Should New Zealand be concerned by China's interest in the Pacific?

Foreign Affairs Minister Nanaia Mahuta has previously compared New Zealand and China’s relationship to the respect a taniwha would show a dragon.  That respect has not prevented China continuing to try and firm up its presence in the Pacific – after success in signing a sweeping deal with the Solomon Islands, the rest of the region is now in their sights.  Is this a policy failure for the New Zealand and Australian governments – or is China simply offering a deal too good to resist?   Today, Newstalk ZB chief political reporter Jason Walls joins Damien from Washington DC to discuss what, if anything, New Zealand can do about the dragon at our doorstep.   Follow The Front Page on iHeartRadio or wherever you get your podcasts. You can read more about this and other stories in the New Zealand Herald, online at nzherald.co.nz, or tune in to news bulletins across the NZME network. Host: Damien VenutoProducer/Editor: Paddy FoxExecutive Producer: Ethan Sills See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.