The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF; mi, Te Ope Kātua o Aotearoa, "Line of Defence of New Zealand") are the

armed forces A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

of New Zealand. The NZDF is responsible for the protection of the

national security National security, or national defence, is the security and defence of a sovereign state, including its citizens, economy, and institutions, which is regarded as a duty of government. Originally conceived as protection against military atta ...

of New Zealand and her

realm A realm is a community or territory over which a sovereign rules. The term is commonly used to describe a monarchical or dynastic state. A realm may also be a subdivision within an empire, if it has its own monarch, e.g. the German Empire. Etym ...

, promoting its interests, safeguarding peace and security, as well as supporting peacekeeping and humanitarian missions. It consists of three services: the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN), the

New Zealand Army , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

and the

Royal New Zealand Air Force The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) ( mi, Te Tauaarangi o Aotearoa, "The Warriors of the Sky of New Zealand"; previously ', "War Party of the Blue") is the aerial service branch of the New Zealand Defence Force. It was formed from New Zeala ...

(RNZAF), as well as 'tri-service' components. The NZDF has a strength of 15,191 made up of 9,215 regular force personnel, 3,030 reserve force personnel and 2,946 civilian members. It is supported by the

New Zealand Ministry of Defence The Ministry of Defence ( mi, Manatū Kaupapa Waonga) is the public service department of New Zealand responsible for advising the government on strategic defence policy, acquiring military equipment to meet defence capability and conducting au ...

(MOD) and is commanded by the Chief of Defence Force (CDF). The principal roles and tasks expected of the NZDF is to provide a

combat Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

capable force to defend New Zealand’s sovereign territory, and protect critical lines of communication. To provide civil defence support, meet whole-of-government security objectives, as well as commitments to allies and partners, support government agencies, protect and promote regional peace, security and resilience in the

South Pacific The Pacific Ocean is the largest and deepest of Earth's five oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic Ocean in the north to the Southern Ocean (or, depending on definition, to Antarctica) in the south, and is bounded by the continen ...

, and uphold the international rules-based order. The NZDF delivers military effects in support of New Zealand’s national security objectives. It follows a government set defence policy framework that defines its principles, outcomes and priorities. The NZDF is a critical component of New Zealand’s national security system. New Zealand takes an “all-hazards” approach to national security that brings government agencies together to respond to all risks to national security, whether internal or external, human or natural. The

Governor-General Governor-general (plural ''governors-general''), or governor general (plural ''governors general''), is the title of an office-holder. In the context of governors-general and former British colonies, governors-general are appointed as viceroy t ...

as the representative of the Head of State, His Majesty the

King of New Zealand The monarchy of New Zealand is the constitutional system of government in which a hereditary monarch is the sovereign and head of state of New Zealand. The current monarch, King Charles III, ascended the throne following the death of his mot ...

, is the Commander-in-Chief. The Commander-in-Chief is Governor-General Dame Cindy Kiro, who exercises the power on the advice of the Minister of Defence, Peeni Henare, under the

Defence Act 1990 The Defence Act 1990 is an Act of Parliament in New Zealand which establishes the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) and defines the respective roles of, and relationships between, the Minister of Defence (New Zealand), minister of defence, the Chie ...

. Air Marshal Kevin Short was appointed Chief of Defence Force on 1 July 2018. Air Vice-Marshal

Tony Davies William Anthony Davies (16 September 1939 – 6 April 2008) was a New Zealand rugby union footballer, who played 17 games for the All Blacks in 1960 and 1962 as a full-back or centre. Davies was nominated for the All Blacks while playing for th ...

serves as the Vice Chief of Defence Force .

