Jakarta, May 8 (AseanAll) — ASEAN and New Zealand reaffirmed commitment to strengthening their partnership and deepening cooperation at the 13th ASEAN-New Zealand Joint Cooperation Committee (ANZJCC) Meeting, held on May 8, 2025 at the ASEAN Headquarters/ASEAN Secretariat.
The meeting discussed recent developments in ASEAN and New Zealand, and took stock of the implementation of the ASEAN-New Zealand Plan of Action (POA) (2021-2025), which is in its final year. Both sides welcomed the substantial progress achieved across the four themes outlined in the POA – Peace, Prosperity, People, and Planet, with all action lines under the POA having been addressed thus far.
The meeting also discussed future direction of the partnership, particularly in the context of the 50th anniversary of ASEAN-New Zealand Dialogue Relations this year. Looking ahead, both sides agreed to continue strengthening cooperation across a wide range of areas, particularly in transnational crime, digital transformation, renewable energy, blue economy, tourism, connectivity, education, environment and climate change, smart cities, and disaster management.
The two sides welcomed the entry-into-force of the Second Protocol to amend the Agreement establishing the ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand Free Trade Area (AANZFTA) on 21 April 2025. They underscored the importance of ensuring the effective implementation of the AANZFTA and the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement (RCEP) to further strengthen trade and economic relations between the two sides.
Both sides looked forward to the ASEAN-New Zealand Commemorative Summit, to be held in conjunction with the 50th anniversary of the dialogue partnership. ASEAN and New Zealand will also develop a new POA to guide the ASEAN-New Zealand cooperation for the next five years (2026-2030).
Permanent Representative of Viet Nam to ASEAN, Ambassador Ton Thi Ngoc Huong, and Ambassador of New Zealand to ASEAN, Joanna Anderson, co-chaired the meeting. In attendance were the Permanent Representatives of ASEAN Member States and representatives from the ASEAN Secretariat. Timor-Leste attended as Observer.
