Editing Cook Islands (section)

==Politics and foreign relations==
{{Main|Politics of the Cook Islands|Foreign relations of the Cook Islands}}
{{Further|Political status of the Cook Islands and Niue}}

[[File:Parliament of the Cook Islands - 2006.JPG|thumb|The parliament building of the Cook Islands, formerly a hotel]]
[[File:Sustainable Development and Conservation Event in the Cook Islands (7907701948).jpg|thumb|Former Prime Minister [[Henry Puna]] with U.S. Secretary of State [[Hillary Clinton]], 31 August 2012]]

The Cook Islands are a [[representative democracy]] with a [[parliamentary system]] in an [[associated state]] relationship with New Zealand. [[Executive (government)|Executive power]] is exercised by the government, with the Prime Minister as [[head of government]]. [[Legislature|Legislative power]] is vested in both the government and the [[Parliament of the Cook Islands]]. While the country is de jure unicameral, there are two legislative bodies with the [[House of Ariki]] acting as a ''de facto'' upper house.

There is a [[multi-party system]]. The [[judiciary]] is independent of the executive and the legislature. The [[head of state]] is the [[Monarchy of New Zealand|{{Monarch of New Zealand, current|title=*}} of New Zealand]], who is [[Monarchy in the Cook Islands|represented in the Cook Islands]] by the [[{{Monarch of New Zealand, current|title=*}}'s Representative]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.paclii.org/ck/government.html|title=Cook Islands System of Government Information|website=www.paclii.org|access-date=1 February 2019}}</ref>

The islands are self-governing in "free association" with New Zealand. Under the Cook Islands constitution, New Zealand cannot pass laws for the Cook Islands. Rarotonga has its own foreign service and diplomatic network. Cook Islands nationals have the right to become citizens of New Zealand and can receive New Zealand government services when in New Zealand, but the reverse is not true; New Zealand citizens are not Cook Islands nationals. Despite this, {{As of|2018|lc=y}}, the Cook Islands had diplomatic relations in its own name with 52 other countries. The Cook Islands is not a United Nations member state, but, along with [[Niue]], has had their "full treaty-making capacity" recognised by the [[United Nations Secretariat]],<ref name=art102>{{citation|url=http://legal.un.org/repertory/art102/english/rep_supp8_vol6-art102_e_advance.pdf |title=Repertory of Practice |website=Legal.un.org |number=8 |page=10 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131019223055/http://legal.un.org/repertory/art102/english/rep_supp8_vol6-art102_e_advance.pdf |archive-date=19 October 2013  }}</ref><ref name=map>{{citation |url=https://www.un.org/Depts/Cartographic/map/profile/world00.pdf |website=Legal.un.org |title=The World today }}</ref> and is a full member of the [[World Health Organization]] (WHO), [[UNESCO]], the [[International Civil Aviation Organization]], the [[International Maritime Organization]] and the UN [[Food and Agriculture Organization]], all [[list of specialized agencies of the United Nations|UN specialized agencies]], and is an associate member of the [[United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific]] (UNESCAP) and a Member of the Assembly of States of the [[International Criminal Court]].

On 11 June 1980, the United States signed [[Cook Islands–United States Maritime Boundary Treaty|a treaty]] with the Cook Islands specifying the [[maritime boundary|maritime border]] between the Cook Islands and [[American Samoa]] and also relinquishing any American claims to [[Penrhyn atoll|Penrhyn]], [[Pukapuka]], [[Manihiki]], and [[Rakahanga]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paclii.org/pits/en/treaty_database/1980/6.html|title=Treaty Between the United States of America and the Cook Islands on Friendship and Delimitation of the Maritime Boundary Between the United States of America and the Cook Islands (and Exchange of Notes)|work=Pacific Islands Treaty Series|publisher=University of the South Pacific School of Law|access-date=18 May 2009}}</ref> In 1990 the Cook Islands and France signed [[Cook Islands–France Maritime Delimitation Agreement|a treaty]] that [[boundary delimitation|delimited]] the boundary between the Cook Islands and [[French Polynesia]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.paclii.org/pits/en/treaty_database/1990/4.html|title=Agreement on Maritime Delimitation Between the Government of the Cook Islands and the Government of the French Republic|work=Pacific Islands Treaty Series|publisher=University of the South Pacific School of Law|access-date=4 March 2010}}</ref> In late August 2012, [[United States Secretary of State]] [[Hillary Clinton]] visited the islands. In 2017, the Cook Islands signed the UN [[Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://treaties.un.org/Pages/ViewDetails.aspx?src=TREATY&mtdsg_no=XXVI-9&chapter=26&clang=_en |title=Chapter XXVI: Disarmament – No. 9 Treaty on the Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons |publisher=United Nations Treaty Collection |date=7 July 2017}}</ref> On 25 September 2023, the Cook Islands and the United States of America established [[Cook Islands–United States relations|diplomatic relations]] under the leadership of Prime Minister [[Mark Brown (Cook Islands)|Mark Brown]] at a ceremony in Washington, DC.<ref>{{cite web |title=On the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations between the United States and the Cook Islands |url=https://www.state.gov/on-the-establishment-of-diplomatic-relations-between-the-united-states-and-the-cook-islands/#:~:text=With%20the%20establishment%20of%20diplomatic,human%20rights%2C%20and%20good%20governance. |website=U.S. Department of State |access-date=27 September 2023}}</ref>

