New Zealand Prime Minister John Key cancelled a planned trip to Europe for the second time because of the Christchurch earthquake.

The visit was rescheduled after Key was forced to cancel an earlier trip to Balmoral Castle and meetings with British Prime Minister David Cameron because of the first Christchurch earthquake on Sept. 4, last year.

While the latest trip was still in the planning stages and had not been formally announced, Key had planned to leave March 9 for a trip to Moscow, where New Zealand is negotiating a free trade agreement, as well as France and the United Kingdom.

Meetings with British Prime Minister David Cameron and French president Nicolas Sarkozy were among those scheduled.

A spokeswoman confirmed on Sunday that the trip had been cancelled in light of the latest earthquake.

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