New Zealand Defence Force

The New Zealand Defence Force consists of three services: the New Zealand Army; the Royal New Zealand Navy; and the Royal New Zealand Air Force. The Commander-in-Chief of the NZDF is His Excellency Rt. Hon. Sir Anand Satyanand, Governor-General of New Zealand who exercises his power on the advice of the Minister of Defence, Hon. Dr Wayne Mapp, under the Defence Act 1990. The commander and head of the NZDF is the Chief of Defence Force (CDF), Lieutenant-General Jerry Mateparae, who also acts as the primary military adviser to the Minister of Defence.

New Zealand's armed forces have three defence policy objectives; to defend New Zealand against low-level threats, to contribute to regional security; and to play a part in global security efforts. New Zealand considers its own national defence needs to be modest, due to its geographical isolation and benign relationships with neighbours.^[2] As of September 2008, approximately 600 NZDF personnel served overseas in the South Pacific, Asia and Middle East areas.^[3]

History

New Zealand's armed forces developed from those of the United Kingdom, which initially provided security for the European settlers in New Zealand. The final stages of the New Zealand Wars were conducted increasingly by settler units with the last British troops withdrawn in February 1870 ^[4]. 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 ^[5]. Prior to that time it had been the New Zealand Division of the Royal Navy. New Zealand forces served alongside the British, as well as other Empire and Commonwealth nations, in both World War I and II. When the Fall of Singapore in 1942 made it obvious that Britain could no longer protect far-flung Dominions, closer military ties were developed with the United States. Links with Australia developed early; both nations sent troops to the Anglo-Boer War and New Zealand officer candidates started training at Australia's Royal Military College, Duntroon in 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.

Two members of the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team in Afghanistan during 2009

New Zealand is a signatory of the ANZUS treaty, a defence pact between it, 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, New Zealand membership of ANZUS was suspended, and ANZUS exercises are now bi-lateral 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. Despite the Presidential Directive of 27 September 1991 that removed tactical nuclear weapons from U.S. surface ships, attack submarines, and naval aircraft, ^[6] ship visits have not resumed. Despite signs of rapprochement in recent years, military relationships with the US remain limited, although senior US officials have been complimentary about New Zealand's contributions to the Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts^[7]. New Zealand retains a close bi-lateral defence relationship with Australia.

New Zealand is a member of the ABCA Armies standardisation programme, the naval AUSCANNZUKUS forum, the Air and Space Interoperability Council (ASIC, the former ASCC, which, among other tasks, allocates NATO reporting names) and other Western 'Five Eyes' fora for sharing information and achieving interoperability with like-minded armed forces, such as The Technical Cooperation Program (TTCP).

The NZDF came into existence under the Defence Act 1990. 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, who is equal in status to the Chief of Defence Force.

Branches

Army

New Zealand's Army consists of around 4,500 full-time and 2,500 part-time troops. It is a small but well-regarded and professional force consisting of light infantry and motorised infantry equipped with 105 Canadian-manufactured LAV III Light Armoured Vehicles, known as the 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 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
• Royal New Zealand Army Logistic Regiment
• Royal New Zealand Army Medical Corps
• Royal New Zealand Army Nursing Corps
• Royal New Zealand Army Dental Corps
• Corps of Royal New Zealand Military Police
• New Zealand Intelligence Corps

Navy

HMNZS Te Mana

The Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) includes two Anzac class frigates, developed in conjunction with Australia, and based on the German MEKO 200 design. Eight other vessels are in use, consisting of patrol vessels and logistics vessels. The RNZN is in the process of acquiring seven new vessels: one large Multi-Role Vessel named the HMNZS Canterbury, two Offshore Patrol Vessels, and four Inshore Patrol Vessels. All of these new vessels will be part of Project Protector and will be built to commercial, not naval, standards on cost grounds.

Air Force

One of the RNZAF's two Boeing 757 transport aircraft

The Royal New Zealand Air Force consists of 50 aircraft, consisting of P-3 Orion maritime patrol aircraft and Lockheed C-130 Hercules and other transport aircraft. The RNZAF does not have an air combat force following the retirement without replacement of its A-4 Skyhawk and Aermacchi MB-339 squadrons. A plan to acquire 28 F-16 Fighting Falcon aircraft was cancelled by the Labour Government in 2000. The NH90 helicopter has recently been ordered to replace Bell UH-1 Iroquois. The PAC CT/4 Airtrainer is locally produced.

Headquarters

Administrative

A new HQNZDF facility was opened by Prime Minister Helen Clark in March 2007 [1]. The new facility on Aitken St in the Wellington CBD replaced the premises on Stout St that had been the headquarters of NZDF for nearly 75 years. The Aitken St facility is home to around 900 employees of the NZDF, the New Zealand Security Intelligence Service and the New Zealand Ministry of Defence.

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

The operational forces of the three services are directed from Headquarters Joint Forces New Zealand on the opposite side of a road from Trentham Military Camp in Upper Hutt. 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.^[8]

Foreign Defence Relations

New Zealand and Australian military personnel boarding a United States Navy helicopter during a humanitarian aid mission to the Solomon Islands in 2007

New Zealand states it maintains a "credible minimum force," although critics (including the New Zealand National Party while in opposition) maintain that the country's defence forces have fallen below this standard^[9]. With a claimed area of direct strategic concern that extends from Australia to Southeast Asia to the South Pacific, and with defence expenditures that total around 1% of GDP, New Zealand necessarily places substantial reliance on co-operating with other countries, in particular Australia.