History

Militia (1845–1886)

After the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, New Zealand's security was dependent on British Imperial troops deployed from

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

and other parts of the empire. By 1841 the settlers, particularly those in the New Zealand Company settlement of Wellington, were calling for local militia to be formed. In 1843 a local militia had been formed in Wellington without official sanction. This prompted the Chief Police Magistrate Major Matthew Richmond to order its immediate disbandment. Richmond also dispatched 53 soldiers from the 96th Regiment from Auckland to Wellington. These calls for a militia continued to grow with the Wairau Affray, the start of the New Zealand Wars. The calls eventually lead to a bill being introduced to the Legislative Council in 1844. Those present noted their disapproval of the bill, unanimously deferring it for six months. On 22 March 1845 the Flagstaff War broke out, which proved to be the catalyst for passing the Bill. In 1844 a

Select Committee Select committee may refer to: *Select committee (parliamentary system), a committee made up of a small number of parliamentary members appointed to deal with particular areas or issues *Select or special committee (United States Congress) *Select ...

of the House of Commons had recommended that a militia, composed of both settlers and native Maori, and a permanent native force be set up. On 25 March 1845, the Militia Ordinance was passed into law. Twenty-six officers were appointed in Auckland, thereby forming the start of New Zealand's own defence force. Major Richmond was appointed the commander of the Wellington Battalion of the militia. The newspaper article of the time notes that Wellington had a mounted Volunteer Corp. The Nelson Battalion of Militia was formed 12 August 1845. In June 1845, 75 members of the Auckland Militia under Lieutenant Figg became the first unit to support British Imperial troops in the Flagstaff War, serving as pioneers. Seven militia were wounded in action between 30 June and 1 July 1845. One, a man named Rily, later died of his wounds. The Auckland Militia was disbanded in August or early September 1845 because of budgetary constraints. Disbandment of the Nelson and Wellington Militias followed much to the dismay of their supporters. Those at Nelson under Captain Greenwood decided, regardless of pay or not, to continue training. Trouble in the Hutt Valley, near Wellington, in early March 1846 prompted the new Governor George Grey to proclaim martial law and call out the Hutt Militia, in what became known as the Hutt Valley campaign. Following on from this the local paper noted that the No 1 Company of the Wellington Militia had been called out, while the troops stationed in the town had been in the Hutt. The paper further noted that Grey intended to maintain two companies of Militia in Wellington. As problems continued in the area at least 160 Militia remained. These were supplemented by volunteers and Māori warriors from the

Te Aro Te Aro (formerly also known as Te Aro Flat) is an inner-city suburb of Wellington, New Zealand. It comprises the southern part of the central business district including the majority of the city's entertainment district and covers the mostly fla ...

pā The word pā (; often spelled pa in English) can refer to any Māori village or defensive settlement, but often refers to hillforts – fortified settlements with palisades and defensive terraces – and also to fortified villages. Pā sites o ...

. On 28 October 1846, with the passing of the Armed Constabulary Ordinance in 1846, a fresh call was made by Mr Donnelly of the Legislature to do away with the Militia because of its expense. However the cost to Britain of maintaining a military force in New Zealand was considerable, prompting a dispatch on 24 November 1846 from The Right Hon Earl Grey to advise Lieutenant Governor George Grey that

... the formation of a well-organised Militia and of a force of Natives in the service of Her Majesty, would appear to be the measures most likely to be successfully adopted.

Further pressure in the early 1850s from Britain for removing their forces prompted pleas for them to remain as the Militia were deemed insufficient for the purpose. 1854 brought a new threat to the attention of the colony because up to that time the military focus had been upon internal conflicts between settlers and the Māori. War had broken out between Russia and Turkey. This war began to involve the major European powers and exposed New Zealand and

to a possible external threat from the Imperial Russian Navy. Parliament discussed providing guns at ports around the country for use in the event of a war with a foreign power. By 1858 attention had swung back to local issues with a land dispute in

New Plymouth New Plymouth ( mi, Ngāmotu) is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, Devon from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. ...

prompting Governor

Thomas Gore Browne Colonel Sir Thomas Robert Gore Browne, (3 July 1807 – 17 April 1887) was a British colonial administrator, who was Governor of St Helena, Governor of New Zealand, Governor of Tasmania and Governor of Bermuda. Early life Browne was born on ...

