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New Zealand navy receives a boost under 2025 Defence Capability Plan https://ift.tt/72CBfn3

By Gordon Arthur, Published on 11/04/2025

New Zealand navy receives a boost under 2025 Defence Capability Plan
HMNZS Taupo is one of two remaining inshore patrol vessels in the RNZN. Two others surplus to requirement were sold to Ireland. (Gordon Arthur)

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The New Zealand government published its Defence Capability Plan (DCP) on 7 April, a document that had been delayed for many months. The DCP is essentially a blueprint listing investment in the military for the next 15 years, aligning with national strategy. The plan includes much-needed boosts to naval capabilities.

At the launch of the DCP, Prime Minister Chris Luxon said, “Global tensions are increasing rapidly, and New Zealand has stepped up on the world stage, but our current defence spending is simply too low.” The plan thus promises NZ$12 billion (US$6.65 billion) in defence spending over the coming four years, of which NZ$9 billion is new expenditure. The result will see defence as a proportion of GDP rise from the current 1% to slightly more than 2% within eight years. Luxon said this “is the floor, not the ceiling, of funding for our defence force”.

The DCP focuses foremost on critical investments needed by the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) in the coming four years, as well as the following ten-year timeframe. The government also vowed to update the DCP every two years; the DCP prior to this one appeared six years ago in 2019.

Three key aims for the NZDF are delineated. Firstly, it must be combat capable with enhanced lethality and a deterrent effect. Secondly, NZ’s military must be a force multiplier with Australia and interoperable with partners, including a more tightly integrated “Anzac” force. Finally, the NZDF must be innovative and obtain improved situational awareness.

New Zealand navy receives a boost under 2025 Defence Capability Plan
New Zealand has two Anzac-class frigates built alongside eight Australian ones. This is HMNZS Te Mana during a port call in Hong Kong. (Gordon Arthur)

Attrition of skilled personnel spiked because military personnel were involved in prolonged manning of managed isolation facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Defence Minister Judith Collins noted, “That has left us with a hollowed-out middle in our personnel, and this plan allows us to address that. Already our attrition has fallen from 15.8% in December 2022 to 7.5% in February 2025 – but we know we need to rebuild the core of the NZDF so we can fully utilise the ships, aircraft, vehicles and weapons we already have, while looking to what is needed in the future.”

As already mentioned, a key point in the DCP is the commitment to more closely align the NZDF with Australia. It stated, “This means the two countries will combine military forces in defence of shared interests, common values and territory. This will include the introduction of more common, complementary and increasingly interoperable capability, further entrenching our ability to act together in support of shared interests.”

Elsewhere, the DCP noted, “New Zealand will seek to procure the same assets and equipment as Australia where it makes sense to do so. This will help with interoperability.” Observers should therefore closely monitor Australia’s procurement decisions, for they will likely have a heavy bearing on what the NZDF decides too.

New Zealand navy receives a boost under 2025 Defence Capability Plan
New Zealand has a fleet of eight SH-2G(I) Super Seasprite helicopters, though three have been placed in long-term storage. (Gordon Arthur)

What specific naval capabilities for the Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) were highlighted in the DCP from 2025-28 then? The main items are listed below.

1. Enhanced strike capabilities.
As the threat environment worsens, the NZDF needs new missile systems “to provide a deterrent effect to adversaries and an ability to respond to hostile vessels at a greater range”. Over the next four years, the NZDF is therefore looking at strike capabilities, particularly in the maritime domain. Options listed are arming the air force’s four P-8A Poseidon aircraft and the RNZN’s two Anzac-class frigates. The latter is long overdue, as the frigates are rather toothless; their anti-ship strike capacity comes from Super Seasprite helicopters carrying a maximum of two Penguin missiles. The DCP said other options, including land-based strike, are being explored too.

