22 May 2006 – Foreign Affairs Assistant Secretary for ASEAN Affairs Luis T. Cruz announced that the Philippines will host from 31 May – 1 June 2006 at the EDSA Shangri-La Hotel the 17th ASEAN-New Zealand Dialogue and the 10th ASEAN-New Zealand Joint Management Committee Meeting.

Assistant Secretary Cruz said the ASEAN and New Zealand exchange views during these meetings on various regional and international issues affecting their regions, and the progress of development and technical cooperation extended by New Zealand to ASEAN.  The meetings will be attended by Director-Generals from the ten ASEAN member-countries and officials from the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Assistant Secretary Cruz, who is also the Director-General for the ASEAN-Philippines Secretariat,  explained that the meetings are also opportunities for ASEAN officials to share with New Zealand the status of ASEAN’s regional integration efforts, and their work on bridging the development gaps in ASEAN through the Initiative for ASEAN Integration program and the sub-regional groupings such as the Brunei-Indonesia-Malaysia-Philippines-East ASEAN Growth Area (BIMP-EAGA).

New Zealand is one of ASEAN's first Dialogue Partners, having had formal relations since 1975.

Assistant Secretary Cruz said, “This long and reliable partnership has expanded from practical development cooperation projects to economic partnership and political and security cooperation.  The progress in the ASEAN-New Zealand cooperation is an indication of the growing common interest and mutual benefits gained from such productive relations. ASEAN and New Zealand could do much more programs and activities together to preserve and build on the gains for the next 30 years.”

He also said that when the Philippines assumes chairmanship of the 12th ASEAN Summit and Related Summits to be held in Cebu on 11 – 13 December 2006, New Zealand will again meet with ASEAN at the 2nd East Asia Summit (EAS), along with other countries, namely Australia, China, Japan, Republic of Korea and India.

The ten Full Dialogue Partners of ASEAN are Australia, Canada, China, the European Union, India, Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Russia, and USA.   ASEAN has also dialogue relations with the UNDP and sectoral partnership with Pakistan.  END