By Githmi Silva
In the discourse of International Relations, the Indo-Pacific has drawn plenty of attention for inevitable reasons. From its strategic location to thriving economies, the region holds significance in numerous ways. However, discussions about the Indo-Pacific often revolve around a handful of major players, such as India, China, Japan, and the United States. While these states undoubtedly shape the region’s political, economic and security landscapes, their dominance in the common narrative tends to overshadow the role of middle powers. New Zealand is one such middle power in the Indo-Pacific; a country despite its relatively small size, playing an active role in shaping regional politics. New Zealand’s commitment to security cooperation may not always be the focal point of regional security dialogues; still, it plays a crucial role in influencing the security outlook for smaller Indo-Pacific states. This article aims to explore how New Zealand’s defense diplomacy contributes to regional stability and influences the security dynamics of smaller nations in the region.
New Zealand’s Defense Policy
National security today is
multifaceted. It goes beyond conventional threats and encompasses various
non-traditional challenges, including climate change, mass migrations,
pandemics, and counterterrorism. These issues not only directly impact national
security but also create ripple effects that influence the broader region. In
response, a country’s defense policy is shaped to tackle these evolving
challenges, ultimately safeguarding both the state and its people while taking
the broader picture into consideration.
Since gaining legal independence in
1947, New Zealand’s defense and security interests have expanded significantly,
leading to ongoing adaptations and developments in its defense policy.
According to the New Zealand Ministry of Defense (2023), New Zealand’s new
defense strategy emphasizes three mutually reinforcing themes: understand,
partner, and act. Defense Policy and Strategy Statement issued by the New
Zealand Government in 2023, comprehensively taps the above themes; articulating
how the country’s defense strategy is built on New Zealand defense’s
professionalism as well as New Zealand’s relationship with the world.
In order to understand New Zealand’s
approach to defense diplomacy, it is first necessary to decode the term itself.
Although relatively new, defense diplomacy has become a pivotal tool for states
in pursuing their security interests. There is no universally accepted
definition of the term; however, it emerged in the post-Cold War era as a
response to the political need to define the expanding roles of institutions
under national defense ministries and to clarify their objectives in a newly
"demilitarized" international environment. Thus, its origins lie in
politics rather than academia; broadly serving as a means to support the
implementation of national interests and to advance foreign and security policy
objectives (Security and
Defense Quarterly).
The
term defense is often associated with military strength and rigid strategies,
but the core of defense diplomacy is nonviolent. It serves as a form of soft
power, allowing governments to advance their security interests through
cooperation rather than coercion. In International Relations, the concept of
power is generally classified into three categories: hard power, which relies
on force and coercion to achieve national interests, soft power, in contrast,
which uses diplomacy, culture, and partnerships to influence others, and smart
power, a combination of both, leveraging military capabilities alongside
diplomatic and other noncoercive strategies.
New
Zealand is known for its rules-based order and modest stance in foreign
relations. The New Zealand Defense Force plays a key role in peacekeeping,
logistics, maritime security, and humanitarian efforts, demonstrating a strong
soft power approach (Espia, 2024). However, New Zealand also employs more
sophisticated strategies that go beyond traditional soft power. Despite not
having a large military, New Zealand is part of strategic alliances with major
global powers. This allows the country to contribute to international security
while maintaining an independent foreign policy. New Zealand’s defense
diplomacy is not just about maintaining peace but also about using strategic
engagement and preventive measures to uphold stability in the region and
beyond. Therefore in New Zealand’s case, defense diplomacy reflects characteristics
of smart power; a balanced strategy that integrates persuasion with strategic
military engagement.
New Zealand’s Role in
Regional Security Frameworks
Although New Zealand maintains a modest
and independent approach to foreign relations, it remains actively engaged in
several major regional and global security frameworks. While the country is
directly involved in certain security and military alliances, it also
participates indirectly in others, even without formal membership.
● New Zealand and ANZUS
Entered into force in 1952, ANZUS is a
security treaty signed between Australia, New Zealand, and the United States.
In a turbulent geopolitical atmosphere during the Cold War, the ANZUS treaty
was signed to strengthen regional security, particularly to avoid Japan’s
resurgence and the spread of communism in the region. Signatories of the treaty
believed that an armed
attack in the Pacific area on one member would endanger the peace and safety of
the others; thus, the parties agreed to sustain and expand their military
forces to counter threats and to consult each other if their security in the Pacific
was threatened (New Zealand History, 1952).