to call out its militia under Captain Charles Brown. A prelude to what was to become the First Taranaki War and a period of conflict in the North Island until 1872. The newly formed New Zealand Parliament revised and expanded the Militia Ordinance, replacing it with the Militia Act 1858. Some of the main changes were clauses enabling volunteers to be included under such terms and conditions as the Governor may specify. The act also outlined the purposes under which Militia could be called upon, including invasion. Debates in Parliament had included expressions of concern about Russian naval expansion in the northern Pacific, pointed out that the sole naval defence consisted of one 24-gun frigate, and the time it would take for Britain to come to the colony's aid. British Imperial troops remained in New Zealand until February 1870, during the later stage of the New Zealand Wars, by which time settler units had replaced them. The Defence Act 1886 reclassified the militia as volunteers. These were the forerunners of the Territorials.

Volunteers (1858–1909)

Although there were informal volunteer units as early as 1845, the appropriate approval and regulation of the units did not occur until the Militia Act 1858. Those who signed up for these units were exempt from militia duty, but had to be prepared to serve anywhere in New Zealand. One of the earliest gazetted units (13 January 1859) was the Taranaki Volunteer Rifle Company. To the Volunteer Rifle Corps were added Volunteer Artillery Corps in mid-1859. The first of these Volunteer Artillery Corps were based in Auckland. By late 1859 the number of volunteer units was so great that Captain H C Balneavis was appointed Deputy Adjunct-General, based at Auckland.

Colonial Defence Force (1862–1867)

In 1863 the government passed the Colonial Defence Force Act 1862 creating the first Regular Force. This was to be a mounted body of not more than 500 troops, with both Maori and settlers, and costing no more than 30,000 pounds per annum. All were volunteers and expected to serve for three years. Formation of the first unit did not begin until early April 1863, with 100 men being sought at New Plymouth under Captain Atkinson. Hawke's Bay was to have the next unit. By late April, papers were reporting few had enlisted in New Plymouth. Formation of an Auckland unit under Colonel Nixon commenced in July and by the 14th had 30 men.

Authorised units by July 1863

Commander: Major-General Galloway By October 1863 there was no Wairarapa-based defence force, and 50 were based in Wanganui. The Otago force had earlier been moved to Wellington, with further Otago volunteers heading for the Auckland and Hawke's Bay Units. The total Defence Force numbered 375 by 3 November 1863. In October 1864 the Government decided to reduce the numbers in the Colonial Defence Force to 75 with three units of 25 members each in Wellington, Hawkes Bay and Taranaki. By this time there were about 10,000 British Imperial troops in New Zealand, supplemented by about as many New Zealand volunteer and militia forces. There were calls, particularly from South Island papers, for the British Imperial troops to be replaced by local forces. Parliamentary debates in late 1864 also supported this view, especially as the cost of maintaining the Imperial troops was becoming a greater financial burden on the colony.

Defence review, March 1865

At the request of the governor in January 1865 a formal statement on the defence of the colony was presented on 20 March 1865. This proposed an armed constabulary force supported by friendly natives, volunteer units, and militia as the case may require be established to take the place of the Imperial troops. The proposed force was to consist of 1,350 Europeans and 150 Maori – 1,500 in total. They were to be divided into 30 companies of 50 men each based as follows: The total Defence budget, which included purchasing a steamer for use on the Waikato, Patea, and Wanganui rivers, was 187,000 pounds per annum. The budget's focus was solely on internal conflict. The issue of external conflict did not begin to resurface until the following year, with thought being given again to coastal defences. The Colonial Defence Force was disbanded in October 1867 by the Armed Constabulary Act 1867. Its members transferred to the Armed Constabulary.

Evolution of volunteers and militia

From 1863 to 1867 Forest Ranger volunteer units were formed, tasked with searching out Maori war parties, acting as scouts, and protecting lines of communication. They arose out of the need to prevent ambushes and random attacks on civilians near forest areas. The Rangers were well armed and more highly paid. These units used guerrilla style tactics, moving through areas under cover of darkness and ambushing war parties. The Forest Rangers were disbanded on 1 October 1867. :''See

New Zealand Police The New Zealand Police ( mi, Ngā Pirihimana o Aotearoa) is the national police service and principal law enforcement agency of New Zealand, responsible for preventing crime, enhancing public safety, bringing offenders to justice, and maintai ...

