A consular agreement to be tabled in Parliament Tuesday will support the rapidly growing links between New Zealand and China, Foreign Minister Phil Goff said in Wellington Tuesday.

The agreement comes at a time when the number of people traveling between the two countries is increasing dramatically. Last year more than 100,000 Chinese citizens traveled to New Zealand for tourism, business and study purposes while about 50,000 New Zealanders visited China, Goff said in a statement.

According to Goff, the agreement deals with practical matters ranging from travel facilitation, the detention of individuals and the authentication of documents, to assistance to ships and aircraft.

It spells out the rights of citizens, including dual nationals, to access a range of consular services and the circumstances in which they may call upon the assistance of their governments.

"As a result, the agreement will reinforce and extend the ability of our posts in China to help New Zealanders who may run into difficulties, and also better protect the consular rights and interests of Chinese visiting New Zealand," Goff said.

The agreement, signed last October during Chinese President Hu Jintao's visit to New Zealand, was New Zealand's first country-to-country consular agreement.

"Both the New Zealand and Chinese governments see it as a sign of the importance we attach to developing the relationship further through greater understanding and contact at the community and business levels," Goff said.

The agreement will now go to Parliament's select committee for consideration and public submissions, and is likely to come into force in the first half of next year.

Source: Xinhua