On 22 February, Consul General Chen Shijie met with Mayor Paula Southgate in Hamilton. Vice Consul General Wang Junchao was present at the meeting.

Consul General Chen pointed out that the past year has seen a China-New Zealand relationship marked by more frequent high-level exchanges, further deepening of economic and trade cooperation, and increasingly convenient people-to-people exchanges. Hamilton stands as New Zealand’s fourth-largest city,enjoying significant geographical advantages and broad prospects in cooperation with China. The Consulate-General will continue to serve as a bridge in further advancing mutual cooperation and sister-city exchanges, and work with Hamilton to promote the sound and stable development of China-New Zealand relations.

Mayor Southgate remarked that Hamilton is one of New Zealand’s fastest-growing cities, with both historical ties and practical needs for cooperation with China. She expressed willingness to enhance communication and exchanges with sister cities such as Chengdu and Wuxi, in a bid to further explore pragmatic cooperation in trade, infrastructure, culture, and education, and bring tangible benefits to the people of both sides.