'' Alongside the militia and the British Imperial forces were the Armed Constabulary. The Armed Constabulary were formed in 1846 with the passage of the Armed Constabulary Ordinance. The Constabulary's role was both regular law enforcement and during the New Zealand Wars militia support. From 1867 to 1886 the Armed Constabulary were the only permanent force in New Zealand. In 1886 the militia functions of the Armed Constabulary were transferred to the New Zealand Permanent Militia by the Defence Act 1886. Lieutenant Colonel John Roberts was the Permanent Militia's first commander from January 1887 to his retirement in 1888. Henderson and the donkey

Defence Act 1909

The Defence Act 1909 replaced the Volunteer forces with a Territorial force and compulsory military training, a regime that remained until the late 1960s.

Separate services (from 1909)

:''See Royal New Zealand Navy,

New Zealand Army , image = New Zealand Army Logo.png , image_size = 175px , caption = , start_date = , country = , branch = ...

Independent New Zealand armed forces developed in the early twentieth century; the Royal New Zealand Navy was the last to emerge as an independent service in 1941. Prior to that time it had been the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy. New Zealand forces served alongside the British and other Empire and Commonwealth nations in World War I and World War II. The fall of Singapore in 1942 showed that Britain could no longer protect its far-flung Dominions. Closer military ties were therefore necessary for New Zealand's defence. With United States entering the war, they were an obvious choice. Links with Australia had also been developed earlier; both nations sent troops to the Anglo-Boer War and New Zealand officer candidates had trained at Australia's Royal Military College Duntroon since 1911, a practice that continues to this day. A combined Australian and New Zealand Army Corps ( ANZAC) was formed for the Gallipoli campaign during World War I, and its exploits are key events in the military history of both countries. The NZDF came into existence under the

. Under previous legislation, the three services were part of the Ministry of Defence. Post-1990, the Ministry of Defence is a separate, policy-making body under a Secretary of Defence, equal in status to the Chief of Defence Force.

Higher direction of the armed services

A new HQNZDF facility was opened by Prime Minister Helen Clark in March 2007. The new facility on Aitken St in the

Wellington CBD Wellington Central is an inner-city suburb of Wellington, and the financial heart of the both the city and the Wellington Region. It comprises the northern part of the central business district, with the majority of Wellington's high-rise build ...

replaced the premises on Stout St that had been the headquarters of NZDF for nearly 75 years. The Aitken St facility initially was home to around 900 employees of the NZDF, the

New Zealand Security Intelligence Service The New Zealand Security Intelligence Service (NZSIS or SIS; mi, Te Pā Whakamarumaru) is New Zealand's primary national intelligence agency. It is responsible for providing information and advising on matters including national security (incl ...

(NZSIS) and the

; the NZSIS moved across to Pipitea House in early 2013, and the NZDF were forced to vacate the Aitken St building after the

2016 Kaikoura earthquake Sixteen or 16 may refer to: *16 (number), the natural number following 15 and preceding 17 *one of the years 16 BC, AD 16, 1916, 2016 Films * '' Pathinaaru'' or ''Sixteen'', a 2010 Tamil film * ''Sixteen'' (1943 film), a 1943 Argentine film ...

, which seriously damaged the building. HQNZDF functions having been moved into other buildings and facilities across the region. HQNZDF operates as the administrative and support headquarters for the New Zealand Defence Force, with operational forces under the separate administrative command and control of HQJFNZ.

Joint Forces Headquarters

The operational forces of the three services are directed from Headquarters Joint Forces New Zealand opposite Trentham Military Camp in Upper Hutt. HQ JFNZ was established at Trentham on 1 July 2001. From this building, a former NZ government computer centre that used to house the Army's Land Command, the Air Component Commander, Maritime Component Commander, and Land Component Commander exercise command over their forces. Commander Joint Forces New Zealand (COMJFNZ), controls all overseas operational deployments and most overseas exercises.

