[56]
 Czech Republic2008[57]
  Switzerland2008[58]
 NetherlandsAugust 17, 2011[59]
 Philippines2011[60]
 South KoreaFebruary 22, 2013[61]
 Tuvalu2013[62]
 Palau2013[63]
 Kiribati2013[64]
 Marshall Islands2013[65]
 Solomon Islands2013[66]
 Vanuatu2013[67]
 MicronesiaSeptember 24, 2014[68]
 Antigua and BarbudaNovember 16, 2017[69]

States that recognise the Cook Islands and Niue as self-governing territories
State Position Relations with

Cook Islands
Niue
 France Though the French Ambassador to New Zealand is also accredited to the Cook Islands and Niue, France still describes them as having "no international sovereignty".[70][71]
 Israel On July 1, 1994, Israel and New Zealand signed an agreement establishing diplomatic relations. The document stated:[72]

In the cases of the association of New Zealand with the Cook Islands and Niue, the relevant constitution acts provide that, while these territories will be self-governing, 'Her Majesty the Queen in right of New Zealand' will retain responsibility for 'external affairs and defence'.

...

It should also be noted, however, that there exist a number of instances of non-independent entities being permitted to participate in international organizations, though this almost only occurs in cases of associate statehood.

In 2008, Israel established diplomatic relations with the Cook Islands and Niue.[73][74]
 New Zealand Cook Islands

On June 11, 2001, Helen Clark and Terepai Maoate signed an agreement establishing diplomatic relations between the Cook Islands and New Zealand. The document stated:[75]

Any action taken by New Zealand in respect of its constitutional responsibilities for the foreign affairs of the Cook Islands will be taken on the delegated authority, and as an agent or facilitator at the specific request of, the Cook Islands. Section 5 of the Cook Islands Constitution Act 1964 thus records a responsibility to assist the Cook Islands and not a qualification of Cook Islands' statehood.

Clark later said that if the Cook Islands wanted to be its own sovereign state, it would first need its own citizenship.[76] New Zealand believes that if the Cook Islands were to become a sovereign state, an independence referendum and constitutional change would occur. The eligibility of New Zealand citizenship would have to change.[75]

Niue

New Zealand has stated that Niue's free association is "a status distinct from that of full independence".[77]
 United States Cook Islands

In 1980, the Cook Islands–United States Maritime Boundary Treaty was signed. The United States recognised the ability of the Cook Islands to negotiate a treaty on its own only after consulting the New Zealand government regarding the exact status of the Cook Islands. In response to the United States' request the New Zealand government confirmed "the competence of the Cook Islands Government to undertake the obligations and exercise the rights under the draft [bilateral] treaty".[78] Consequently, the United States signed a bilateral treaty with the Cook Islands recognizing the latter's sovereignty over the islands subject to the said treaty and its treaty-making power.[78] The Cook Islands and the United States have maintained consular relations since 1995.[79] As of 2011, the Department of State includes the Cook Islands under the sovereignty of New Zealand in its list of "Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty".[80] As of 2014, The World Factbook lists the Cook Islands as a "self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand".[81]

Niue

In 1997, the United States and Niue signed a maritime boundary treaty that mentioned how "Prior to signing the treaty, the political status of Niue was addressed".[82] As of 2011, the Department of State includes Niue under the sovereignty of New Zealand in its list of "Dependencies and Areas of Special Sovereignty".[80] As of 2014, The World Factbook lists Niue as a "self-governing territory in free association with New Zealand".[83]

Cook Islands and Niue as microstates

While their respective relationships with New Zealand, as well as their small size, make them rather unusual states, it has been argued that their status is far from unique. According to Dumienski (2014) both the Cook Islands and Niue can be seen as microstates, which are defined as: "modern protected states, i.e. sovereign states that have been able to unilaterally depute certain attributes of sovereignty to larger powers in exchange for benign protection of their political and economic viability against their geographic or demographic constraints."[84] Both the Cook Islands and Niue, as well as such states as Liechtenstein, San Marino and Monaco fit into this definition of microstates.

References
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  76. John Andrews (June 16, 2001). "PM warns Cook Islands over sovereignty". The New Zealand Herald. Retrieved October 21, 2014. She said she had pointed out New Zealand citizenship implications for Cook Islanders if the Cooks sought sovereignty, enabling them to be a member in their own right.
    If the Cooks wanted to become a sovereign nation, it needed its own citizenship. Cook Islanders would remain New Zealand citizens but "if they want to change it, they can."
    Ms Clark said: "If they want to exert full independence, New Zealand will not stand in their way."
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  82. "Limits in the Seas No. 119 Maritime Boundary: United States-Niue" (PDF). United States Department of State. July 30, 1997. Retrieved October 21, 2014. Prior to signing the treaty, the political status of Niue was addressed. Niue is in free association with New Zealand. On internal matters it is self-governing. Niue conducts its foreign affairs in conjunction with New Zealand. Niue has declared and does manage its exclusive economic zone. The United States requested, and received, confirmation from New Zealand that the Government of Niue had the competence to enter into this agreement with the United States. The text of New Zealand's note is reproduced at Annex 2 to this study.
  83. Central Intelligence Agency (June 20, 2014). "AUSTRALIA-OCEANIA :: NIUE". The World Factbook. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
  84. Dumienski, Zbigniew (2014). "MICROSTATES AS MODERN PROTECTED STATES: Towards a New Definition of Micro-Statehood" (PDF). The Center for Small States Studies. ISSN 1670-4290.
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