Given that the DCP said, “Defence will explore acquiring the same capabilities as Australia or partners, who are enhancing their capabilities in this area,” then some weapons that Australia is acquiring would make sense for New Zealand too. This includes the likes of the AGM-158C LRASM for P-8As and Naval Strike Missile (NSM) for frigates. Australia also has a land-based maritime strike requirement, where the NSM-firing StrikeMaster and HIMARS-launched Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) are leading contenders. New Zealand will presumably be closely following that project.

Some NZ$100-300 million is set aside for maritime strike. The subsequent 2029-39 timeframe will include refreshes to strike systems already operational by then, plus the possibility of delivering the long-range missile capability from multiple domains.

2. Frigate sustainment programme.
The RNZN operates two Anzac-class frigates and, although Australia is beginning to retire its fleet of eight Anzacs, the Kiwi warships must soldier on into the early 2030s. This will entail further maintenance and upgrades to extend their lives. The DCP noted, “This allows for the full benefits of the recently completed combat system upgrades of the frigates to be met, prior to their replacement.”

Furthermore, the navy does not want them out of service for prolonged periods, so maintenance and modifications must be implemented incrementally so that the frigates remain available for operations. Some NZ$300-600 million is set aside for the frigate upgrade.

New Zealand navy receives a boost under 2025 Defence Capability Plan
HMNZS Canterbury is a 9,000-tonne multipurpose vessel that is important for sealift and amphibious operations. (Gordon Arthur)

3. Persistent surveillance using uncrewed autonomous vessels and air vehicles.
The presence of a Chinese naval task group performing gunnery in the Tasman Sea in February caused alarm bells in the corridors of power. In a veiled reference to China, the DCP noted: “New Zealand’s geographic isolation no longer shelters us from threats to the extent it once did. We are seeing increasing threats to, and through, our extensive maritime area of interest. In addition to the risk of illegal activities, we face the increasing prospect of hostile forces operating in our wider maritime domain in ways that are coercive and threatening.”

Furthermore, the DCP promised greater focus on uncrewed systems in the short and medium term. “This includes long-range uncrewed aerial vehicles [UAV] to provide more persistent maritime surveillance; uncrewed vertical-take-off-and-landing aircraft to replace some maritime helicopter tasks; and uncrewed surface and subsurface vessels to help monitor and protect our exclusive economic zone, and support our Pacific partners.”

Uncrewed surface vessels will complement crewed vessels and aircraft. The RNZN is already trialling Bluebottle USVs obtained from Ocius Technologies. More generally, the DCP stated, “These systems may be deployed from crewed ships to enhance their effective sensor range, and/or independently for multiple months to enhance the NZDF’s maritime domain awareness and in support of other government agencies constabulary missions such as countering transnational criminal activity and resource protection.”

NZ is required to monitor ocean territory stretching from the Equator to Antarctica, and “persistent uncrewed surveillance capabilities provide the NZDF and other government agencies with better awareness and targeting”. Some NZ$50-100 million is set aside for this capability in the next four years. Later, in the 2029-39 period, the RNZN will give greater consideration to subsurface autonomous systems. This might put underwater platforms like Australia’s Ghost Shark from Anduril in the frame.

The NZDF wants long-range UAVs in the next four years. These would support both land and maritime forces “with improved and persistent intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance over longer distances, including in the Pacific and Southern Ocean”. A figure of NZ$100-300 million is listed for such assets from 2025-28, and even more will be needed in the following decade.

4. Replacing maritime helicopters.
The RNZN relies upon eight second-hand Kaman SH-2G(I) Super Seasprite helicopters, but these ageing aircraft are increasingly difficult to maintain. Eyeing their eventual replacement in mid-2027, Wellington issued a request for information on 24 April 2023, with responses due in July that year.

The DCP noted, “Maritime helicopters are a core part of the frigates’ capability as they increase the platform’s defensive and offensive abilities. They also extend the frigates’ surveillance range, overall weapon capability, and ability to support noncombat tasks like humanitarian assistance and disaster relief.” At least NZ$2 billion is allocated for this procurement, making it the most expensive listing in this year’s DCP.

