Winston Peters has hit out at Ted Cruz over allegations of immigration requirements for Israelis visiting New Zealand. Photo: AFP / RNZ
New Zealand diplomats in the United States have contacted Texas Senator Ted Cruz to clarify New Zealand's treatment of Israeli visitors, a spokesperson for the Foreign Minister Winston Peters says.
Cruz posted on X, sharing a story by Israeli media outlet Haaretz which incorrectly stated every Israeli must detail their military service to receive a visitor's visa for New Zealand.
It's difficult to treat New Zealand as a normal ally within the American alliance system, when they denigrate and punish Israeli citizens for defending themselves and their country from Iranian-controlled terrorists.
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) January 31, 2025
Hamas didn't just murder Israelis on October 7, but also…
He questioned whether New Zealand should be treated as a "normal ally", and said the country punishes Israelis.
Peters replied that the story was fake news.
This @haaretzcom story is fake news, Senator @TedCruz. We are demanding it be corrected.
— Winston Peters (@NewZealandMFA) February 1, 2025
Israelis do not need visitor visas to travel to New Zealand, let alone have to declare their military service.
And both New Zealand’s Chief Human Rights Commissioner and I - as Foreign… https://t.co/mhrx9pwHyw
His spokesperson told RNZ that the New Zealand embassy in the US has contacted Cruz to alert him that the story is incorrect.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade confirmed the New Zealand Embassy in Washington is "engaging with the office of Ted Cruz" about the matter.
They were not criticising the Senator, just letting him know the article was wrong, the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson also said Haaretz has acknowledged it made a mistake after it was contacted by Immigration New Zealand.
Haaretz seems to have deleted its post on X linking to the story, but the story itself remains online.
The Times of Israel also reported this week that Israelis entering New Zealand were required to detail their military service.
Immigration New Zealand's deputy chief operating officer Jeannie Melville said it had been in regular communication with Haaretz since Saturday afternoon asking it to correct its reporting.
"We have sought an urgent update to the article as it is unfairly affecting New Zealand's reputation," she said.
"No correction has yet been published, although a New Zealand Government response has been added to the story. We have not at this stage been in contact with any other overseas media outlets."
Melville said there may be some circumstances when officials need extra information to ensure visitors meet the requirements for entering the country, like details of their military service.
"But ... it is not correct to say that every Israeli wanting to visit New Zealand is asked to provide details of their military service," she said.
Israel is a visa waiver country, which means travellers do not need a visitor visa if they are in the country for less than three months, but they do need to complete electronic travel authority declarations to enter New Zealand, Melville said.
Since 7 October 2023, Immigration NZ has approved 809 of 944 applications received from Israeli nationals across both temporary and residence visa applications.
Cruz has been approached for comment.
The Israeli Ambassador to New Zealand, Ran Yaakoby, declined to comment.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon was not available to comment.
Immigration figures show how many Israelis had been allowed into New Zealand since violence broke out in 2023 - and how few need to get visas.
Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters said Israelis did not need visitor visas to travel to New Zealand - let alone have to declare their military service - because of their visa-waiver status with New Zealand.
Figures released to RNZ show from when the conflict broke out in late 2023 until the end of last year, 5675 electronic visa waivers had been issued to Israelis.
Not all people who received them would have travelled here, and others apply for visitor visas, for example if they were not eligible for a visa waiver.
Last month INZ had only 69 Israeli and 21 Palestinian applications to decide.
Since the conflict started, Palestinians - who do not have visa waiver status - had submitted 259 visa applications and 177 had been approved and 53 declined.
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