The article on beehive.govt.nz detailed that this upgrade was announced during New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s visit to Viet Nam as the two countries mark 50 years of diplomatic relations.
Both leaders discussed opportunities to further grow and deepen the relationship between New Zealand and Vietnam across economics, trade and investment, defence and security, education, and people-to-people connections under the new partnership.
It quoted Luxon’s remarks stressing that strengthening relationship with Vietnam is incredibly important to New Zealand’s economic future, with more opportunities for businesses at home to access this crucial market. The New Zealand PM expressed his delight that he and Vietnamese PM Chinh agreed to take the relationship between the two countries to the next level - a comprehensive strategic partnership, the highest level of partnership with Vietnam. This is a fitting way to commence the 2025 anniversary year, Luxon added.
This significant upgrade in the relationship is a major milestone and demonstrates the high level of trust, ambition, and strategic alignment between the two countries countries. Vietnam is the rising star of Asia, and the opportunities to work together on common goals are enormous, the New Zealand leader added.
He said that the agreement also shows the priority his Government is placing on relationships with Southeast Asia – a region crucial to New Zealand’s plan to grow its economy, create jobs and lift incomes.
Other prominent New Zealand news outlets, including rnz.co.nz, 1news.co.nz, and scoop.co.nz, also featured the announcement, highlighting the elevation of the bilateral relationship.
According to the coverage, New Zealand is the 10th country with which Vietnam has upgraded its relations to a comprehensive strategic partnership. PM Luxon’s remarks were widely quoted, emphasising New Zealand’s ongoing efforts to strengthen ties with key countries that will play an increasingly important role in the region and globally in the years ahead.
The media outlets also provided extensive coverage of the welcoming ceremony for PM Luxon in Hanoi, his talks with his Vietnamese counterpart Pham Minh Chinh, and the key statements made by both leaders. PM Chinh highlighted that the new partnership will enhance political trust and deepen cooperation, fulfilling the shared aspirations of both nations’ people in a spirit of respect for international law. Meanwhile, PM Luxon reiterated that the new partnership would bring tangible benefits to New Zealand and create promising prospects for the country’s future economic development.
