Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern today attended the ASEAN-New Zealand Commemorative Summit and discussed with Leaders a range of shared challenges facing the Indo-Pacific region, including:

• The ongoing management of the COVID-19 pandemic;
• The importance of working collectively to accelerate economic recovery; and
• Exploring further opportunities for partners to work more closely on health, economic and security issues facing the region.

The ASEAN-New Zealand Commemorative Summit, which was held digitally, also marked the 45th anniversary of the diplomatic partnership between the two parties.

“New Zealand and ASEAN share a strong legacy of working together to advance peace and prosperity in our region. ASEAN is our fourth largest trading partner, a crucial defence and security partner, and a critical strategic hub that connects us to Asia and the rest of the world,” Jacinda Ardern said.

“Our partnership will play an important role as our countries work together to support global efforts to manage the pandemic and ensure fair and equitable access to safe vaccines, and drive economic recovery through maintaining open markets for our exporters and resilient supply chains,” Jacinda Ardern said.

The Prime Minister, through a joint statement with Leaders, reaffirmed New Zealand’s commitment to strengthening its partnership with ASEAN under the themes of “Peace, Prosperity, People and Planet”, which will promote cooperation in areas such as sustainability and climate change, trade facilitation and digital commerce.

Later tonight the Prime Minister will also digitally attend the East Asia Summit (EAS), the region’s premier forum for leaders to discuss pressing strategic issues facing our region.

“The meeting will be a good chance to exchange views with other leaders on the pandemic and issues such as the South China Sea and climate change,” Jacinda Ardern said.

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