Thailand Prime Minister Anutin Visits New Zealand to Boost Trade and Partnership

Thailand Prime Minister Anutin Charnvirakul will make an official visit to New Zealand this week, accompanied by a delegation of leading Thai business representatives, Prime Minister Christopher Luxon announced today.

The visit marks 70 years of diplomatic relations and will be used to formally launch the New Zealand-Thailand Strategic Partnership, Mr Luxon says.

It will strengthen trade and business connections between our two countries, as we both work towards the shared goal of tripling two-way trade by 2045.

Thailand is ASEAN’s third-largest economy and one of New Zealand’s top 10 trading partners.

Our two-way trade reached almost NZ$4.8 billion in the year to March 2026, including NZ$1.6 billion in New Zealand exports.

Thailand is also an important partner for New Zealand on regional stability and combatting transnational serious and organised crime.

I look forward to welcoming Prime Minister Anutin and discussing how we can deliver greater prosperity and security for both our countries.

Prime Minister Anutin will attend a series of engagements in Auckland, including bilateral talks with Mr Luxon, a meeting with Minister of Foreign Affairs Winston Peters, and a business roundtable with Minister for Trade and Investment Todd McClay and senior business leaders.

He will arrive in New Zealand on Thursday 20 August and leave on Saturday 22 August.