Following talks with visiting Vietnamese Party General Secretary and State President To Lam, PM Luxon told reporters about four agreements the two countries have just reached aimed at deepening bilateral cooperation.
"First, an arrangement on peace operations training will strengthen links between our defense forces and our shared contribution to United Nations peacekeeping. Second, a renewed and expanded education cooperation agreement building cooperation on vocational and technical education and helping meet the changing skills uh of both of our economies is really critical.”
“Thirdly, an agricultural package expanding market access for New Zealand's honey and deer products and Vietnam's fresh cut flowers. and foliage and further strengthening the cooperation between our agriculture ministries. And fourth, further funding for the Asian mega deltas and the ASEAN climate smart agricultural programs to build on work that has already increased resilience, lifted farmer profits and cut rice emissions by 50%."
General Secretary and President Lam said the two sides had agreed to increase exchanges at all levels and translate high-level commitments into tangible results. Both countries will work together to achieve a target of 3 billion USD in two-way trade.
“Agriculture, the environment, and technology are pillars that align with the development goals of both countries. We agree to promote a green, low-emission economy, improve climate-change adaptation, and develop exemplary models of cooperation in agriculture and sustainable development. Vietnam highly values New Zealand’s practical and effective support for climate-change farming in the Mekong Delta,” said Mr. Lam.
“Collaboration in education, training, tourism, and people-to-people exchanges will be expanded, with a focus on developing high-quality human resources for the new development phase. The two peoples will be connected through tourism and airlines are encouraged to establish direct air services between Vietnam and New Zealand soon.”
The exchange of cooperation documents included a peacekeeping cooperation arrangement, an education cooperation agreement, and a memorandum of understanding on agricultural and environmental cooperation.
The two sides also exchanged a package of market-access arrangements, letters concerning announced grants for the Consultative Group on International Agricultural Research, the Initiative on Asian Mega Deltas, and the ASEAN Climate-Smart Agriculture Initiative with the Global Research Alliance.