If commonality with Australia is an important consideration, this would enhance the prospects of the MH-60R, of which Australia will have 36 flying by the end of 2026 and the in-country ability to sustain them. However, the NZDF has indicated that uncrewed systems will also be considered to increase the number of deployable aircraft and attain greater ranges.

New Zealand navy receives a boost under 2025 Defence Capability Plan
HMNZS Manawanui, a hydrographic and diving support vessel, now lies on the seabed near a Samoan reef. It will not be replaced. (Gordon Arthur)

5. Future replacement vessels from 2029-39.
After the unfortunate loss of HMNZS Manawanui in Samoan waters in October 2024, the RNZN now has just eight vessels encompassing five classes, and nearly all are due for replacement by the mid-2030s. A Maritime Fleet Renewal programme is under way to investigate options for modernising and simplifying the fleet. A common hull design for future frigates and patrol vessels is one possibility, for instance. While most will be crewed vessels, uncrewed ones are also being considered.

The RNZN has stated that HMNZS Manawanui will not be replaced. Instead, its hydrographic and diving roles will be transferred to other platforms. The multirole vessel HMNZS Canterbury will be up for replacement in the 2029-39 timeframe, as will the two frigates and two offshore patrol vessels. The DCP said, “The Anzac frigates will be replaced with comparable contemporary frigates and the offshore patrol vessels will also be replaced with consideration given to whether commonality of design or systems with the frigates may be possible.” A common design would maximise crew training, qualification and flexibility, and minimise maintenance and support. If interoperability with Australia is deemed critical, then the latter’s selection of a general-purpose frigate – either the Japanese Improved Mogami or German Meko A-200 – will be closely observed in NZ.

Strategic interest in Antarctica and the Southern Ocean is growing, so the RNZN aims to put back on the table a requirement for a Southern Ocean patrol vessel somewhere in 2029-39. Current vessels do not fully meet this requirement, but a dedicated Southern Ocean vessel “would broaden the patrol area and enhance our awareness of what is occurring in the Southern Ocean. This could include a combination of uncrewed technologies, deployable boarding teams and platforms.”

6. Future Devonport Naval Base design.
The RNZN has only one naval base, located in Devonport on Auckland’s North Shore. Up to NZ$50 million will be spent on upgraded facilities there, focusing on “upgraded and modern training environments, upgraded secure facilities and office spaces, and operational areas, including wharves, jetties and the dockyard, that are fit for purpose for the navy’s updated vessels and personnel,” according to the DCP.

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Gordon Arthur

Scottish-born Gordon Arthur is a freelance defence photojournalist who specialises in coverage of the Asia-Pacific region. After 20 years living in the territory of Hong Kong, he is now based in New Zealand. His work has appeared in more than 60 international defence journals and magazines to date.

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Anzac wolf pack hunts subs off WA https://ift.tt/XqfriIs

In the skies, the fleet was supported by Royal Australian Navy MH-60R helicopters, as well as RAAF and Royal New Zealand Air Force P-8A Poseidon sub hunters, generating a significant force tailored for sea control and deterrence missions.

Two MH-60R Seahawk helicopters circle HMAS Warramunga, HMAS Stuart and HMAS Toowoomba as the ships prepare to weigh anchor to conduct ASWEX 25.

Four of Australia’s seven Anzac-class frigates sailed in formation off the Western Australian coast for ASWEX 25 this month.

CAPTIONTwo MH-60R Seahawk helicopters circle HMAS Warramunga, HMAS Stuart and HMAS Toowoomba as the ships prepare for ASWEX 25. Story by Lieutenant Marcus Middleton. Photo by Leading Seaman Iggy Roberts.

Their mission – to hunt Australian submarine assets to ensure the Royal Australian Navy is fully capable of protecting Australia and its interests.

While capable of operating independently for long periods, for ASWEX, this lethal grey wolf, the backbone of the fleet, operated in packs.

HMA Ships Warramunga, Toowoomba, Stuart and Arunta worked as one, united frigate force under the direction of the Australian Maritime Task Group.