Senior officers

: The Defence Force created a joint-service corporate services organisation known as the Joint Logistics and Support Organisation (JLSO) in the 2000s, which later became Defence Shared Services. Following the establishment of Special Operations Command on 1 July 2015, the new position of Special Operations Component Commander was created. This officer reports to the Commander Joint Forces New Zealand, and is of equivalent status to the Maritime, Land and Air Component Commanders. For the first time, two of the Deputy Chiefs of service, Navy and Air Force, one-star Commodores and Air Commodores, were women. Captain

Melissa Ross Melissa is a female given name. The name comes from the Greek word μέλισσα (''mélissa''), "bee", which in turn comes from μέλι (''meli''), "honey". In Hittite, ''melit'' signifies "honey". ''Melissa'' also refers to the plant ''M ...

was promoted to Commodore and appointed as Deputy Chief of Navy in December 2019, while in August 2019 Group Captain

Carol Abraham Carol may refer to: People with the name *Carol (given name) *Henri Carol (1910–1984), French composer and organist *Martine Carol (1920–1967), French film actress *Sue Carol (1906–1982), American actress and talent agent, wife of actor Ala ...

was promoted to Air Commodore and appointed as

Deputy Chief of Air Force Deputy or depute may refer to: * Steward (office) * Khalifa, an Arabic title that can signify "deputy" * Deputy (legislator), a legislator in many countries and regions, including: ** A member of a Chamber of Deputies, for example in Italy, Spa ...

. Another female officer, Colonel Helen Cooper, had previously held the post of

Deputy Chief of Army The Deputy Chief of Army (DCA) is the second most senior appointment in the Australian Army, responsible to the Chief of Army (CA). The rank associated with the position is major general ( 2-star). The current appointee is Major General Natas ...

though in an acting capacity without being promoted to the customary rank of Brigadier. In an unusual move, as of February 2020, the Deputy Chief of Army, Evan Williams, holds not just the customary rank of Brigadier but that of Major General, usually only held by the Chief of Army.

Support for servicemen and women

In recent years, the New Zealand Defence Force has implemented a policy of honoring veterans, and increased its support to still servicemen and women in a number of ways. This includes starting the Defence Force

KiwiSaver The KiwiSaver scheme, a New Zealand savings scheme, came into operation from Monday, 2 July 2007. Participants can normally access their KiwiSaver funds only after the age of 65, but can withdraw them in certain limited circumstances, for exampl ...

scheme, and appointing financial advisers to support the welfare of members.

Branches

Navy

HMNZS Te Kaha - Flickr - NZ Defence Force

The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) has 2,219 regular force and 611 reserve force sailors. The RNZN possess two ''Anzac'' class frigates, developed in conjunction with Australia, based on the German MEKO 200 design. Nine other vessels are in use, consisting of patrol vessels and logistics vessels. In 2010, the RNZN completed the acquisition of seven new vessels: one large Multi-Role Vessel named HMNZS ''Canterbury'', two Offshore Patrol Vessels, and two Inshore Patrol Vessels. All of these vessels were acquired under

Project Protector Project Protector was a Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) procurement project that was undertaken during the 2000s. At the start of the decade, the New Zealand government tasked the New Zealand Defence Force to develop an equal combat, peacekeeping, an ...

, and were built to commercial, not naval, standards.

Army

The New Zealand Army has 4,519 regular force and 2,065 reserve force soldiers. The army is a light combat force made up of infantry and motorised infantry equipped with 102 Canadian-manufactured

LAV III The LAV III, originally named the Kodiak by the Canadian Army, is the third generation of the LAV (Canada), Light Armoured Vehicle (LAV) family of armored personnel carriers built by General Dynamics Land Systems – Canada (GDLS-C), a London, O ...

