The information was unveiled at a joint press briefing held in Auckland on August 13 (local time), following talks between New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Vietnamese Party General Secretary and State President To Lam as part of the latter’s state visit.

Prime Minister Luxon expressed his pleasure at welcoming Party General Secretary and State President To Lam and the high-ranking Vietnamese delegation, saying the visit has produced positive results in further strengthening the friendship between the two countries in a substantive and effective manner.

He spoke highly of Vietnam’s socio-economic achievements and noted bilateral relations have continued to grow strongly, with substantive cooperation across various areas, particularly education and agriculture.

Looking ahead, the New Zealand Prime Minister said he hopes more businesses from both countries would successfully invest and cooperate in each other’s markets, especially in high-quality human resource training, science and technology, agriculture and the environment.

Luxon also highlighted the central role of ASEAN and Vietnam’s influence in the region, saying the successful visit would help shape Vietnam-New Zealand relations for decades to come.

Trade and investment among key priorities

Speaking at the briefing, Party General Secretary and State President To Lam expressed his appreciation to the New Zealand Prime Minister and people for their warm and friendly welcome to the Vietnamese delegation.

He said the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership between the two countries has continued to strengthen amid a rapidly changing global environment, underpinned by trusted partnership, shared visions and broad opportunities for cooperation.

The Vietnamese leader informed that the two sides have reached a number of practical and concrete outcomes, agreeing to increase exchanges at all levels and translate high-level commitments into tangible results.

Trade and investment will be an important area of focus, with the two sides working to create more favourable conditions for economic cooperation and strive to achieve the target of US$3 billion in two-way trade.

The two sides will also continue to expand cooperation in agriculture, the environment and science and technology, which were identified as important areas aligned with the development goals of both countries.

Green growth, agriculture and climate change

According to the Vietnamese leader, Vietnam and New Zealand agreed to promote green and low-emission economic development and strengthen cooperation in climate change adaptation.

The two sides will work toward developing exemplary models of cooperation in agriculture and sustainable development.

Vietnam also appreciated New Zealand’s practical and effective support for climate change adaptation in the Mekong Delta. The cooperation reflects the two countries’ shared interest in combining agricultural development with environmental sustainability and climate resilience.

Education and training, tourism and people-to-people exchanges will also continue to be expanded, with the aim of developing high-quality human resources during the two countries’ new development phase.

The two sides encouraged closer people-to-people connectivity through tourism and called for efforts to facilitate the opening of direct air routes between Vietnam and New Zealand.

Stronger coordination on regional and international issues

Vietnam and New Zealand agreed to strengthen coordination and mutual support at multilateral forums and contribute to building an inclusive, rules-based international order.

The two sides emphasised the importance of maintaining a peaceful and secure environment conducive to development and settling disputes by peaceful means in accordance with international law, particularly the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS).

Party General Secretary and State President To Lam also praised New Zealand’s positive role and contributions at regional and international mechanisms, affirming Vietnam’s support for stronger, more substantive and effective ASEAN-New Zealand relations and the continued promotion of ASEAN centrality.

Following the talks, the two leaders also witnessed the exchange of several cooperation documents between ministries and agencies of the two countries.

These included an implementing arrangement on peacekeeping cooperation; an education cooperation agreement; and a memorandum of understanding on agriculture and environment cooperation.

The two sides also exchanged a package of market-access arrangements and letters concerning announced grants for the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research (CGIAR) Initiative on Asian Mega Deltas and the ASEAN Climate-Smart Agriculture Initiative with the Global Research Alliance (GRA).