New Zealand Ambassador Caroline Beresford speaks with the press. VNS Photo Trần Khánh An

As Việt Nam and New Zealand enter a new phase with their Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, bilateral relations are enjoying their strongest momentum in 50 years. Reflecting on a landmark 2025 marked by high-level exchanges and expanding cooperation, New Zealand Ambassador Caroline Beresford highlights the real substance behind the new framework and the promising opportunities ahead. Ahead of Tết, she also shares views on Việt Nam’s socio-economic achievements following the 14th National Party Congress, along with her personal impressions of the Lunar New Year and the cultural bonds between the two countries.

Looking back on 2025, how would you assess the overall momentum in Việt Nam–New Zealand relations and what would you highlight as the most notable areas of cooperation between the two countries?

Last year, 2025, was the most extraordinary year in New Zealand–Vietnamese bilateral relations. We've been growing this relationship for 50 years and both my predecessors and colleagues here and at home over the years have really put in the work to get our relationship into the frame that it is now.

But we were just delighted in 2024 when we suggested to Việt Nam that we might like to elevate our strategic relationship to a comprehensive strategic partnership and they accepted immediately, which I think is a testament to the warm feelings and the positive relations that have been built with Việt Nam over the last 50 years. So 2025 was a really exciting experience for New Zealand. We had a Prime Minister visit, we had two trade delegations, we had a Foreign Minister, we had the Speaker of our Parliament and many, many activities, both cultural, educational and diplomatic, to mark this really important year.

The momentum couldn't be stronger in our bilateral relationship today. In your opinion, what new opportunities for cooperation have emerged between Việt Nam and New Zealand in the upcoming time, especially when we upgraded the ties into a comprehensive strategic partnership?

Actually, to my surprise, we saw an immediate uptick in engagement with Việt Nam, which shows that the comprehensive strategic partnership is really going to be something that has real substance, not just a political announcement. So, for example, we held our first ever legal dialogue between our legal officials, which talked a lot about multilateral cooperation, the law of the sea and those areas where New Zealand and Việt Nam really see some synergies in strengthening our voice by working together.

And what changes have you observed in a working relationship between our government agencies and businesses?

The government agencies and businesses are really stepping forward to follow through on the promise of this new relationship. For New Zealand's part, our businesses are absolutely interested in doing more in Việt Nam. They see this as an extremely lucrative, creative and talented market, with some very discerning consumers whose incomes and prosperity are growing along with their well-being. So I am fielding constant inquiries from New Zealand businesses about how they can do more here.

And I think we'll see the same from Việt Nam over the coming months. The fact that New Zealand and Việt Nam have almost no tariffs between us, because of the very high-quality trade agreements that we're party to, means that it's very easy for us to expand our trade and economic relationship. We just need to give our businesses the freedom to come into this market, to understand Việt Nam and to really get a foothold here.

Việt Nam and New Zealand have set a target to reach US$3 billion in two-way trade in 2026. And as you mentioned before, the two countries have no trade barriers. So how do you see the room for growth in areas like agri-tech and renewable energy services?

I think there's an enormous potential for growth in those sectors.

There are just very small tariffs really between us. The barriers to trade are more around the regulatory systems of Việt Nam and New Zealand.

So a lot of the work that my team's doing now is to help support Việt Nam to improve its regulatory system, so that quicker decisions can be made on trading in new goods. So New Zealand has a very good history of trading with Việt Nam in goods such as dairy and horticulture. You'll see a lot of our fruits in the supermarket, including New Zealand cherries right now for the Lunar New Year.

But what we need to see to really grow that relationship is new products entering the market. And to do that we need a little bit more haste around regulatory approvals and looking at where the regulations are working against what New Zealand and Việt Nam have jointly agreed to do together.

As we approach the Year of the Horse in 2026, a symbol of speed, strength and perseverance in Vietnamese culture, how do these qualities resonate with the current state of the Việt Nam–New Zealand relationship?

I think they resonate perfectly. It's a very poetic image, the horse. And the horse is very much part of New Zealand's culture. Our rural communities still travel by horse. It's not long ago that you would have seen horses tethered outside our primary schools where children would come and go. And we've also got a history of some excellent racehorses. In fact, our foreign minister is our current minister of racing and is very interested in the horse.

So I think it's a perfectly appropriate symbol, this magnificent, strong creature with so much potential to go faster and to really embed Việt Nam in the international order as a player with a strong voice.