Joined by HMA Ships Choules and Hobart, the task group fleet put proof to the concept of an agile fleet that is focused, lethal and ready.

In the skies, the fleet was supported by Royal Australian Navy MH-60R helicopters, as well as RAAF and Royal New Zealand Air Force P-8A Poseidon sub hunters, generating a significant force tailored for sea control and deterrence missions.

Commanding Officer Warramunga Commander Dylan Phillips said ASWEX was a significant opportunity to uplift mariner and warfare skills by undertaking complex activities as part of a task group.

“The required coordination added a level of complexity impossible to replicate when operating independently,” Commander Phillips said.

“It was also a great opportunity to train our next generation of Navy personnel, ahead of the introduction of exciting new capabilities including the Hunter-class anti-submarine frigates and general-purpose frigates.”

Anzac-class frigates are highly capable ships, fitted with air and surface surveillance radars, omni-directional hull-mounted sonar and electronic support systems that all interface simultaneously with the 9LV453 Mk3E combat data system to present a coherent tactical picture to the warfare team.

They are also armed with Mark 45 5-inch guns capable of firing 20 rounds per minute, ship-launched MU90 anti-submarine torpedoes and the Mark 41 vertical launch system for the Evolved Sea Sparrow missile.

They also have eight anti-ship/land attack-canister-launched Harpoon missiles, and defensive countermeasures such as the Nulka active missile decoy system, off-board chaff and the Nixie torpedo decoy.

Warramunga officer of the watch Lieutenant Scott Smith, working in a ‘pack’ for the first time, said the Anzac-class was a versatile anti-submarine weapon, crucial in defending Australia against submarine threats.

“This exercise has affirmed the capability of the Royal Australian Navy to form a large task group of warships to achieve a common mission,” Lieutenant Smith said.

“This is indicative of the way in which we will fight, and provides an invaluable opportunity for realistic training as a task group.”

HMAS Warramunga’s Leading Seaman Ronin Wetherspoon said incorporating the Anzac-class frigates was an important training milestone in his understanding of tactical data links.

“With the future of warfare rapidly advancing, tactical data networks have held their own,” Leading Seaman Wetherspoon said.

“With proper training and preparation, a unit can fight a battle using tactical networks rather than their own sensors.

“This hides the location of our platforms and, with the acquisition of Naval Strike and Tomahawk missiles, allows us to strike from greater distances and closer to the home that we serve and protect.”

Sister ship Toowoomba also played a large role during ASWEX, including live gunnery, air warfare exercises with live aircraft, anti-submarine warfare, officer-of-the-watch manoeuvres, formation entry/departures, boat drills, at-sea ammunition replenishment and general task group operations.

Lieutenant Commander Darcy Cook, Toowoomba’s weapons electrical engineering officer, said the exercise directly enhanced Australia’s ability to deter and counter undersea threats, and reinforced the nation’s maritime security posture.

“The Anzac-class frigates play a key role in Australia’s anti-submarine defence, employing highly capable organic systems to detect and deter threats,” Lieutenant Commander Cook said.

“Working alongside other joint assets, they strengthen a multi-layered, anti-submarine warfare strategy.”

He also highlighted how, during shore phase, having all Anzac crews gather at HMAS Stirling was a great opportunity for east- and west-coast sailors to connect and share knowledge on operating Anzacs at sea.

“It was a great chance to reconnect with old friends, swap stories and reflect on how far we have all come, as well as meet new friends,” Lieutenant Commander Cook said.

“Catching up with familiar faces and hearing about what they have done recently was a reminder that this job moves fast, but friendships never fade.”

The ASWEX 25 task group with a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-8A Poseidon flying overhead during ASWEX 25. Photo by Leading Seaman Iggy Roberts.
The ASWEX 25 task group with a Royal New Zealand Air Force P-8A Poseidon flying overhead during ASWEX 25. Photo by Leading Seaman Iggy Roberts.

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New Navy housing to be built on North Shore https://ift.tt/UDzdqTC

Construction will soon begin in Auckland’s Bayswater on 61 new townhouses for Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) personnel.

