"We were pleased to reconnect with Foreign Minister Wang. We have known each other for many years, and today we continued our wide-ranging and constructive dialogue," said Mr. Peters.

The foreign minister will be raising the matters of the warships and the controversial Cook Islands deals in three high-level meetings in Beijing this week.

New Zealand's Foreign Minister Winston Peters discussed China's live-fire drills in the Tasman Sea with Chinese leaders, expressing concerns about the lack of prior notice. The meetings highlighted issues within China-New Zealand relations,

Recent unprecedented live-fire drills by China's navy in the Tasman Sea between Australia and New Zealand were "totally in line with international law", a spokesperson for its defence ministry said on Thursday.

Winston Peters has made it clear to China that we aren't happy with its handling of the warships the Tasman Sea, meeting with the Foreign Minister Wang Yi.

The Foreign Minister needs to restate the relationship with the Cook Islands during talks with his Chinese counterpart, former prime minister Helen Clark says.