14-4-2024 (WELLINGTON) Singapore will roll out the red carpet this week as it welcomes New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon for an official visit, marking the first stop on his diplomatic tour of Southeast Asia. According to a statement released by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), Luxon’s three-day stay, spanning from Sunday to Tuesday, underscores the “excellent and longstanding relations” between the two nations, buttressed by the Enhanced Partnership established in 2019.
This inaugural visit by the newly-elected Prime Minister is set to reaffirm the robust bilateral ties that have flourished under the five pillars of the Enhanced Partnership: trade and economics, security and defence, science, technology and innovation, people-to-people links, and climate change and the green economy. The Partnership was formally upgraded during the visit of former Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern in May 2019.
Accompanying Luxon on this diplomatic mission are New Zealand’s Minister for Climate Change and Minister for Revenue, Simon Watts, and other senior officials. The Prime Minister’s itinerary promises a series of high-profile engagements, including an official welcome at the Istana on Monday, where he will have the honor of witnessing a new orchid hybrid being named after him – a symbolic gesture that underscores the depth of the bilateral relationship.
“He will call on President Tharman Shanmugaratnam and meet Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong, who will also host an official lunch,” the MFA statement revealed. Luxon is also slated to hold talks with Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong, providing an opportunity for both nations to explore avenues for further collaboration and cooperation.
Luxon’s visit to Singapore comes on the heels of his ascension to power last November, when his National Party secured a sufficient number of seats in the country’s general election to form a coalition government. The Prime Ministers of Singapore and New Zealand have already established a rapport, having spoken over the phone in January and meeting on the sidelines of the ASEAN-Australia Special Summit in Melbourne just last month.
As Luxon embarks on this Southeast Asian diplomatic tour, which will also include stops in Thailand and the Philippines, the international community watches with keen interest, anticipating the strengthening of regional partnerships and the exploration of new avenues for cooperation in areas of mutual interest.