11 April, 2025

Central Tāmaki Makaurau iwi Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei will build the homes, lease them to the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), and manage ongoing maintenance.

The NZDF has worked closely with the property development arm of the iwi on the design and layout to ensure the housing meets the needs of sailors by providing warm, safe, dry homes that are fit for modern family living with good car parking and storage.

 The homes will be spread over two separate sites in Bayswater, near Devonport Naval Base.

The homes, which are expected to be ready to occupy late next year, will provide a mix of two-, three- and four-bedroom configurations. 

Deputy Chief of Navy, Commodore Karl Woodhead, says the lease agreement with Ngāti Whātua Ōrākei is good news for sailors. 

“There are four factors important for our personnel when it comes to accessing housing for them and their families – quality, modern homes, fit-for-family size, close to other Navy families and within 30 minutes of Devonport Naval Base. This arrangement addresses all of these.” 

Navy leadership took the question of housing for its personnel very seriously and would continue to look for opportunities to improve housing for sailors and their whānau, Commodore Woodhead said.

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HMNZS Taranaki (F148) at Sydney 28 October 1966 after Exercise Sword Hilt. All the small ships went up under the bridge and around Cockatoo Island while the carriers berthed. https://ift.tt/A8BnCUS

HMNZS Taranaki at Sydney 28 October 1966 after Exercise Sword Hilt. All the small ships went up under the bridge and around Cockatoo Island while the carriers berthed.

https://rnznnews.com/

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NZGSS Hinemoa was a 542-ton New Zealand Government Service Steamer https://ift.tt/g8QzNEt

NZGSS Hinemoa was a 542-ton New Zealand Government Service Steamer designed specifically for lighthouse support and servicing, and also for patrolling New Zealand’s coastline and carrying out castaway checks and searching for missing ships. It operated in New Zealand’s territorial waters from 1876 to 1944.

The ‘Hinemoa’ in drydock – 1880s

It was instrumental in supplying many of the government castaway depots on the remote subantarctic islands, and rescuing a number of shipwreck victims, including those from the wreck of the Dundonald, the Anjou and the Spirit of the Dawn.

History

Captain John Fairchild used the steamer to survey the Bounty Islands and Antipodes Islands in 1886,[1] and the Herekino Harbour and the Whangape Harbour entrance in 1889.[2] In 1891, while under the command of Captain Fairchild, the Hinemoa searched New Zealand’s subantarctic and outlying islands for traces of the missing ships Kakanui and Assaye. While no trace was found of the former, the Assaye was suspected foundered off The Snares.[3]

Remains of the GSS Stella, sister ship of NZGSS Hinemoa, in Taiari / Chalky Inlet

The Hinemoa provided assistance to the Sub-Antarctic Islands scientific expedition of 1907, a substantial scientific expedition sponsored by the Philosophical Institute of Canterbury, where important observations on the natural history of the islands were made. They were published as a two-volume work in 1909, edited by professor Charles Chilton.[4] The five members of the 1908 Kermadec Islands Expedition were transported to Raoul Island on the Hinemoa in December 1907 and returned to New Zealand on the same vessel in November 1908.

Captain John Bollons was a notable master of the steamer from 1898; Bollons Island in the Antipodes Islands is named after him. Another to serve aboard the Hinemoa was William Edward Sanders, who won a Victoria Cross during World War I.[5]

It had a sister ship, the GSS Stella, which carried out similar duties over the same time period.[6] After its decommissioning in 1944, it was rejected for scrapping due to an oversupply at the time.[7]

A 1919 photo album from the ship was found in a Danish antique shop and brought to Canterbury Museum in 2023. It is unknown how or when the album came to Denmark.[
This Hinemoa (1876-1944) was a Government Steam ship of 542 tons, built by Scotts Shipbuilding & Engineering Co, Greenock in 1876, for the NZ Government’s lighthouse service and Islands patrol.
She originally had three masts, but the mainmast was removed c1880-1889.
In Dec 1900 – Jan 1901, she was used for a cruise to NZ’s sub-Antarctic islands by the Governor-General, Lord Ranfurly.
Used as a Government survey ship for the Sub-Antarctic Scientific Expedition to Campbell Island and the Auckland Islands in 1907 during which the crew rescued the survivors of the Dundonald.
She was sold to a Southland company in 1925 for pleasure cruises to Milford Sound.
Purchased in 1942 by RNZN and converted into a sullage (waste oil) barge for use by American ships under repair at Wellington.
Dismantled in 1944 and sunk in Pegasus Bay, 60 miles NEof Lyttelton.