This tripartite security alliance contributed to stabilizing the Pacific's security during the Cold War period and strengthening defense capabilities; however, ANZUS took a detour towards the 1980s with New Zealand’s adherence to anti-nuclear policies. When New Zealand’s Labour Party came to power in 1984, the Government was committed to making New Zealand a nuclear-free country. As per New Zealand’s nuclear-free policy, the U.S. Navy could only visit New Zealand if it provided the New Zealand government with a clear assurance that its ships were nuclear-free, and this requirement conflicted with the U.S. Navy’s longstanding policy of neither confirming nor denying the presence of nuclear weapons aboard its vessels (Catalina, 2010). The contradictions, gradually made New Zealand withdraw from the ANZUS treaty, which makes a compelling case, considering it is the small and less powerful member of the treaty.
However, New Zealand’s move is not purely moral, it is also political and strategic. New Zealand's abandoning ANZUS did spark some tensions between the signatories; one could evidently argue it strained New Zealand - USA relations and reduced New Zealand’s influence in global security. Nevertheless given New Zealand’s geographical; and historical proximity with its neighbor Australia, geographic separation from the regions of potential conflict between the great powers, and its lack of any apparent direct threat to its territory prove that New Zealand did not make a wrong choice parting from ANZUS, but a strategic one (Jamieson, 1991). As a whole ANZUS did not evolve into a large-scale military alliance like NATO; regardless of pulling back from the treaty, up to date, Wellington does maintain security ties with both Canberra and Washington while not compromising its commitment to a nuclear-free Pacific.
● New Zealand and Five Eyes Intelligence
Five
Eyes Intelligence is a security alliance formed in 1946, between the United
States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand. For New
Zealand, a nation with comparatively limited military power, being part of such
a formidable intelligence network carries significant stakes. New Zealand’s
role in Five Eyes up to date remains controversial. Its role has not been
deeply analyzed in the academic discourse, nevertheless, debatable. New Zealand
in some researchers' perspectives is the “phantom eye” of the group; its
presence may not be as noticeable as the counterparts, yet it is there. Its
relevance become much more crucial given its proximity to Australia and
Southeast Asia, and New Zealand’s role in the group has made an impact on other
parties.
For instance, during the 1987 Fiji coups, New Zealand failed to provide intelligence on the coup's likelihood or its aftermath, marking a significant setback for the alliance. Over the next two decades, New Zealand’s absence deprived Five Eyes of crucial intelligence in Southeast Asia, leaving gaps that the remaining members had to compensate for (Batter and Balls, 2023). New Zealand’s location in the South Pacific continues to be important for intelligence gathering; especially given the nature of contemporary security threats ranging from counter-terrorism to cyber threats. On the other hand, membership in Five Eyes is essential for New Zealand due to access to high intelligence, geopolitical leverage, and maintaining strong ties with Western allies to ensure regional stability.
●
New Zealand and ASEAN Regional Forum
ASEAN
Regional Forum is a multilateral security dialogue in the Asia Pacific Region.
This initiative was established in 1994 and it encompasses ASEAN Member states
and 17 non-ASEAN members. The main objectives of the ASEAN Regional Forum
(2023) include fostering constructive dialogue and consultation on political
and security issues of common interest and concern; and making significant
contributions to efforts towards confidence-building and preventive diplomacy
in the Asia-Pacific region; considering these objectives New Zealand’s
involvement once again is pivotal. Being part of the ASEAN Regional Forum, New
Zealand contributes in sustaining ASEAN security centrality while providing
humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, and nonproliferation and arms control
mechanisms among others. The Foreign Policy standing of Wellington is different
from ASEAN’s; nevertheless, given the complexity and importance of the Asia
Pacific region, it is a must for Wellington to maintain a solid relationship
with ASEAN. Under these circumstances, New Zealand continues to engage with
ASEAN in the security pillar for mutual benefits.
How can New Zealand’s Defense Policy impact small Indo-Pacific States?
