New Zealand

the NZDF is responsible for protecting New Zealand’s sovereignty, promoting its interests, safeguarding peace and security, and conducting peacekeeping, humanitarian, and other international missions New Zealand is a member of the Five Powers Defense Arrangements (FPDA), a series of mutual assistance agreements reached in 1971 embracing Australia, Malaysia, New Zealand, Singapore, and the UK; the FPDA commits the members to consult with one another in the event or threat of an armed attack on any of the members and to mutually decide what measures should be taken, jointly or separately; there is no specific obligation to intervene militarily New Zealand has been part of the Australia, New Zealand, and US Security (ANZUS) Treaty since 1951; however, the US suspended its ANZUS security obligations to New Zealand in 1986 after Auckland implemented a policy barring nuclear-armed and nuclear-powered warships from its ports; the US and New Zealand signed the Wellington Declaration in 2010, which reaffirmed close ties between the two countries, and in 2012 signed the Washington Declaration, which provided a framework for future security cooperation and defense dialogues; in 2016, a US naval ship conducted the first bilateral warship visit to New Zealand since the 1980s; New Zealand has Major Non-NATO Ally (MNNA) status with the US, a designation under US law that provides foreign partners with certain benefits in the areas of defense trade and security cooperation (2025)

small numbers of NZ military personnel are deployed on a variety of international missions in Africa, Antarctica, the Asia-Pacific region, and the Middle East (2025)

New Zealand Defense Force (NZDF): New Zealand Army, Royal New Zealand Navy, Royal New Zealand Air Force (2025)

note: the New Zealand Police, under the Minister of Police, is the primary law enforcement body agency of New Zealand and responsible for internal security

17 years of age for voluntary military service for men and women; soldiers cannot be deployed until the age of 18; no conscription (2025)

note: New Zealand opened up all military occupations to women in 2000; as of 2024, women accounted for about 20% of Regular Force personnel

the NZDF's inventory is comprised of domestically produced and Western-supplied weapons and equipment, including from Australia, Canada, the UK, and the US (2025)

approximately 8,800 active (Regular Force) New Zealand Defense Forces (4,300 Army; 2,100 Navy; 2,400 Air Force) (2025)

note: the total NZDF complement is about 15,300 including the Regular Force, Reserves, and civilians