SYDNEY, April 5. /TASS/. The government of the Cook Islands intends to hold a nationwide referendum to determine whether the population wants to separate from New Zealand and join the United Nations, the Cook Islands Foreign Affairs Minister Tingika Elikana said.

According to the ministry, the decision on the Cook Islands separating from New Zealand and joining the UN "should be made by its population." "It should not be short-term elected politicians making decisions on these issues. We need to have a referendum, after which we will start negotiations [on separation] with New Zealand," Elikana said in an interview with Radio New Zealand.

A representative of the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs Office, commenting on the statement by the Cook Islands Foreign Minister, noted that "the government and people of the islands must determine their next steps towards self-determination." "The membership of this country in the UN and separation from New Zealand are complex issues with implications for the constitutional relations between countries," he said.

The Cook Islands are considered part of New Zealand but have a special status, meaning the New Zealand parliament does not have the right to pass laws regarding the island nation, and Wellington is represented there by a high commissioner who is responsible for developing bilateral relations. In 2001, the prime ministers of the Cook Islands and New Zealand signed a declaration stating that in foreign policy activities, the Cook Islands act as a sovereign and independent state, and the government has full authority over defense and security matters. In September 2023, the US recognized the Pacific nation as a sovereign state.