New Zealand's secret service has published a report calling Chinese spying and influence operations a "complex intelligence concern," prompting calls for new laws to protect the country's democracy against foreign interference. The report comes as governments around the world face growing concerns over Chinese infiltration and influence operations on foreign soil, including “long-arm” law enforcement. "Most notable is the continued targeting of New Zealand’s diverse ethnic Chinese communities," it said. The Chinese Embassy said it "strongly deplored and firmly rejected" the report, saying China doesn't interfere in other countries' internal affairs. According to The Post newspaper: "The Government has been quietly considering creating new foreign interference crimes to better prosecute foreign agents, and a foreign agent register to increase transparency of state-backed activity."