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Why New Zealand plans to nearly double its defence spending https://ift.tt/2dB4OL0

By foreign affairs reporter Stephen Dziedzic 16h ago

A helicopter suspended in mid-air, its chopper blades blurred as they rotate.
New Zealand’s military strength has been steadily atrophying, with defence job cuts and three naval vessels idling. (Facebook: NZ Defence Force)

abc.net.au/news/why-new-zealand-plans-to-nearly-double-its-defence-spending/105151326

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New Zealand is not exactly known as a major military power.

For decades the country has relied on its geographical isolation and the reassuring presence of the Australian Defence Force on its western flank, rather than building up its own forces.

But as the world becomes more perilous and uncertain, all that is changing rapidly.

Yesterday afternoon NZ Prime Minister Christopher Luxon unveiled perhaps the most significant boost to NZ’s defence spending in years — promising to almost double defence spending over the next eight years.

A bald man in a blue suit with a light blue tie and a New Zealand fern leaf pin looks at the camera
New Zealand’s Prime Minister Christopher Luxon believes the world has become a much more dangerous place. (Reuters: Kim Hong-Ji)

That will mean another $9 billion in new spending over the next four years, with more money being ploughed into developing a “modern, combat-capable” New Zealand Defence Force.

So what does New Zealand want to achieve with its new defence capability plan? What is driving this strategic shift and what are the implications for Australia and the broader Pacific region?

Why is New Zealand doing this?

Largely because New Zealand’s government believes the world has become a much more dangerous place.

Much of the strategic anxiety centres around China, which has been building up a huge navy and a formidable military arsenal.

Defence Minister Judith Collins opened her press conference on the new plan by specifically pointing to China’s intercontinental ballistic missile launch in the Pacific last year, as well as the Chinese naval taskforce which conducted live fire exercises in the Tasman Sea in February.NZ says China held second live-fire drill

Photo shows A grey navy ship sailing in the oceanA grey navy ship sailing in the ocean

Sailors on the New Zealand Navy frigate Te Kaha observe live rounds being fired from a Chinese vessel’s main gun, a day after a similar exercise was conducted between Australia and New Zealand with little notice.

“Distance certainly is no longer any protection for New Zealand, not when we have an intercontinental ballistic missile launched in the South Pacific, not when ships with enormous strike power come into our backyard,” she said.

“This reality requires us not only to work with others who share our values and interests to reduce the possibility of conflict but also to prepare ourselves should the worst happen.”

The broader strategic chaos around the globe is also feeding into anxiety in Wellington.

New Zealand isn’t a treaty ally of the United States but much like Australia, it’s also worried about the Trump administration withdrawing from the Asia-Pacific.

All this at a time when New Zealand’s military strength has been steadily atrophying, with defence job cuts, three naval vessels idling because there are insufficient sailors to crew them, and the catastrophic sinking of the survey vessel HMNZS Manawanui off Samoa last year.

Last month Judith Collins said she wanted to take the NZDF “out of intensive care” and into the “ward”.

She struck a slightly more optimistic note yesterday, saying the new investments would get NZDF “out of the intensive care unit and not just growing, but growing where we need it to go”.

How much more are they spending?

New Zealand will jack up its defence spending from just over 1 per cent to about 2 per cent of GDP over the next eight years.

That means about $9 billion in new funding over the next four years, with more beyond that: the Prime Minister Christopher Luxon calls the current commitments a “floor not a ceiling”.

