New Zealand’s place in the world: an active partner contributing to international security

Speech to visiting delegation from the Indian National Defence College, Defence House, Wellington

I would like to formally welcome Vice Admiral Kaushiva and the Indian National Defence College to New Zealand.

Your visit comes at a time when Defence ties between New Zealand and India have become closer.

I have recently returned from a visit to India, my first as the Minister of Defence. It was an opportunity to learn more about India’s strategic environment and build on the growing links between our two nations.

I had positive discussions with Defence Minister Antony, General Singh (Chief of Army Staff) and Admiral Mehta (Chief of Naval Staff).

Defence Minister Antony and I agreed that, where possible, we should increase the level of our defence engagement. In particular, we agreed to build the institutional defence relationship by exchanging high-level visits and policy discussions on regional security issues.

Your visit complements this process. Building people-to-people links between our Defence Forces will help us to enjoy a close and productive relationship in the future.

Today I would like to outline to you New Zealand’s place in the world and how we see the security environment evolving.

India and New Zealand occupy very different strategic environments but we also have a lot in common.

Like India, we are a democracy. We follow and promote a commitment to democratic procedures and the rule of law – drawing much from our shared colonial heritage. We are both members of the Commonwealth.

There is a striking difference between us in scale. India has over one billion people. In comparison, New Zealand is a small country of around 4 million people.

Our defence force is also small by global standards with around 9,000 regular force personnel.

We do not currently face a direct conventional threat to our security, nor are we regarded by any other country as a threat.

Our location in the South Pacific with Australia to our west, the Pacific Islands to our north and Antarctica to our south is not strategically contentious.

And while the Pacific is not the idyllic postcard stereotype sometimes imagined, the security challenges there are of a different scale to South Asia.

We do not have a history of conflict with our neighbours. And they do not possess nuclear weapons.

Our neighbours are close friends.

New Zealand shares with Australia common regional security interests, and we work together to safeguard and promote these.

This means that unlike many of the countries you will have studied, defence of the homeland against invasion is not a likely task for our troops. The focus of our armed forces has always been expeditionary.

Our small size also means that any influence we have comes, not from our ability to impose our will on other countries, but from our ability to work with others - and persuade them of the merits of our arguments.

We stress peaceful resolution of conflicts. The use of force may be necessary as a last resort, but in many circumstances soft power can be the most effective approach.

Our small size and the lack of a direct conventional security threat have an important impact on the way New Zealand views the world.

However, we have never been isolationist or pacifist in outlook. We are outward looking and proactive international citizens.

Global challenges such as terrorism, failed states and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction pose a real threat to our national interests.

As a trading nation distant from major markets we are dependent upon international stability. Any disruption to the flow of international goods and services could have a real impact on New Zealand’s living standards.

We are increasingly interconnected with Asia. We benefit from the rapidly expanding economies such as India and China. Likewise, we all suffer if instability hampers economic growth.

We have always understood that our security is tied to others and we have never been reluctant to play our part. Historically, we believe our contribution to security has been disproportionate to our size.

We are prepared to commit human and financial resources to being a good international citizen. Our peacekeeping deployments, development assistance and disarmament initiatives are examples of that commitment.

Like India, New Zealand has made a strong commitment to peace support operations. We currently have about 400 New Zealand Defence Force and 81 New Zealand Police personnel deployed on 21 peace support missions.

While a relatively small number – compared to India’s commitment of over 9,000 - for us it is significant. With regular rotations it means that one third of our Army serves in a peacekeeping mission each year.

Because our interests are global our peacekeeping commitments extend beyond our own region. In addition to our larger contributions in Solomon Islands, Timor Leste and Afghanistan, New Zealand also has small numbers of personnel in multinational missions in Korea, the Middle East, Sudan, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Kosovo.

We are a strong supporter of multilateral institutions, such as the UN.

Multilateralism has its shortcomings, in particular having to rely on near consensus to act. Its advantage, however, is that it provides a rules-based system, which is important to smaller countries.

At its best, it maximises the effectiveness of the international community by insuring common ownership of problems and solutions to resolving them.

New Zealand is also active in general security dialogues that take place in the ASEAN Regional Forum and next month’s Shangri-La Dialogue.

APEC, and the East Asia Summit are other paths through which we pursue these objectives.

Our membership in the Five Power Defence Arrangement with Singapore, Malaysia, Australia and the United Kingdom complements our presence in regional multilateral forums and underpins New Zealand’s interests in maintaining strong defence partnerships in Asia.

We also take part in practical exercises and discussions under the Proliferation Security Initiative aimed at preventing the transfer of WMD related material.

These groupings provide an important mechanism for dialogue and cooperation on traditional and, increasingly, non-traditional security issues.

The current international security environment is complex and fluid.

States must be able to respond to a diverse range of challenges.

Many of these require a different role for the armed forces. They also require a greater level of regional cooperation than ever before. The Boxing Day Tsunami and 2005 earthquake in Pakistan are both excellent examples of the versatility of armed forces as well as the success we can achieve when we pool our collective efforts.

In South Asia, we welcome the dialogue which is taking place over Kashmir.

We are pleased to hear that progress is being made towards resolving the Kashmir issue. Positive indications have been coming from the talks between the Pakistani and Indian Governments.

Resolution of this issue is of importance to the entire Asian region.

Any deterioration in Pakistan/India relations obviously poses a serious risk to both countries and has broader regional and international consequences.