In 2024, the Cook Islands' efforts to join the [[Commonwealth of Nations]] as a full member were "ongoing" but, despite this, the government was unable to secure an invitation to attend the [[2024 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting]] in Samoa.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Mika |first1=Talaia |title=Cook Islands 'not invited' to CHOGM |url=https://www.cookislandsnews.com/internal/national/regional/economy/pacific-islands/cook-islands-not-invited-to-chogm/ |access-date=25 August 2024 |work=Cook Islands News |date=24 August 2024}}</ref>

===Defence and police===
The Cook Islands Police Service polices its own waters, and shares responsibility for defence with New Zealand, in consultation with the Cook Islands Government and at its request. The total offshore EEZ is about 2 million square kilometres.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mfat.govt.nz/en/countries-and-regions/australia-and-pacific/cook-islands/new-zealand-high-commission-to-the-cook-islands/about-cook-islands/ |title=About Cook Islands |access-date=21 August 2023|website=New Zealand – Foreign Affairs and Trade}}</ref> Vessels of the [[Royal New Zealand Navy]] can be employed for this task including its {{sclass2|Protector|offshore patrol vessel|1}}s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.nzdf.mil.nz/assets/Uploads/DocumentLibrary/NavyToday_Issue261.pdf |title=Illegal Fishing Targeted |access-date=21 August 2023|website=Navy Today |date=December 2021}}</ref> These naval forces may also be supported by [[Royal New Zealand Air Force]] aircraft, including [[Boeing P-8 Poseidon|P-8 Poseidon]]s.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.mpi.govt.nz/news/media-releases/more-than-20-fishing-vessels-inspected-during-new-zealand-led-south-pacific-fisheries-patrol/ |title=More than 20 fishing vessels inspected during New Zealand-led South Pacific fisheries patrol |access-date=21 August 2023|website=New Zealand – Ministry for Primary Industries |date=11 August 2023}}</ref>

However, these forces are limited in size and in 2023 were described by the Government as "not in a fit state" to respond to regional challenges.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.thedefensepost.com/2023/08/04/new-zealand-military-not-fit/#google_vignette |title=New Zealand Military 'Not in a Fit State,' Government Says |access-date=21 August 2023|website=The Defence Post |date=4 August 2023}}</ref> New Zealand's subsequently announced "Defence Policy and Strategy Statement" noted that shaping the security environment, "focusing in particular on supporting security in and for the Pacific" would receive enhanced attention.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.defence.govt.nz/assets/publication/file/23-0195-Defence-Policy-and-Strategy-Statement-WEB.PDF |title=Defence Policy and Strategy Statement 2023 |access-date=21 August 2023|website=New Zealand Government |date=August 2023}}</ref>

The [[Cook Islands Police Service]] is the police force of the Cook Islands. The Maritime Wing of the Police Service exercises sovereignty over the nation's EEZ.  Vessels have included a {{sclass2|Pacific|patrol boat|1}}, {{ship|CIPPB|Te Kukupa}} commissioned in May 1989 which received a re-fit in 2015<ref>{{cite news |title=Patrol boat 'born again' |url=http://www.cookislandsnews.com/item/51765-patrol-boat-born-again/51765-patrol-boat-born-again |accessdate=9 December 2019 |work=Cook Islands News |date=15 May 2015}}</ref> but was withdrawn from service and replaced by a larger and more capable {{sclass2|Guardian|patrol boat|1}}, {{ship|CIPPB|Te Kukupa II}}, which entered service in 2022.<ref>{{cite press release |title=Prime Minister Brown to Attend Handover Ceremony for CIPPB Te Kukupa II |url=https://mfai.gov.ck/news-updates/mfai-media-release-prime-minister-brown-attend-handover-ceremony-cippb-te-kukupa-ii |access-date=21 August 2023 |publisher=Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Immigration – Government of the Cook Islands |date=9 June 2022}}</ref> Cook Islands has its own customs regulations.<ref>[https://www.mfem.gov.ck/customs-legislation-tariffs Cook Islands Customs Legislation and Tariffs]</ref>

===Human rights===
{{Further|Human rights in the Cook Islands|LGBT rights in the Cook Islands}}

Formerly, male homosexuality was ''de jure'' illegal in the Cook Islands and was punishable by a maximum term of seven years imprisonment; however, the law was never enforced.<ref>{{cite web|title=State Sponsored Homophobia 2016: A world survey of sexual orientation laws: criminalisation, protection and recognition|url=http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160615160701/http://ilga.org/downloads/02_ILGA_State_Sponsored_Homophobia_2016_ENG_WEB_150516.pdf |archive-date=15 June 2016 |url-status=live|work=[[International Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Intersex Association]]|access-date=19 May 2016|date=17 May 2016}}</ref> In 2023, legislation was passed which legalised homosexuality.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/488019/cook-islands-parliament-decriminalises-homosexuality |title=Cook Islands parliament decriminalises homosexuality |publisher=[[RNZ]] |date=15 April 2023 |access-date=11 June 2023}}</ref>