Hanoi (VNA) –🎉 New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon's upcoming trip to Vietnam, accompanied by a strong business delegation, aims to strengthen and expand ties with an important partner like Vietnam, according to New Zealand Ambassador Caroline Beresford.

From February 25 to 28, Prime Minister Luxon will pay an official visit to Vietnam and attend the second ASEAN Future Forum at the invitation of his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh.

This year marks the 50th founding anniversary of Vietnam-New Zealand diplomatic relations (June 19, 1975 - 2025) and the fifth anniversary of their strategic partnership. In an interview granted to the Vietnam News Agency on the threshold of Luxon's official visit to Vietnam, Beresford revealed that several bilateral agreements will be signed during this trip. This visit is designed to further tighten the Vietnam – New Zealand relationship in the context of volatile global landscape, towards ensuring that the bilateral ties remains resilient, the diplomat said. "If you think of a relationship like a piece of fabric, the relationship architecture is like strands of fibre woven together to make the fabric stronger. And so in a sense, his visit to Vietnam draws the fibres closer together so that in an uncertain environment that we live in today, the fabric of our relationship remains strong," she said. Luxon's trip is expected to open up new business opportunities, with New Zealand businesses set to sign cooperation agreements with partners in Vietnam, particularly in education, food, and beverages, she went on. "Our Prime Minister has a very ambitious agenda for New Zealand in terms of its relationships with Southeast Asia. His government has moved quickly to reset our foreign policy, and as part of that, we have identified Vietnam as one of our most important partners in the region and globally," the ambassador said. New Zealand is still much dependent on the agriculture sector, but the country has applied modern technologies to improve the productivity and quality of farm produce, she said, adding that as Vietnamese families’ incomes start to rise, there'll be more and more demand for New Zealand's products in the Southeast Asian nation. On the other hand, Vietnam also produces goods that New Zealand demands, including agricultural products, so the two sides need to continue expanding cooperation in this field, the ambassador said. Vietnam has opened its market to New Zealand’s fresh potatoes, frozen beef, kiwifruit, apples, pumpkins, and strawberries. New Zealand has approved imports of Vietnamese mangoes, dragon fruit, rambutans, lemons, and pomelos, with ongoing negotiations to open its market to Vietnamese longans, lychees, and fresh-cut flowers. Meanwhile, New Zealand is seeking access for its honey, pears, venison, and deer meat in Vietnam. The ambassador said around 20 businesses from New Zealand are going to see Hanoi, the heart and cultural capital of Vietnam. They plan to take in the old imperial centre and the culture and the traditions, and then the modern and bustling Ho Chi Minh City, a busy metropolis in Southeast Asia. The contrast is fascinating for New Zealanders, who want to see that, she added.

Promoting New Zealand culture

The two countries will coordinate to organise various cultural events and people-to-people exchanges in celebration of the 50th founding anniversary of diplomatic ties. According to the diplomat, in New Zealand, the Maori New Year (Matariki) falls on June 19-22 this year, which coincides with the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations with Vietnam on June 19. The two sides are planning to hold a major celebration to mark both events. The embassy will also host the screening of a variety of films from New Zealand in Hanoi to showcase the country's landscape, people, and culture. There will be a traditional art troupe from New Zealand coming to Vietnam this year to showcase the 'manakitanga' (hospitality and friendship in Maori), she said, expressing her hope that this will be an opportunity to promote New Zealand’s indigenous culture and foster exchanges and connections between the Oceanian nation’s indigenous communities and Vietnam’s ethnic communities. Other activities will be conferences and forums seeking solutions to boost business and education cooperation between the two sides, she added. As of February 2025, Vietnam is New Zealand’s 12th largest trading partner, while New Zealand ranks 41st among trade partners. Two-way trade has been steadily increased throughout the years./.