India and New Zealand sign defence cooperation pact, agree to step up maritime safety after Modi meets PM Christopher Luxon

Modi said India and New Zealand support a free, open and secure Indo-Pacific. “We believe in the policy of development, not expansionism,” he said, in an oblique reference to China’s aggressive behaviour in the Indo-Pacific region.

The New Zealand prime minister said Modi and he discussed a challenging strategic outlook in the Indo-Pacific. “I reiterated our strong commitment to address shared concerns over our respective interests in contributing to a prosperous Indo-Pacific,” Luxon said.

According to the joint statement, the prime ministers “recognised that we face an increasingly uncertain and dangerous world. They noted that, as maritime nations, India and New Zealand have a strong and common interest in an open, inclusive, stable and prosperous Indo-Pacific, where the rules-based international order is upheld”.

The joint statement said that “both leaders welcomed the signing of the India-New Zealand Memorandum of Understanding for Defence Cooperation. This will further strengthen bilateral defence cooperation and establish regular bilateral defence engagement. Both sides noted the need for ensuring the safety and security of sea lanes of communication and agreed there needs to be regular dialogue to discuss enhancement of maritime safety”.

New Zealand welcomed India joining the Combined Maritimes Forces and welcomed the advancement in defence ties during the New Zealand command of Command Task Force 150.

“Acknowledged the shared history of sacrifice of Indian and New Zealand service personnel who fought and served alongside one another around the world over the past century,” the joint statement said, adding that the prime ministers “welcomed sustained progress in defence engagements, including through participation in military exercises, staff college exchanges, regular port calls by naval ships, and exchange of high-level defence delegations”.

The prime ministers recalled that the Indian Naval sailing vessel Tarini made a port call at Lyttelton, Christchurch, New Zealand, in December 2024. They also referred to the upcoming port call in Mumbai by the Royal New Zealand Navy’s ship HMNZS Te Kaha.

‘Concern about anti-India activities in New Zealand’

The two leaders also discussed security cooperation, as PM Modi said, “We both are unanimous against terrorism. Whether it is the Christchurch terrorist attack of March 15, 2019, or the Mumbai attack of November 26, 2008, terrorism in any form is unacceptable.”

Underlining that strict action is necessary against those guilty of terrorist attacks, Modi said, “We will continue to cooperate together against terrorist, separatist and radical elements.”

“In this context, we shared our concern about anti-India activities by some illegal elements in New Zealand,” he said.

Modi said India is confident that it will continue to receive cooperation from the New Zealand government against all these “illegal elements”.

The joint statement said the two leaders “reiterated their absolute condemnation of terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, and the use of terrorist proxies in cross-border terrorism. Both stressed the urgent need for all countries to take immediate, sustained, measurable, and concrete action against UN-proscribed terrorist organizations and individuals. They called for disrupting of terrorism financing networks and safe havens, dismantling of terror infrastructure, including online, and bringing perpetrators of terrorism to justice swiftly. The two leaders agreed to cooperate in combating terrorism and violent extremism through bilateral and multilateral mechanisms.”

Negotiations for a free-trade pact

Prime Minister Modi also referred to India and New Zealand deciding to start negotiations for a mutually beneficial free-trade pact. “This will boost the potential of mutual trade and investment. Mutual cooperation and investment will be encouraged in areas like dairy, food processing, and pharma,” he said.

According to the joint statement, the prime ministers welcomed sustained trade and investment flows between India and New Zealand and called for further exploring the potential to expand bilateral trade. They encouraged businesses on both sides to cultivate links; explore emerging economic and investment opportunities to build upon the complementarities of the two economies.

Calling for greater two-way investment, reflective of the ongoing strong momentum in bilateral cooperation, they agreed to enhance the trade and investment relationship between India and New Zealand to realise its untapped potential and to contribute to inclusive and sustainable economic growth.

In this context, the joint statement said that the prime ministers “welcomed the launch of FTA negotiations for a balanced, ambitious, comprehensive, and mutually beneficial trade agreement to achieve deeper economic integration. The leaders agreed that a comprehensive trade agreement offers a significant opportunity to enhance trade and economic cooperation. By leveraging each country’s strengths, addressing their respective concerns, and tackling challenges, a bilateral trade agreement can foster mutually beneficial trade and investment growth, ensuring equitable gains and complementarities for both sides. The Leaders committed to designate senior representatives to steer these negotiations to resolution as soon as reasonably possible.”

In 2023-24, New Zealand exported US$ 0.84 billion of total goods and services to India and imported US$ 0.91 billion and had a total trade value of US$ 1.75 billion. India imports wool, iron and steel, fruit and nuts and aluminium from New Zealand and exports mostly pharmaceuticals, mechanical machinery, textile articles and pearls, precious stones and metals to that country.

Modi said that the two countries have decided to work on formulating an agreement to deal with the issue of illegal migration and to ease the mobility of skilled workers. “The Indian community residing in New Zealand is contributing positively to the economic and social development. We have decided to work on formulating an agreement to deal with the issue of illegal migration and to ease the mobility of skilled workers,” he said.

Luxon emphasized the deep-rooted ties between the two nations, particularly through the Indian diaspora in New Zealand. He noted that Indian-Kiwis represent “the third-largest ethnic group in the country, the largest source of skilled migrants, and the second-largest contributor to international student enrolments”.