It’s not an earth-shattering sum.

For a point of comparison, Australia (which has a much larger economy than New Zealand) is already moving defence spending up beyond 2 per cent and will spend about $62 billion next financial year.

But for New Zealand — with an economy smaller than Queensland’s — it’s a significant announcement.

A large grey C-130J-30 plane on a wet tarmac.
The Royal New Zealand Air Force’s C-130J-30 arrives at Base Auckland. (Facebook: NZ Defence Force)

It’s a particularly heavy lift right now because New Zealand’s economy has been struggling, and new cash is hard to come by.

It will also send an important signal to the country (and the region) that New Zealand is serious about investing more heavily in its own defence.

That is, of course, if the promises made by the prime minister and the defence minister are delivered.

Both NZ’s military top brass and others will be scrutinising the approaching budget to make sure the dollars which have been promised appear on the bottom line.

How will the money be spent?

There’s a long list of things that New Zealand wants to do (and buy) to make its defence more lethal and more capable.

Under the plan, two of the military’s ageing transport planes will be replaced, and a new fleet of maritime helicopters will be purchased to operate on its naval vessels.

More money will be ploughed into upgrading NZ’s two frigates, although there will be no replacement vessel for the HMNZ Manawanui.

New Zealand will also develop more sophisticated “strike capabilities” by deploying new missile systems which can target enemy forces — although it’s not yet clear if it will arm its frigates and reconnaissance planes with them, or develop new land based systems instead.

Chinese military actions in Tasman sea ‘unprecedented’ and ‘provocative’ | The World | ABC NEWS

There’s also a healthy investment in bolstering recruitment, in an effort to build up NZDF numbers once again.

On top of this, the military will look at buying drones (or “uncrewed aerial systems”) to deliver more bang for their buck.

Defence Minister Judith Collins said the plan would deliver “enhanced lethality” and a “deterrent effect” for the NZDF.

And the Luxon government hopes it will be able to develop a defence force which is able to pose more of a threat to any potential aggressors — as well as being able to do more to help in the face of natural disasters and other calamities.

What does it mean for the region?

New Zealand’s announcement is not going to send massive reverberations through the region and it’s hardly going to drastically alter the balance of power.

On a global scale, the new money is loose change.

New Zealand’s military forces will remain relatively small when compared to larger players like Australia, let alone behemoths like the US or China.

But that doesn’t mean the announcements won’t have an impact.

Australia has long complained about New Zealand refusing to pull its weight on defence spending, and Canberra will be happy to see this money flowing.

A middle-aged blonde woman in a grey suit speaks seriously into a microphone.
Judith Collins said she wanted to take the NZDF “out of intensive care” and into the “ward”. (Reuters: Caroline Chia)

Judith Collins has talked about the NZDF being a “force multiplier” for Australia, which remains its only military ally.

The new plan also emphasises building “interoperability” (the capacity of a defence force to seamlessly operate with that of another country) with the larger Australian military.

These phrases can stir a bit of opposition in New Zealand, which has a long and proud tradition of slightly ornery independence on defence and foreign policy.

But as the region faces an ever darker strategic outlook, both Australia and New Zealand are likely to instinctively pull closer together and share military resources.What Trump presidency means for Australia’s neighbours

Photo shows Donald and Melania Trump wearing floral necklaces.Donald and Melania Trump wearing floral necklaces.

Donald Trump has taken radical new stances on Greenland and the Panama Canal. What do experts predict he’ll do in the Pacific?

And these investments means that if Australia needs to call on New Zealand for help — whether for a natural disaster, to monitor a Chinese naval vessel in the region or to deal with a real military threat — then Wellington will have more to offer.

For the Pacific, the picture might be slightly more complex.

The Luxon government insists Pacific nations are delighted with the plan, and no doubt they’ll be glad to see NZDF building up capabilities which could help them deal with some of the escalating climate crises looming in the near future.

But the Pacific is also deeply worried about the way all powers, great and small, currently seem intent on ploughing more and more money into their increasingly lethal militaries.

