Nice try, you might say. Huawei has proposed a purely Kiwi workforce to assuage New Zealand’s concerns about the Chinese company’s potential involvement in developing 5G infrastructure.

That might not be enough if Wellington shares the full extent of its Five Eyes partners’ concerns about what Huawei’s involvement might bring. But even if a workaround can be found, it won’t be enough to bring a new period of untrammelled mutual respect and win-win cooperation to New Zealand-China relations.

Whatever might be thought of Huawei’s links to the Chinese system, it is an internationally recognised company competing for IT market share. It is not a diplomatic partner. And while much may have been read into New Zealand’s decision to exclude Huawei from 5G participation, the GCSB and responsible minister Andrew Little had strict legislative requirements to fulfil and fall back on.

The same could not be said for the most recent chapter in New Zealand-China cyber relations.

Read the full story on the Interpreter, published by the Lowy Institute