New Zealand Ambassador to Việt Nam Caroline Beresford wrote to Việt Nam News on the country's national day.

On February 6, New Zealand celebrates its national day, Waitangi Day, commemorating the signing of the Treaty of Waitangi 185 years ago between the British Crown and the chiefs of the indigenous Māori people.

It’s a day of reflection and acknowledgement of our history.

New Zealand is an island nation, but from the very beginning, we’ve always looked outward, building connections and exploring new horizons. One of the connections we very much treasure is with Việt Nam.

This year, 2025, marks the 50th anniversary of bilateral relations between New Zealand and Việt Nam. Looking back over the past five decades, we are incredibly proud of how our partnership has evolved. Together, we’ve worked hard to make this relationship meaningful for our people, our countries, and our shared Indo-Pacific region.

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon welcomes Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính in the latter’s visit to New Zealand in March, 2024. — Photos courtesy of the embassy

In 2020, we took our partnership to the next level, upgrading it to a Strategic Partnership. Since then, we’ve further strengthened political ties, deepened defence and security cooperation, and maintained regular high-level exchanges. Last year, we were thrilled to welcome Prime Minister Chính to New Zealand, and our own Prime Minister, Christopher Luxon, will visit Việt Nam soon this year. The visit by the New Zealand Prime Minister to Việt Nam will mark the official start of the 50th diplomatic anniversary celebrations.

Bilateral trade is thriving, with Việt Nam now New Zealand’s 14th largest trading partner. We’re working towards a target of US$3 billion in annual trade turnover in 2026, as set by our two Prime Ministers last year. With this in mind, a trade delegation will join Prime Minister Luxon’s visit, which we hope will result in the forging of some important new commercial relationships, and ultimately a boost to our two-way trade and investment.

It’s fantastic to see New Zealand’s safe, high-quality food and beverages on Vietnamese shelves – just one example of our growing trade.

Through our development cooperation programme, New Zealand is also contributing expertise in many different areas, including agriculture, disaster management, climate change, education and supporting vulnerable communities in Việt Nam.

But it’s the people-to-people connections that truly drive our partnership. More and more Vietnamese students are pursuing education in New Zealand, taking advantage of our world-class institutions and becoming the “real ambassadors” for our two countries. Many Vietnamese people are visiting New Zealand to experience our renowned manaakitanga, or hospitality, while New Zealanders are also flocking to Việt Nam to discover the wonders of this beautiful country.

Vietnamese students talk to a New Zealand school representative to explore study opportunities in New Zealand at New Zealand Education Day event in Hà Nội last October.

New Zealand and Việt Nam work closely together on global platforms such as ASEAN+, APEC, and ASEM. We are also active members of some important regional trade arrangements, including ANZFTAs, RCEP, CPTPP which bring a lot of benefits to both sides, and together we consistently advocate for peace, stability, prosperity in our shared Indo-Pacific region.

In the past 50 years, we’ve achieved so much together. But I believe the future holds even greater potential for our nations, and we look forward to the journey ahead.

I will close with a proverb in our Māori language, one that reminds us of the importance of working together into the future:

Ko nga pae tāwhiti whaia kia tata

Ko nga pae tata whakamaua kia tina.

The potential for tomorrow is determined by our actions today.

I wish everyone in Việt Nam a prosperous New Year of the Snake! Chúc mừng năm mới (Happy New Year) and Happy Waitangi Day!