New Zealand is a long way from the worst offender here, but yesterday’s announcement is another dashboard indicator blinking red — and another sign that the region is facing its most perilous times in recent memory.

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2025-04-08/why-new-zealand-plans-to-nearly-double-its-defence-spending/105151326

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INS TARKASH UNDERTAKES PASSEX WITH ROYAL NEW ZEALAND NAVY SHIP HMNZS TE KAHA https://ift.tt/qFTpSMG

Posted On: 06 APR 2025 2:15PM by PIB Delhi

The Indian Navy’s stealth frigate INS Tarkash participated in a PASSEX with the Royal New Zealand Navy’s Anzac-class frigate Te Kaha on 04 Apr 25 in the Gulf of Aden. This exercise marked the culmination of the New Zealand led CTF 150 Joint Focused Operation ANZAC Tiger (27 Mar – 04 Apr 2025), a Combined Maritime Forces (CMF) operation in which INS Tarkash was mission deployed.

The PASSEX involved a range of interoperability drillsincluding cross-deck landingscross boardingSea Rider exchanges, and tactical manoeuvres, all integrated with communication procedure exercises. This provided a valuable opportunity for the two navies to exchange best practices, further strengthen their bilateral maritime cooperation and enhance interoperability.

Conducted in the strategic Indian Ocean Region, this event underscores the strong and enduring relationship between India and New Zealand, reaffirming the Indian Navy’s role as a key and preferred security partner committed to regional maritime stability.

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Farewell HMS Monmouth – first of the Type 23 frigates to be scrapped is towed away https://ift.tt/7m0opNV

The first of the Royal Navy’s Type 23 frigates to be disposed of, the former HMS Monmouth, was towed out of Portsmouth this morning to be scrapped in Turkey.

Conceived as a Cold War submarine hunter, HMS Monmouth was the sixth ship of the class and was built by Yarrow shipbuilders on the Clyde, commissioning in 1993. The ‘Black Duke’ served all over the world, from the North Atlantic to the Gulf and circumnavigated the globe in 2007.

Monmouth’s last major deployment was in 2018 when she accompanied HMS Queen Elizabeth on the Westlant deployment to the US. She sailed for the final time in April 2019 and was laid up, ahead of her planned LIFEX refit. This was eventually abandoned as a cost-saving measure and she is the only ship of her class never to have had a mid-life upgrade.

She languished in Devonport, briefly serving as a harbour training ship. She was used by the replacement crews preparing to take over the Type 23 frigate forward-deployed in the Gulf. There we briefly rumours she might be sold to Greece as part of a deal to sell the Hellenic Navy Type 31 frigates but this was always extremely unlikely, given her poor material state. She was subsequently towed to Portsmouth in 2021 and handed over to DSRO for the final stripping of equipment.

She never received a proper decommissioning ceremony and was officially withdrawn from RN service on 30 June 2021. The ship’s bell was handed over to the mayor of Monmouth in Wales for safekeeping, having been on board for the 28 years the ship was in commission, during which time she sailed more than half a million miles and visited over 200 ports. At least 2,000 sailors served on board this ship during its lifetime.

Seen in happier times – conducting gunnery exercise, Westlant18.

The long list of Royal Navy warships and RFAs that have been disposed of in the last two decades have mostly ended up at the Leyal scrapyard at Aliaga on Turkey’s Aegean coast, and Monmouth is no exception. The UK does not have a facility where ships can be dismantled, mainly due to health, safety and environmental regulations making it financially unviable, despite the rise in the price of scrap steel in the last decade.

Monmouth is the first of all the Type 23s to be scrapped (The 3 older Type 23s sold to Chile are still going strong). Disposing of a warship that is over 30 years old would not be at all remarkable if there was a replacement ready to take her place in the fleet. Ex-HMS Montrose, currently on the trots in Portsmouth harbour, will likely be next to the scrapyard, followed eventually by HMS Westminster, Argyll and Northumberland.

Main image: Portsmouth Proud

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