Recently, Việt Nam has successfully organised the 14th Congress of the Communist Party of Việt Nam, a significant milestone, particularly in advancing socio-economic development and international integration. What are your expectations for Việt Nam in the new term, particularly in advancing socio-economic development and international integration?

Well, it was really interesting to attend the opening and closing ceremonies of the recent Congress, a sort of unique moment for an ambassador who normally doesn't serve more than four or five years in any one country. I was extremely impressed with the discipline and coherence around that event. The communication out, not just to the Vietnamese people about the outcomes, but also with the international community, has been excellent.

I think Việt Nam is already off to a very, very strong start in terms of socio-economic development. Việt Nam's development story over the last decades is extraordinary. The number of people that Việt Nam has lifted out of poverty through strong leadership is really impressive to the rest of the world.

I think the next period will be one where Việt Nam reaches the next level of its potential. So the Congress has set out some very clear goals, reinforcing the socio-economic aim of becoming an upper-middle-income country in the next couple of decades. I have no doubt that Việt Nam is going to achieve that, and with it, the happiness and well-being of the Vietnamese people.

In your view, what were the most impressive highlights of Việt Nam's socio-economic development over the past year?

Well, I don't think anyone in the international community can look past your growth in GDP in 2025. It's extraordinary. Eight per cent, where many other countries in the world are struggling to reach three or four right now, and in the face of enormous economic headwinds caused by turbulence in the international trading system. That by far outstrips any other achievement and is extraordinary and impressive, and it's something that New Zealand is studying very closely.

Could you please tell us about your feelings about the Vietnamese traditional New Year celebration and, from your perspective, what cultural values embody Việt Nam's Tết? Do you see it as aligning with the values that New Zealand consistently upholds?

Oh, well, last year was my first Tết in Việt Nam, so it was a time of learning and discovery for me. I loved the atmosphere of Tết, particularly in Hà Nội.

Hà Nội just has this beautiful, magical, misty feel about it during Tết. The air is cooler, the nights are longer, but people are coming together with a feeling of rejoicing and happiness. I love seeing the kumquat trees appearing on the streets like we're seeing now, and I hear from my staff how much time they spend with family and how active the Tết period is.

In terms of the values we have in common, New Zealand too, at this time of year, takes time out from busy schedules to spend time with family. We eat a lot of good food, we drink a lot of beer and we have a rest to refresh ourselves for the year to come.

What are your thoughts on the similarities in festival cultures between Việt Nam and New Zealand?

Well, as I just said, I think New Zealand culture focuses very strongly on the food element. We gather all of our best food at this time of year and we eat more than we should.

Cooking for each other is a sign of family connectedness, and just spending time relaxing, talking, having some nice wine, New Zealand wine or New Zealand beer, is very similar to what the Vietnamese would do.

Do you plan to organise any activities on the occasion of the Lunar New Year this year?

Yes, this year, in fact, I'm really excited because in two weeks' time one of my best friends, who is our High Commissioner in the Cook Islands, is coming all the way from the Cook Islands to Việt Nam to visit me for the Lunar New Year.

She's really curious to see what Lunar New Year is like in Southeast Asia and in Việt Nam in particular. She spends her life on a very small Pacific island, but even so, she's agreed to come with me to Phú Quốc and we're really excited about seeing that part of beautiful Việt Nam.

What do you think, when working in Việt Nam so far, in terms of culture and customs, has most interested you about Vietnamese culture and lifestyle? Could you share a memorable experience or personal reflection on celebrating Tết in Việt Nam?

Well, I've only had one Tết here and I was pretty new in the job last year, so my experience of Tết would not have been as memorable as this year will be for me.

I spent time walking around the city, looking at the beautiful monuments and absorbing Vietnamese culture. I visited the Temple of Literature, which is the most extraordinary building, and took time to eat some beautiful Vietnamese street food. But I didn't do anything the way the Vietnamese would do, and certainly this year I'm looking forward to getting more involved in the Lunar New Year.

I’d like to say Happy New Year to all of the Vietnamese people. I would like to extend my huge congratulations to Việt Nam on a wonderful year last year, 2025, in which you've achieved so much and to say that I'm looking forward to so much more being achieved in 2026. And I have a special message for the men of Việt Nam. Please use this Tết Lunar New Year to give your sisters, your wives and your mothers a break. Don't make them do all the work. Chúc mừng năm mới! — VNS