Prime Minister John Key has called off his planned visit to the Philippines and will instead try to visit at a later date.
Going ahead with his trade delegation now would put too much pressure on the Philippines Government at a critical time of dealing with Typhoon Haiyan, he said.
Mr Key offered to postpone the trip after Typhoon Haiyan devastated some parts of the Philippines and displaced thousands from their homes. He was due to visit Manila with about 30 New Zealand business people after attending the Commonwealth Heads of Government (CHOGM) meeting in Sri Lanka this weekend.
"A visit next week would place undue pressure on the Philippines Government at a critical time of the relief and recovery phase. New Zealand knows from recent experience in Christchurch how demanding responding to a large-scale disaster is and we don't wish to distract from these efforts.''
Mr Key has also announced a further $2.3 million contribution to the Philippines Red Cross to help deal with future natural disasters, on top of the $2.15m already announced to assist with the aftermath of Haiyan.
