Defence Minister Andrew Little has set out the future for the New Zealand Defence Force as a Government report released today says the force is not prepared for new challenges.
Little said this morning New Zealand is "facing more geostrategic challenges than we have had in decades".
He said efforts to modernise defence capabilities would be "proportionate" but one of the reports, the Future Force Design Principles, stated the Defence Force "is not in a fit state to respond to future challenges" and that further investment is needed.
It pointed to the NZDF's lower retention of trained staff and aging infrastructure.
"In the short term, investment is needed to stabilise the Defence Force to ensure it can meet current demands," the report read.
It's just one of the findings to come out of the Government’s defence policy review. (Source: 1News)
Meanwhile in the medium-to-long term: "The Defence Force will be called upon more often, and personnel must be equipped and trained for a range of operations from humanitarian assistance and disaster relief to armed conflict.”
Little says he "aspires for our people to one day be able to say that they again live in a benign" national security environment.
'National Security Strategy'
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins said the country's preparedness "needs to change" as his Government released the first two documents of its Defence Policy Review and the country's first "National Security Strategy" today.
"The earlier we act, the more secure New Zealand will be for our children and grandchildren," he said. "Our country has experienced terrorist attacks, growing disinformation, and cyber-attacks on critical national infrastructure.
"The domestic and international security environment has changed and our preparedness needs to change too — to be clear-eyed on risks and to put in place the right capabilities to be effective.
"These emerging threats do not require an entirely new foreign policy response.
"Our independent position, coupled with targeted investments and strengthened ties with partners and allies, puts us in a strong position to face the future."
The soldiers were warmly welcomed by local residents. (Source: Supplied)
Hipkins said the plans being released today would "represent an important step" in "advancing our national interests in a more contested and more difficult world".
The Prime Minister said the Government would now be focusing its efforts on several national security and defence priorities, including:
- Investing in a combat-capable defence force and the wider national security system.
- Building and sustaining a public conversation on national security, by being more upfront about what we are observing as well as listening to New Zealanders, in order to grow and maintain social licence for efforts to protect our security.
- Tackling emerging issues like disinformation, and undertaking more concerted efforts in areas where threats are growing, like economic security.
- Supporting Pacific resilience, providing development assistance, and continuing work to bolster the security capacity of Pacific nations.
- Strengthening security cooperation and ties in the broader Indo-Pacific region and working to maintain and strengthen the global system of rules and norms that have served New Zealand so well in the past.
The new Defence Policy and Strategy Statement suggests the "two principal challenges" the country faced were strategic competition and the impacts of climate change.
On Tuesday crew on three Royal New Zealand Air Force helicopters rescued 23 people and five dogs, including by winching people off roofs of houses. (Source: Supplied)
The defence minister said a key focus for Aoteroa would include enhancing the country's relationship with its sole military partner Australia alongside other Pacific nations.
"We will strengthen understanding in and of our region, including by amplifying Pacific voices in the world," he said.
"We will enhance our many partnerships, particularly with our sole formal military ally, Australia, and the Pacific Islands countries who are more family than just neighbours.
"And we will improve the effectiveness of our combat and other military capabilities, including Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief."
The new defence policy statement suggested additional measures would be taken to increase military cooperation with those across the ditch.
"Defence will identify and pursue opportunities to update and expand defence cooperation and combined effectiveness," the strategy read.
The Australian opposition are calling for the move, with people offered “an accelerated pathway to citizenship” as an incentive. (Source: Breakfast)
"This will include better coordination on defence policy development, increasing personnel exchanges, strengthening joint operational capabilities, and enhancing planning for combined responses to regional events."
Little said today of the new plans: "It is a clear statement of our principles and commitments to the world, and a guide for where will go next as a proud, independent, peace-loving Pacific country that aspires for our people to one day be able to say that they again live in a benign strategic environment."
Defence Minister Peeni Henare says it’s about ensuring the Defence Force and policy is “fit for purpose in these changing times”. (Source: Q and A)
SHARE ME