Light Armoured Vehicles ( NZLAV). There are also armoured reconnaissance, artillery, logistic, communications, medical and intelligence elements. The New Zealand Special Air Service is the NZDF's

special forces Special forces and special operations forces (SOF) are military units trained to conduct special operations. NATO has defined special operations as "military activities conducted by specially designated, organized, selected, trained and equip ...

capability, which operates in both conventional warfare and counter-terrorist roles. The Corps and Regiments of the New Zealand Army include: * Royal New Zealand Infantry Regiment * Royal New Zealand Armoured Corps * Royal Regiment of New Zealand Artillery * Corps of Royal New Zealand Engineers *

Royal New Zealand Corps of Signals The Royal New Zealand Signals Corps (RNZSigs) provides, co-ordinates and operates the communications networks of the New Zealand Army. The role of RNZSigs is to support other Arms by providing Communication Information System required for Comman ...

* Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment * Royal New Zealand Army Medical Corps *

Royal New Zealand Army Nursing Corps The Royal New Zealand Nursing Corps (RNZNC) is a corps of the New Zealand Army. The corps was initially formed in 1915 from civilian nurses who volunteered for service during World War I, and who were granted honorary officer ranks. A Nursing ...

* Royal New Zealand Army Dental Corps *

Corps of Royal New Zealand Military Police The Corps of Royal New Zealand Military Police (RNZMP) provides military police services to the New Zealand Army, performing a variety of roles including criminal investigations. It consists of one major unit, the 1st (New Zealand) Militar ...

New Zealand Intelligence Corps The New Zealand Intelligence Corps (NZIC) analyses information from a variety of sources and provides commanders with intelligence on such things as enemy locations, capabilities and intentions. Corps personnel also provide advice on Field Securi ...

New Zealand Army Legal Services New is an adjective referring to something recently made, discovered, or created. New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz Albums and EPs * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, ...

Air Force

The Royal New Zealand Air Force (RNZAF) has 2,477 regular force and 354 reserve force aircrew. The RNZAF consists of 51 aircraft, consisting of

P-3 Orion The Lockheed P-3 Orion is a four-engined, turboprop anti-submarine and maritime surveillance aircraft developed for the United States Navy and introduced in the 1960s. Lockheed based it on the L-188 Electra commercial airliner.Southeast Asia to the

, and with defence expenditures that total around 1.5% of GDP, New Zealand necessarily places substantial reliance on co-operating with other countries, particularly Australia. New Zealand is an active participant in multilateral peacekeeping. It has taken a leading role in peace-keeping in the Solomon Islands and the neighbouring island of Bougainville. New Zealand has contributed to United Nations and other peacekeeping operations in Angola, Cambodia, Somalia, Lebanon and the former Yugoslavia. It also participated in the

Multilateral Interception Force in the Persian Gulf Multilateral may refer to: * Multilateralism * Multilateration * Flea flicker (American football) A flea flicker is an unorthodox play, often called a "trick play", in American football which is designed to fool the defensive team into think ...

. New Zealand has an ongoing

peacekeeping Peacekeeping comprises activities intended to create conditions that favour lasting peace. Research generally finds that peacekeeping reduces civilian and battlefield deaths, as well as reduces the risk of renewed warfare. Within the United N ...

commitment to East Timor, where it participated in the INTERFET, UNTAET and UMAMET missions from 1999 to 2002. At one point over 1,000 NZDF personnel were in East Timor. The deployment included the vessels HMNZS Canturbury, Te Kaha and Endeavour, six Iroquois helicopters, two C-130 Hercules and an infantry battalion. In response to renewed conflict in 2006 more troops were deployed as part of an international force. New Zealand has participated in 2 NATO-led coalitions; SFOR in the Former Yugoslavia (until December 2004) and an ongoing one in Afghanistan (which took over from a US-led coalition in 2006). New Zealand also participated in the European Union EUFOR operation in the former Yugoslavia from December 2004 until New Zealand ended its 15-year continuous contribution there on 30 June 2007. As of December 2015, New Zealand had 167 personnel deployed across the globe. These deployments are to Afghanistan(8), Antarctica(8), South Korea(5), Iraq(106), Middle East(8), Sinai(26), South Sudan(3) and the United Arab Emirates(11). 209 NZDF personnel are on other deployments and exercises. New Zealand shares training facilities, personnel exchanges, and joint exercises with the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Brunei, Tonga, and South Pacific states. It exercises with its

