New Zealand to open embassy in Stockholm

New Zealand will open an embassy in Sweden in the middle of the year, New Zealand foreign minister Winston Peters announced this week.

The opening of the Stockholm mission would be an important step for New Zealand, he said.

“Sweden shares a common outlook with New Zealand on many multilateral, social and economic issues. It is also a global leader in science and technology innovation and we look forward to working more closely with it in this important area.”

“On top of this, Sweden is an influential member of the EU and representation in Stockholm will give us a stronger voice in Europe,” Mr Peters said.

The new embassy will be New Zealand’s first in the Nordic countries. At present, its embassy in The Hague covers Sweden, as well as Norway, Finland and Denmark.

 Accommodation and representation arrangements for the new mission were being finalised, and New Zealand would have representation in place in Stockholm as at 1 July, Mr Peters says.

The opening of the Stockholm mission was announced by Mr Peters as part of a major funding boost for the New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade.

The new funding, to be allocated over five years, will allow a 50 percent increase in the number of New Zealand diplomats and support staff serving overseas.

A new diplomatic mission is also being opened in Brisbane, Australia, while an existing mission in Melbourne will be given strengthened diplomatic status.

Further information:

Rachel Fry, Ambassador, New Zealand Embassy, The Hague
Tel: + 31 70 346 9324
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