New Zealand's Foreign Affairs Minister Murray McCully says a spirit of restraint and moderation is needed in Egypt to end the current impasse.
Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak has refused to resign, despite mounting speculation that he was about to do so on Wednesday.
However, in a televised speech, he said Egypt is heading "day after day" to a peaceful transfer of power.
Mr Murbarak repeated an earlier statement that he would stand down in September this year, but will hand over some powers to vice-president Omar Suleiman before this.
Mr McCully says substantive and meaningful reforms are required if the administration is to meet the legitimate expectations of the Egyptian people. However, that process needs to start with sufficient commitment to diffuse current tensions.
Mr McCully says New Zealand joins with other nations in urging the Egyptian leadership to listen and the protesters to pursue their objectives through non-violent means.
The Government says New Zealanders still in Egypt should exercise extreme caution over the next few days due to the prospect of continued protests.
Disappointment in NZ
Ola Kamel, who lives in Christchurch, said the speech from Mr Mubarak was deeply disappointing.
Ms Kamel has a large number of family members still in Egypt and says her nieces and nephews are taking part in the protests in Cairo.
She says watching the situation from New Zealand is a very scary and stressful experience as it seems to be going from bad to worse.
Ms Kamel is praying for a peaceful transition of power and hopes that can happen without international involvement.
