New Zealand said on Monday it would boost defense spending by NZ$9 billion ($5 billion) over the next four years, and aim to nearly double spending to 2% as a share of
New Zealand said on Monday it would boost defense spending by NZ$9 billion ($5 billion) over the next four years, and aim to nearly double spending to 2% as a share of GDP in the next eight years, at a time of rapidly growing tension worldwide.
The details came in remarks by Prime Minister Christopher Luxon, who called for more spending on defense to ensure prosperity.
"New Zealand and our allies and partners across the world are no longer in a benign environment," he told a press conference at the release of the Defence Capability Plan.
"My primary focus is the economic importance of this country. However, there can be no prosperity without security, and defense is one vital component of that picture."
The Defence Capability Plan maps out new funding of NZ$9 billion over the next four years to boost defense capability. It comes on top of baseline spending set to be announced in May.
The new spending is a significant boost to Defence Force spending of just under NZ$5 billion in 2024/25.
New Zealand's first national security review in 2023 called for more military spending and stronger ties with Indo-Pacific nations to tackle issues of climate change and
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