Latest news with #NZDF
RNZ News
a day ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
NZDF combat-ready soldiers deployed to South Korea to work with local and US army
A NZ Army platoon has flown from Christchurch to the Republic of Korea for training and activities with Korea and United States forces. Photo: Supplied / NZDF For the first time, a New Zealand Army infantry platoon will be deployed to South Korea to work with local and United States Army forces. The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) said 35 combat-ready soldiers will work with units from the Republic of Korea Armed Forces and US Army. They'll undertake training and activities at the world-class Korea Combat Training Centre, the first NZ Army organisation to do so. Land Component Commander Brigadier Jason Dyhrberg said over the next 90 days, they will undertake a range of infantry training activities with their South Korean and US counterparts. "After three months, our troops will be more familiar with their counterparts' techniques and tactics and be better able to readily integrate into a coalition warfighting environment," Dyhrberg said. "At the conclusion of their time on the Korean Peninsula, they will have been tested across a range of challenging scenarios and activities and be deemed combat ready under both the South Korean and US systems. "We know the NZ Army produces world-class soldiers and officers. This deployment presents another great opportunity to showcase our people, to learn new skills and to develop greater levels of combat readiness alongside key international partners. I have no doubt that they will do us proud." The NZDF has a long-standing commitment to supporting peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and has been deploying personnel to the United Nations Command (UNC) and its Military Armistice Commission since 1998. The New Zealand Defence Attaché to Korea, Colonel Rob Loftus, said the aim of the deployment was to foster cooperation and understanding between the three forces at the platoon level. "This will provide our soldiers with a fantastic training opportunity to exercise with our military partners on the peninsula. They'll build relationships while putting themselves to the test. "The platoon will also participate in several cultural and commemorative activities celebrating the 75th year anniversary of the United Nations Command, and Korean War battle anniversaries." UNC Deputy Commander Canadian Army Lieutenant General Derek Macaulay said that as the UNC celebrated its 75th anniversary, it was honoured to welcome the NZ Army infantry unit. "The platoon's presence here reflects New Zealand's steadfast commitment to UNC and to the enduring peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula. For over seven decades New Zealand has stood firm in support of the shared values we defend together.'' New Zealand contributed both naval and ground forces in support of UNC during the Korean War in the early 1950s, where more than 6000 New Zealanders served. The platoon will remain on the Korean Peninsula until the end of October. Further joint training and mission rehearsal activities are being planned for 2026.
Scoop
2 days ago
- Politics
- Scoop
NZ Army Combat-Ready Infantry Platoon Deploys To The Republic Of Korea
A New Zealand Army infantry platoon of 35 soldiers has deployed to the Republic of Korea to undertake training and activities with Korean and United States forces. The New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) has a long-standing commitment to supporting peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and has been deploying personnel to the United Nations Command (UNC) and its Military Armistice Commission since 1998. Now, for the first time, the NZDF is deploying a combat-ready infantry platoon to work with units from the Republic of Korea Armed Forces and US Army. A second deployment is planned for next year. The platoon will be the first NZ Army organisation to train at the world-class Korea Combat Training Centre, providing the Kiwi soldiers with another unique aspect to their deployment. Over the next 90 days, they will undertake a range of infantry training activities with their South Korean and US counterparts. Land Component Commander Brigadier Jason Dyhrberg said the soldiers would develop new skills while honing others. This was a great opportunity to gain valuable experience alongside Republic of Korea and US personnel and have access to world class-combat training facilities, he said, 'After three months, our troops will be more familiar with their counterparts' techniques and tactics and be better able to readily integrate into a coalition warfighting environment,' Brigadier Dyhrberg said. 'At the conclusion of their time on the Korean Peninsula, they will have been tested across a range of challenging scenarios and activities and be deemed combat ready under both the South Korean and US systems. 'We know the NZ Army produces world-class soldiers and officers. This deployment presents another great opportunity to showcase our people, to learn new skills and to develop greater levels of combat readiness alongside key international partners. I have no doubt that they will do us proud.' The New Zealand Defence Attaché to Korea, Colonel Rob Loftus, said the aim of the deployment was to foster cooperation and understanding between the three forces at the platoon level. 'This will provide our soldiers with a fantastic training opportunity to exercise with our military partners on the peninsula. They'll build relationships while putting themselves to the test. 'The platoon will also participate in several cultural and commemorative activities celebrating the 75th year anniversary of the United Nations Command, and Korean War battle anniversaries.' UNC Deputy Commander Canadian Army Lieutenant General Derek Macaulay said that as the UNC celebrated its 75th anniversary, it was honoured to welcome the NZ Army infantry unit. 'The platoon's presence here reflects New Zealand's steadfast commitment to UNC and to the enduring peace and stability of the Korean Peninsula. For over seven decades New Zealand has stood firm in support of the shared values we defend together.'' The latest deployment builds on the legacy started when New Zealand contributed both naval and ground forces in support of UNC during the Korean War in the early 1950s. More than 6000 New Zealanders served. The platoon will remain on the Korean Peninsula until the end of October. Further joint training and mission rehearsal activities are being planned for 2026.