Determining whether New Zealand is a
small power or a big power is certainly not straightforward. It can be
understood and explained from various angles. In comparison to conventional
major powers such as the USA, the UK, and China, New Zealand lacks key
attributes to compete globally. In terms
of military and defense, it does not possess a strong military force and faces
no direct security threats. However, it plays a crucial role in regional
security by closely collaborating with larger states. This brings up the
question: What distinguishes New Zealand, and what implications does this have
for other small states in the region?
As mentioned earlier, New Zealand’s Defense Policy is carefully crafted to cater to the country’s national interest while also addressing broader regional interests. Despite not facing direct military threats, New Zealand is located in a region marked by political tensions, such as the South China Sea disputes. While New Zealand maintains an independent approach to foreign policy, it must also be prepared to navigate evolving security challenges in an increasingly uncertain world. New Zealand’s current defense policy acknowledges these unprecedented foreign policy challenges and implements a comprehensive, holistic approach to address them.
The Indo-Pacific region remains a battleground for Power competition among states, with China and India steadily expanding their influence while Western powers including the USA counterbalancing the power competition. Against this backdrop, Wellington attempts to play their game safe but at the same time, smart, following a nuanced approach with the USA, China, India, and its neighbour Australia; this mechanism allows New Zealand to strengthen their security ties with the Pacific neighbours ultimately. How exactly? This can be explained in several ways. As explained New Zealand is a part of many regional and international security alliances. Although New Zealand’s role in them can be controversial at certain points, involvement does leverage the country's geopolitical importance and contribute to strengthening regional security cooperation.
With the support of major powers, New Zealand engages actively in defense collaborations, training programs, and joint military exercises. In this regard, the role of the New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF) should be emphasized since it functions as the main instrument of New Zealand’s defense diplomacy. The New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF) primarily conducts offshore operations, including humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR), search and rescue (SAR), defense and diplomatic exercises, support for Antarctica, Building Partner Capacity (BPC) initiatives, surveillance and interception, counterpiracy efforts, and participation in UN peacekeeping missions (Espia, 2024). These actions have been effective in addressing both traditional and nontraditional security threats in the Indo-Pacific.
New Zealand's efforts in addressing
non-traditional security threats have gained significant attention,
particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic. The New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF) was initially called
upon to deliver humanitarian aid to families in need but was soon drawn into
their biggest active deployment since 1999 (Greener, 2022). While providing
vaccinations and humanitarian assistance at home New Zealand also expanded
humanitarian assistance to other Pacific states; for instance, Fiji’s 2021
COVID-19 Outbrake. In this case, New Zealand provided Fiji with medical
personnel, 100,000 doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine, other essential equipment,
and economic support of 10 million New Zealand Dollars (Department of Foreign
Affairs and Trade, n.d). Speaking of nontraditional security threats New
Zealand’s defense diplomacy also plays an active role in climate security and
disaster response as well as cyber security and digital resilience. By being
part of alliances like Five Eyes New Zealand contributes to tackling cyber
security and related threats in the region.
While
New Zealand’s military presence is not extensive, it maintains strong
relationships with military-capable nations to promote capacity-building initiatives. These
partnerships help strengthen the capacities of smaller Pacific states. Pacific
Security Cooperation Program (PSCP), defense Training and Exchange Programs
such as Exercise Milan in India, and Sri Lanka, and the Maldives Coast Guard
Training Program can be noted as a few examples. New Zealand also pays careful
attention to humanitarian assistance when it comes to maintaining security in
the home and the region. The Mutual Assistance Programme is one of the key
elements of Aotearoa New Zealand's contribution to peace and security in the
region, significantly helping to foster strong and enduring people-to-people
links over many decades (NZDF, n.d).
New Zealand’s defense policy and its
role in regional security are not widely debated topics. As a smaller power, it
lacks the impulse to assert dominance and tends to uphold a neutral foreign
policy stance. However, its strategic importance in the region necessitates
action to contribute to regional security when required. New Zealand’s actions
in this regard have been subtle, yet influential. As mentioned in the article
New Zealand follows a sophisticated approach to security. It is a part of
several security alliances both directly and indirectly, however, Wellington is
mindful not to take their core values of foreign policy such as the rule-based
order for granted. Overall New Zealand has been consistently contributing to
regional security cooperation, most importantly maneuvering the situations and
acknowledging the geopolitical complexity in the region.
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