The official visit to New Zealand by Vietnamese PM Nguyen Xuan Phuc from March 11 to 14 will create a driving force for the enhancement of the countries’ comprehensive partnership and the expansion of cooperation areas in the future.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his spouse arrived in Auckland international airport on March 12 afternoon (local time) to begin an official visit to New Zealand.

 Vietnam and Australia are expected to elevate their relations to a strategic partnership during the upcoming official visit of Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc, as a result of long-standing and sound partnership over the past more than four decades.

Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc’s visit to New Zealand from March 12-14 is a reiteration of Vietnam’s policy of attaching importance to its diplomatic ties with the country.

 President Tran Dai Quang hosted Foreign Minister of the Republic of Korea Kang Kyung Wha in Hanoi on March 9, expressing his delight at the robust development of the bilateral cooperation in various areas over the past 25 years.

 Vietnam-New Zealand comprehensive partnership

 Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh had bilateral meetings with ministers of Japan and Chile on the sidelines of the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in Chile on March 9.

 Hanif Salim has officially assumed the post of Consul General of Indonesia in Ho Chi Minh City after he received a written approval from the Vietnamese Foreign Ministry on March 9.

 The Foreign Ministry of Vietnam and the administration of the Australian state of Victoria signed an agreement on March 9 to facilitate connectivity and cooperation between Vietnamese localities and Victoria.

 Vietnamese Minister of Industry and Trade Tran Tuan Anh had bilateral meetings with ministers of Japan and Chile on the sidelines of the signing of the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP) in Chile on March 9.

Prime Minister of New Zealand Jacinda Ardern said there is significant potential to grow NZ - Vietnam relationship further and she will discuss with Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc how to harness the potential of the relationship.

 The ASEAN Joint Consultative Meeting in Singapore on March 7-8 reviewed agenda and events of the 32nd ASEAN Summit scheduled for April 25-28 in the island state. 

Vietnam should encourage other ASEAN members to join the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development, a senior official from the Japanese Foreign Ministry said at the Ministerial Conference of the OECD in Tokyo on March 8.

National Assembly Chairwoman Nguyen Thi Kim Ngan hosted a reception in Hanoi on March 7 for a delegation from the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (the Parliamentary Network).

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc urged the organising board of the 6th Greater Mekong Sub-region (GMS-6) Summit and the 10th Cambodia-Laos-Vietnam (CLV-10) Development Triangle Summit.

Vietnam has made efforts to address unsolved problems on border, territory, sea and islands over the years, ensuring the country’s sovereignty, sovereign rights and jurisdiction, said Deputy Foreign Minister Le Hoai Trung.

 Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc and his spouse will pay official visits to New Zealand from March 12-14 and Australia from March 14-18.

 The 12th meeting of ASEAN Regional Forum Experts and Eminent Persons (ARF EEPs) convened in Hanoi on March 6 under the chair of Vietnam and Japan.

 Vietnam and Malaysia have agreed to maintain delegation exchanges, particularly at high-ranking levels, cooperation in training and the sharing of information and experience in participating in United Nations’ peacekeeping missions.

 Vietnam and Russia have agreed to strengthen the two countries’ military technical cooperation and their defence partnership.