New Zealand to spend NZ$2 billion on new maritime helicopters

By Lucy Craymer

WELLINGTON (Reuters) -The New Zealand authorities said connected Sunday it had acceptable speech NZ$2 cardinal ($1.19 billion) successful its upcoming fund to regenerate the Defence Force’s aging maritime helicopters, arsenic planetary tensions increase.

Along with wealth for the helicopters, the authorities said it would summation baseline spending by NZ$239 cardinal for the Defence Force each twelvemonth implicit the adjacent 4 years.

“It is precise wide that New Zealand is not immune from the expanding tensions being felt passim the world,” New Zealand Minister of Defence Judith Collins said successful a statement.

“(This) sets america connected our way for defence spending to scope 2% of GDP by 2032-33,” she added.

New Zealand’s Defence Force has struggled with systemic underspending implicit the past respective decades, which amounts to conscionable implicit 1% of GDP now. In April, the authorities said it would boost defence spending with NZ$9 cardinal of caller backing implicit the adjacent 4 years.

“There is nary economical information without nationalist security. Global tensions are expanding rapidly, and Defence unit request the close instrumentality and conditions to bash their jobs,” Collins added.

“As a maritime federation we are prioritising naval capability,” she said.

New Zealand's archetypal nationalist information reappraisal successful 2023 called for much subject spending and stronger ties with Indo-Pacific nations to tackle clime alteration and strategical contention among the West, China and Russia.

New Zealand has 8 SH-2G(I) Seasprite maritime helicopters. Collins said replacing these volition summation the antiaircraft and violative capabilities and surveillance scope of New Zealand’s frigates.

Collins added she volition person much to accidental astir defence investments successful the coming twelvemonth erstwhile the authorities unveils its budget. New Zealand’s fund is scheduled for May 22, and volition outline spending for the 12-month play to June 30, 2026.

($1 = 1.6821 New Zealand dollars)

(Reporting by Lucy CraymerEditing by Rod Nickel)