RNZ News
3 days ago
- Business
- RNZ News
No penalty clauses paid on stalled Waiouru army base housing project
Waiouru military training camp Photo: Google Maps The Defence Force (NZDF) says it has not paid any penalty clauses associated with its housing project at Waiouru army base . Penalty clauses can be paid when contractors or subcontractors sign up to projects that do not then go ahead. The $50 million-plus project has stalled , though both defence and Ngāti Rangi iwi consider it urgent, and the force issued a tender over a year ago for 50 new homes. No building has taken place. The NZDF once again refused to tell RNZ why it was still in negotiations with the iwi over the housing. It had appeared the talks were settled before it issued last year's tender. "Negotiations in relation to this matter remain underway. Accordingly, this information is withheld in full... to enable negotiations to be carried out without prejudice or disadvantage," it said in a response to a request under the Offiicial Information Act. "The NZDF's relationship with local iwi has not changed and remains vital to our use of the Waiouru Military Training Area," it added. It also said no penalty clauses had been paid, either related to the new builds or the retrofit upgrade of existing army rental houses. Defence housing and other facilities were very rundown, interfering with its military performance and leading to some personnel quitting, its own reports showed. It had an Estate Investment Committee that "provides performance monitoring, oversight, and direction", according to its annual report. But when RNZ asked for the latest three performance management reports by the committee, NZDF replied: "No reports are generated by the New Zealand Defence Force's Estate Investment Committee." It repeated this in relation to its Technology Governance Committee, when RNZ asked for its latest reports, too. A lot of the NZDF's information technology was old and needed replacing, or were in the middle of years-long projects. Funding was set aside in Budget 2025 for this.
RNZ News
5 days ago
- Politics
- RNZ News
US commander visits as military integration with 'kill chains' advances
The 805th Combat Training Squadron's Shadow Operations Centre - Nellis, or ShOC-N, is the US Air Force's premier battle lab supporting key technologies and capabilities designed to compress the kill-chain for joint and coalition warfighters. Photo: US Air Force / Keith Keel An American army commander visiting New Zealand has praised how the United States and New Zealand Defence Force are developing an integrated network, at the same time as the latest example of this integration comes to light. The latest example is a project to connect this country's so-called "battle lab" into a combined command-and-control system, including experiments in what US strategic command called "dynamic targeting kill-chain automation" . The visit of General Ronald Clark this week with the head of the NZ army, Major General Rose King, focused on the strengthening of the two armies' strategic partnership. Clark said the legacy of standing side-by-side in conflicts continued as the two forces built an "integrated landpower network" to preserve peace in the Indo-Pacific. "Discussions focused on building further interoperability, advancing combined readiness initiatives, and the US Army's recent transformation efforts," NZDF said in a media release. General Ronald Clark, Commanding General of United States Army Pacific and Major General Rose King, Chief of the New Zealand Army. Photo: NZDF One "key" to the army networking was a joint US-led command-and-control system, called CJADC2, said documents newly released under the Official Information Act. They show King has what is called a "capstone" (top priority) order to advance Interoperability with the US and other partners like Australia (this is one among six capstone orders). The King-Clark meeting came during the 30,000-strong army exercise Talisman Sabre in Australia. Talisman Sabre had "demonstrated growing interoperability across air, land, maritime, cyber, and space domains", NZDF said. The battle-lab integration comes under the US Air Force, which this week ordered another half billion dollars of new technology to advance the project. The NZDF said in response to RNZ inquiries, that it began participating in the Combined Federated Battle Lab network ( CFBLNet) this year. However, official US reports state New Zealand personnel took part in targeting experiments for it last year. They also began last year taking part in the US army's main integration initiative, Project Convergence, where experiments have linked New Zealand sensor and firing systems into a wider network. The multinational forces, particularly those of the Five Eyes partners - the US, Australia, UK, Canada and New Zealand - have have been working in earnest since last year to set up a mega-network, the Combined Joint All-Domain Command-and-Control (CJADC2) network. This is essentially to develop technologies to find targets and shoot them more quickly and accurately. The mega-network is being built to overlap with nuclear command-control-and-communications, Pentagon documents show. An F/A-18E Super Hornet, attached to Strike Fighter Squadron (VFA) 195, taxis on the flight deck of Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George Washington (CVN 73) while underway in the Timor Sea, 16 July 2025, in support of Talisman Sabre. Photo: US Navy / Seaman Apprentice Nicolas Quezad "The NZDF involvement in these initiatives is a function of the need to be able to work alongside our military partners," the force told RNZ in an OIA response. "The NZDF is not a driver of the initiatives, and no NZDF project matches or mirrors the scale or nature of the United States' projects." Green Party defence