Five Power Defence Arrangement The Five Power Defence Arrangements (FPDA) are a series of bilateral defence relationships established by a series of multi-lateral agreements between Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the United Kingdom, all of which are Commonwe ...

s partners,

, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Singapore. New Zealand military personnel participate in training exercises, conferences and visits as part of

military diplomacy In international politics, defence diplomacy refers to the pursuit of foreign policy objectives through the peaceful employment of defence resources and capabilities. Origin of concept Defence diplomacy as an organizing concept for defence-related ...

. New Zealand is a signatory of the ANZUS treaty, a defence pact between New Zealand, Australia and the United States dating from 1951. After the 1986 anti-nuclear legislation that refused access of nuclear-powered or armed vessels to ports, the USA withdrew its obligations to New Zealand under ANZUS. ANZUS exercises are now bilateral between Australia and the United States. Under anti-nuclear legislation, any ship must declare whether it is nuclear-propelled or carrying nuclear weapons before entering New Zealand waters. Due to the US policy at that time of "neither confirm nor deny", ship visits ceased although NZ and the USA remained "good friends". Following the Wellington Declaration in 2010, US and NZ government announced a resumption of military cooperation in 2013. Port visits resumed in 2016, when the U.S. Navy was invited to send a ship to participate in the RNZN's 75th Birthday Celebration, and destroyer

USS Sampson (DDG-102) USS ''Sampson'' (DDG-102) is an in the United States Navy. Funding for the Flight IIA (5"/62, one 20mm CIWS variant) ship was authorized in 2002 and her keel was laid on 20 March 2005. She is the fourth US Navy ship named to honor Rear Admir ...

visited Auckland. NZ Soldiers Afghanistan 2009

The NZDF served alongside NATO-led forces in Afghanistan in the first decade of the twenty-first century, and in 2004 the

NZSAS The 1st New Zealand Special Air Service Regiment, abbreviated as 1 NZSAS Regt, was formed on 7 July 1955 and is the Special forces unit of the New Zealand Army, closely modelled on the British Special Air Service (SAS). It traces its origins to ...

was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation by US President George W Bush for "extraordinary heroism" in action. In 2008 US Secretary of State

Condoleezza Rice Condoleezza Rice ( ; born November 14, 1954) is an American diplomat and political scientist who is the current director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A member of the Republican Party, she previously served as the 66th Uni ...

during a visit to New Zealand said "New Zealand is now a friend and an ally". Flickr - Official U

New Zealand is a member of the

ABCA Armies ABCANZ Armies (formally, the American, British, Canadian, Australian and New Zealand Armies' Program) is a program aimed at optimizing interoperability and standardization of training and equipment between the armies of Australia, Canada, New Ze ...

standardisation programme, the naval

AUSCANNZUKUS AUSCANNZUKUS is an abbreviation for the naval Command, Control, Communications and Computers (C4) interoperability organization involving the Anglosphere nations of Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. It is als ...

forum, the Air and Space Interoperability Council (ASIC, the former ASCC, which, among other tasks, allocates

NATO reporting names NATO reporting names are code names for military equipment from Russia, China, and historically, the Eastern Bloc (Soviet Union and other nations of the Warsaw Pact). They provide unambiguous and easily understood English words in a uniform ma ...

) and other Western ' Five Eyes' fora for sharing

signals intelligence Signals intelligence (SIGINT) is intelligence-gathering by interception of ''signals'', whether communications between people (communications intelligence—abbreviated to COMINT) or from electronic signals not directly used in communication ( ...

information and achieving interoperability with like-minded armed forces, such as

The Technical Cooperation Program The Technical Cooperation Program (TTCP) is a long-standing international organisation concerned with cooperation on defence science and technology matters, including national security and civil defence. Its membership comprises Australia, Canada, ...

(TTCP).

References

Citations

Sources

* *

External links

* {{Authority control Military units and formations established in 1990