In the Middle East, the situation remains problematic.

The region’s potent mix of ethnic rivalry, economic inequalities, religion and globally vital energy resources is ensuring the region remains pivotal for international security.

Iraq and the potential spread of ethnic violence and terrorism is a huge concern.

With respect to Iran, there is concern that it is developing a nuclear weapons capability and playing an unhelpful role in a number of regional conflicts.

Disarmament and non-proliferation have long been key elements of New Zealand's international policy. I do not regard my role as Minister for Disarmament and Arms Control as being in any way inconsistent with my role as Minister of Defence.

New Zealand remains committed to working for a world free of nuclear weapons. We take an even-handed approach to nuclear disarmament – we are strongly opposed to nuclear weapons in any hands.

New Zealand aims to play an active and constructive role in working towards a diplomatic solution to the Iranian nuclear issue. We are disappointed by Iran’s continued failure to comply with UNSC resolutions.

The continued existence of nuclear weapons, the risk that more countries may develop them, and the growing danger of these weapons falling into the hands of terrorist groups, means that we should not be complacent.

The situation in Afghanistan and along the Pakistan-Afghanistan border remains cause for concern.

New Zealand has strongly supported operations in Afghanistan since 2001. We have committed forces – including three rotations of Special Air Services troops - to Operation Enduring Freedom, and now to the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan.

Since 2003 we have had around 120 Defence Force personnel in Afghanistan operating a Provincial Reconstruction Team in Bamyan province.

We recently extended our PRT commitment to late 2008.

I recently returned from my third visit to Afghanistan. Since my first visit in 2002 some real progress has been made, politically, socially and economically. However, there has also been a major increase in violence, and the situation remains fragile.

Economic and social development – as well as security - are the key to Afghanistan’s future. The Afghan people will only support an international presence, if they believe that it will improve their lives, security and prosperity. This requires an approach that fully integrates security, economic and social development.

In Bamyan, the New Zealand Defence Force works closely with the New Zealand Agency of International Development and the New Zealand Police.

New Zealand has worked hard to make a difference to the lives of the people of Bamyan. We have facilitated the construction of schools, roads, bridges and a maternity ward.

The development of Afghanistan as a narco-state with a huge amount of its GDP coming from opium, undermines the future of Afghanistan and our progress there. It makes corruption inherent, funds the Taliban, warlords and criminal syndicates, and damages the developed world – with 90% of the opium imports to Europe coming from Afghanistan.

Alongside eradication of opium, the international community must also commit to the development of alternative livelihood options – without which communities will turn against the government and outsiders.

I acknowledge India’s political and development efforts in Afghanistan.

While Iraq, Iran, North Korea and Afghanistan dominate international attention there are of course a number of nations that suffer from instability and poor governance. If not addressed these problems can spread and create regional instability.

The last few years have seen serious instability across the Southwest Pacific.

This region has close cultural, family and political linkages to New Zealand. Geographic proximity, community links, commercial interests, humanitarian concern and the importance of the Pacific in New Zealand diplomacy mean that the region will remain a central feature of our security and defence policy.

Ethnic tensions, clashes of traditional values with those of globalisation, limited economic and social development, and poor governance structures have resulted in heightened tensions.

These tensions periodically result in breakdowns in civil order and violence.

Two of the most serious cases have been in Solomon Islands and Timor Leste.

In 1999, New Zealand committed a battalion of peace-keepers to East Timor, to help restore a country nearly destroyed by the militias, following the referendum over the country’s future that year.

We celebrated with the Timorese people when they achieved self-determination and democracy in 2002, after 25 years of struggle and an apparently successful UN-led transition to independence.

However, Timor Leste’s descent into violence in 2006 underscored the difficulty and complexity of nation building.

Defence forces from Australia and New Zealand and police from 38 countries including India have once again had to assist Timor Leste to establish law and order.

New Zealand is working with the UN and regional partners in a sixth UN mission in Timor Leste to try to achieve a durable peace and an effective political system.

The New Zealand Defence Force has an army company there, supported by Air Force helicopters. We have helped restore stability and provided security for the recent elections.

But the challenge of changing the political culture to achieve long-term stability, without the need for an international presence, is a tougher one.

We have also played an important role in helping to restore stability in the Solomon Islands, as part of the Regional Assistance Mission in the Solomon Islands (RAMSI).

Together with Australia, Tonga and Papua New Guinea, our defence personnel and police have helped prevent further inter-communal conflict and to restore law and order. But consolidation of progress there depends on a continuing consent-environment for our presence.

There is overwhelming popular support for RAMSI but its relationship with the Government is problematic.

The military and police presence is an important stabilising factor. However, a sustainable peace requires the establishment of robust institutions of governance and sustainable livelihoods, as well as a culture that accepts and demands the proper exercise of authority.

In conclusion, I have outlined how New Zealand sees its place in the world. We are a small state that plays an active global role.

To confront a multitude of threats and challenges we champion an inclusive and transparent approach working through multilateral institutions and processes. We complement this with strong bilateral partnerships.

Our strategic setting is different to India’s but the situation in the Pacific presents some very real challenges.

We look forward to working with India to develop our relationship further to better pursue objectives that we have in common.

We expect that our links with the Indian Armed Forces will continue to grow in the future. I hope that you take away with you a positive image of New Zealand, not only as a friend but also as a nation that is a committed and principled international actor.

Thank you and I wish you all the best for the rest of your visit.