According to VNA, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and his wife Le Thi Bich Tran, along with a high-level Vietnamese delegation, have successfully concluded their official visit to New Zealand at the invitation of New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon. The following is the full text of the joint press statement by Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon on this occasion.
At the invitation of New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, Vietnamese Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh made his first official visit to New Zealand from March 9 to 11. On the morning of March 11, following the official welcoming ceremony, the two Prime Ministers held extensive and constructive talks.
The two Prime Ministers reaffirmed the deep and enduring friendship and Strategic Partnership between Vietnam and New Zealand, strengthened by strong people-to-people exchanges and close cooperation in the fields of politics and diplomacy, economy, trade and investment, education, labor, science and technology.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon assessed that the bilateral relationship has received new impetus since being upgraded to a Strategic Partnership in 2020; affirming that Vietnam is one of New Zealand's important partners in Southeast Asia, one of the world's fastest-growing economies, and New Zealand's 14th largest trading partner. The two Prime Ministers discussed opportunities to rapidly increase bilateral trade, aiming for a target of US$3 billion by 2026 through enhanced cooperation in tourism and education, as well as removing non-tariff barriers, boosting trade promotion activities, fully implementing existing free trade agreements, and exploring measures to facilitate bilateral investment.
During his visit, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced a new grant of 6.24 million New Zealand dollars for Vietnam's agricultural sector for the "VietFruit High-Quality Fruit Seed Development Project" Phase 3, a collaboration between the New Zealand Institute of Plant and Food Research and Vietnam aimed at promoting Vietnam's passion fruit industry. A similar project focusing on dragon fruit had previously been very successful.
The two Prime Ministers welcomed the Vietnam-New Zealand Strategic Cooperation Plan on Education for the period 2023-2026, which facilitates cooperation and linkages between higher education institutions in the two countries, supports Vietnam in improving educational models through digital means, and establishes an alumni network.
Prime Minister Christopher Luxon affirmed that the New Zealand government is committed to promoting international education and diversifying the international education market. The two Prime Ministers also discussed opportunities to attract more Vietnamese students to study at prestigious New Zealand universities.
The two Prime Ministers also welcomed the strengthening of cooperation in other areas; they appreciated the signing of cooperation agreements on economic, trade, and financial matters and the establishment of security and defense dialogue mechanisms on this occasion.
The two Prime Ministers also agreed to hold the first bilateral Maritime Dialogue in 2024 on international law, governance, and conservation of the sea. They reiterated their countries' commitment to upholding international law, including the United Nations Charter and the 1982 United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS); and pledged to cooperate with each other and with other international partners to contribute to the peace, stability, and prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region and the world, including the South China Sea.
The two Prime Ministers agreed that the 50th anniversary of diplomatic relations in 2025 would be an opportunity for the two countries to expand cooperation in a number of areas of mutual interest such as green economy, climate change, digital transformation, and high-tech agriculture.
Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh expressed satisfaction with the implementation of the Strategic Partnership Action Program for the period 2021-2024, which has achieved many positive results in the fields of economy and trade, defense, security, education, labor, etc.; he proposed strengthening exchanges of high-level visits and contacts, actively implementing existing bilateral cooperation mechanisms, and creating a basis for upgrading the relationship to a new level in the future.
On this occasion, Prime Minister Pham Minh Chinh invited Prime Minister Christopher Luxon to pay an official visit to Vietnam at a suitable time, and Prime Minister Christopher Luxon happily accepted the invitation.
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