Acknowledging the need to improve its defence capabilities, the government in 2005 announced the Defence Sustainability Initiative allocating an additional NZ$4.6 billion over 10 years to modernize the country's defence equipment and infrastructure and increase its military personnel. The funding represented a 51% increase in defence spending since the Labour government took office in 1999.

New Zealand is an active participant in multilateral peacekeeping. It has taken a leading role in seeking to bring peace, reconciliation, and reconstruction to the Solomon Islands and the neighboring island of Bougainville. New Zealand maintains a contingent in the Multinational Force and Observers and has contributed to UN 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. New Zealand has an ongoing peacekeeping commitment to East Timor, where it participated in the INTERFET, UNTAET and UMAMET missions from 1999–2002, with an infantry battalion which was withdrawn in late 2002. In response to renewed conflict in 2006 more troops were deployed as part of an international force. New Zealand troops currently maintains an infantry company and supporting elements in East Timor. 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.

New Zealand participates in sharing training facilities, personnel exchanges, and joint exercises with the Philippines, Thailand, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Brunei, Tonga, and South Pacific states. It also exercises with its Five Power Defence Arrangement partners - Australia, the United Kingdom, Malaysia, and Singapore. New Zealand military personnel also participate in a wide variety of training exercises, conferences and visits as part of military diplomacy.

Due to New Zealand's antinuclear policy, defence cooperation with the U.S., including training exercises, has been significantly restricted since 1986, when the ANZUS treaty defence obligations to NZ were suspended by the USA. However, New Zealand and the USA remain 'very, very good friends' ^[10]. On 26 July 2008 during a visit to New Zealand, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice upgraded this status and said "New Zealand is now a friend and an ally". ^[11] The NZDF has served alongside NATO led forces in Afghanistan in recent times, and in 2004 the NZSAS was awarded a Presidential Unit Citation by US President George W Bush for "extraordinary heroism" in action.

Previous Chiefs

Chief of Defence Staff

• Rear-Admiral Sir Peter Phipps (1963-66) (first, from 1 July 1963)
• Lieutenant-General Sir Leonard Thornton (1966–1974)
• Lieutenant-General Sir Richard Webb (1974–1976)
• Air Marshal Sir Richard Bolt (1976–1980)
• Vice-Admiral Sir Neil Anderson (1980–1983)
• Air Marshal Sir Ewan Jamieson (1983–1986)
• Air Marshal David Crooks (1986–1987)
• Lieutenant-General Sir John Mace (1987–1991)

Chief of Defence Force

• Vice-Admiral Sir Somerford Teagle (1991–1995) (first, from 29 March 1991)
• Lieutenant-General Anthony Birks (1995–1999)
• Air Marshal Carey Adamson (1999–2001)
• Air Marshal Sir Bruce Ferguson (2001–2006)
• Lieutenant-General Jerry Mateparae (since 2006)

See also

• List of New Zealand military bases
• List of individual weapons of the New Zealand armed forces
• New Zealand Defence College
• Current Royal New Zealand Navy ships
• List of ships of the Royal New Zealand Navy
• Royal New Zealand Navy Future Plans
• List of aircraft of the RNZAF and RNZN
• List of squadrons of the RNZAF
• New Zealand Cadet Forces

Notes

1. ↑ "New Zealand Armed Forces". 2007-07-01. http://www.nzdf.mil.nz/at-a-glance/personnel-composition.htm. Retrieved 2008-07-16. 
2. ↑ Background Note: New Zealand US Department of State
3. ↑ Jerry Mateparae: Can't fight? In fact we still punch above our weight - The New Zealand Herald, Monday 08 September 2008
4. ↑ http://www.teara.govt.nz/1966/B/BritishTroopsInNewZealand/BritishTroopsInNewZealand/en
5. ↑ http://www.navymuseum.mil.nz/history/time/ww2/1941-rnzn/default.htm 1941 Royal New Zealand Navy Established
6. ↑ http://www.fas.org/irp/doddir/navy/opnavinst/5721_1f.pdf para 4b of Chief of Naval Operations OPNAVINST 5721.lF N5GP Release of Information on Nuclear Weapons and on Nuclear Capabilities of U.S. Forces dated 3 Feb 06
7. ↑ http://www.beehive.govt.nz/node/27410
8. ↑ http://www.nzdf.mil.nz/operations/hqjfnz/default.htm
9. ↑ http://www.national.org.nz/Article.aspx?ArticleId=4873
10. ↑ "Clark and Bush: focusing on the common ground". The Press. 2007-03-19. http://www.stuff.co.nz/thepress/3995638a13135.html. Retrieved 2007-05-06. 
11. ↑ http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/WO0807/S00761.htm U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice in Auckland, New Zealand (July 25-27, 2008)

References

• Rolfe, James (1999). The Armed Forces of New Zealand. Sydney: Allen & Unwin. ISBN 186448800X. 
• Rolfe, James (2007). Cutting their cloth: New Zealand's defence strategy. Canberra: Australian Strategic Policy Institute. ISBN 9781921302107. http://www.aspi.org.au/publications/publication_details.aspx?ContentID=124. 
• New Zealand Defence Force