spokesperson Teanau Toiono said pursuing interoperability with the US was too costly. "We're opposed to this US-led military regime but even if you look at it from an economic perspective, it's also expensive," Toiono said on Thursday. The growing integration was negative; "because what's good for the US, I don't think is good for us and I don't think it's good for the Pacific region". The Defence Force rejected RNZ's request for details about all recent integration moves, saying this required too much work. Even if it did that work, a lot of this was about combat capabilities and interoperability so was "classified information and would not be made public". King said in a release about Clark's visit that this country could not contribute mass and scale, but had soldiering quality to offer. "To that end, it's been great to be able to share some insight with General Clark and his team around how we go about training our people." She offered as an example a years-old, oft-delayed project to build a "Network Enabled Army" to improve digital communications and command-and-control interoperability, that would advance under the government's new defence capability plan. The USS America (LHA 6), steams alongside US Navy ships from the America Strike Group, Royal Australian Navy, Republic of Korea Navy, Royal New Zealand Navy, French Navy and Japan Maritime Self-Defence Force as part of Talisman Sabre 25, on 20 July. Photo: US Navy / Petty Officer 2nd Class Cole Pursley The US air force's main contribution to the mega-network is called the Advanced Battle Management System; the army's is Project Convergence; the navy's is Project Overmatch, which New Zealand joined in February. The US Air Force battle-labs experiments have involved New Zealand personnel in testing if new human-machine approaches are faster and better. A US unit "pitted current warfighter systems and procedures against new technologies to gather insights and streamline operational and tactical C2 [command and control] processes to speed up the kill-chain and decision-making timeline", a US Air Force report said. The Pentagon's "CJADC2 concept has challenged US joint and combined forces to prioritise achieving decision advantage over potential adversaries, to retain our warfighting advantage and enhance the deterrent effect of a powerful military". The US team leading this was "currently working with Australia and New Zealand to connect their Battle Labs", the air force said last year. Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
RNZ News
21-07-2025
- Business
- RNZ News
Defence spoke to tech company behind US-Mexico border security towers
Defence Minister Judith Collins. Photo: RNZ/Calvin Samuel The government is interested in how New Zealand might compete in supplying international markets with high-tech military systems. New documents released under the Official Information Act show the Defence Minister Judith Collins told a defence industry event in May that "delivering defence equipment needs to be done faster. We also need to be smarter". One way being looked at was to give "selected advanced technology firms access to NZDF test ranges and military use cases to prototype and experiment", her speech notes said. "The centre-of-gravity could lie in the areas where New Zealand can genuinely compete, such as space, autonomous systems, and sensors, which are also areas that have dual-use applications and, by association, large international markets." Dual-use is tech with both civilian and military or spying capabilities. Collins also said New Zealand had no intention to buy autonomous killer drones. The papers show the Defence Force has been in Australia looking at counter-drone systems and has had talks about an operating system used in hundreds of autonomous sentry towers on the US-Mexico border. Previously, Judith Collins, when asked if lethal drones might be deployed against enemy soldiers, did not rule it out and said it was the nature of warfare that sometimes people were injured or killed. However, in notes for the industry speech, the minister said while surveillance and reconnaissance drones were part of the defence capability plan, "so-called 'killer drones' (lethal autonomous weapons systems)" were not: "There is no intention for New Zealand to purchase this capability." Other documents show the Defence Force went to an airshow in Australia in March focused on the sort of counter-drone systems that Budget 2025 said were a priority to buy in the next four years . A briefing said Anduril was a big player in counter-drones, and that NZDF had discussed the US firm's operating system called Lattice, an artificial-intelligence system that can detect and distinguish between animals, humans and vehicles, from 3-15km away. The NZDF's main partner militaries in the US, Australia and UK are all increasingly using Anduril systems; New Zealand's strategy depends on staying interoperable with those forces. Donald Trump hired Anduril in 2019 to roll out over 300 border security towers that now cover about a third of the US southern border. The Australian Air Force has a deal with Anduril Australia to deliver counter drone services, and the UK has been buying advanced attack drones from Anduril to send to Ukraine. Another Anduril platform, called Menace, integrates Lattice with software from Palantir, another US high-tech firm that has pivoted to do much more defence work, to "increase operator lethality and survivability". Anduril, which calls its systems an "arsenal of democracy", was reported by Reuters as linking up with Palantir, ChatGPT creator OpenAI and Elon Musk's SpaceX, among others, to provide a "new generation of defence contractors". Sign up for Ngā Pitopito Kōrero , a daily newsletter curated by our editors and delivered straight to your inbox every weekday.
