‘Freeloading’ and free hits: NZ’s place in the defence debate – Editorial
US President Donald Trump, left, and Pete Hegseth, US Secretary of War, during a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington, DC on May 27. Photo / Getty Images
A surprise stoush with the United States over defence spending produced some Kiwi political unity.
US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth’s intervention into New Zealand’s budgeting decisions got short shrift.
The former Fox News personality now helping to run the world’s biggest military force, gifted our leaders with a dig about “freeloading” on the US.
“We choose our defence spending, no one else does that,” Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said in reply.
“Utter rubbish,” Opposition leader Chris Hipkins said of Hegseth’s comment at a security conference. “New Zealand contributes enormously around the world.”
New Zealand plans to lift defence spending to 2% of GDP over eight years.
The US under both Trump administrations has lectured allies, particularly Nato members in Europe, about increasing their defence spending, while stressing an “America First” focus on its own security.
The spending target in Europe is 3.5% of GDP by 2035. The alliance estimates every member reached at least 2% last year. A further 1.5% is going towards critical infrastructure and preparedness.
There are clearly other reasons for boosted defence spending in Europe, beyond Washington’s demands.
It’s also fuelled by wars and a revolution in warfare; US political volatility and Europe’s desire for a more self-sufficient security system.
In the past 15 months, US President Donald Trump has: questioned the worth of Nato; reduced US direct military support for Ukraine; put more pressure on Kyiv than Moscow to end Russia’s war; launched global tariffs; threatened Greenland; removed Venezuela’s president; and started a war of choice with Israel against Iran that’s damaged Gulf allies.
In April, arms watchdog the International Peace Research Institute said in its annual report that defence spending had risen from 2024 to 2025 by 14% in Europe and 8.1% in Asia and Oceania.
New Zealand has largely kept out of debates overseas about the US as an ally, superpower and global policeman.
We have a useful tradition of independence, seeking good relations with countries through trade and culture. We have carefully managed ties with the US and China for years.
We are not part of Nato but are alliance partners. We are part of the Five Eyes intelligence-sharing alliance, but the US has had strained relations with the other three at times under Trump.
The US, at present, is an unpredictable force. That’s causing other countries to reassess their strategies towards it.
New Zealand’s dilemma is how to adequately support Australia, as our sole official ally, and protect itself going forward, without sacrificing its security independence and goals as a nation. And making sure it doesn’t miss the boat on drone warfare.
New Zealand has contributed to wars, military drills, security forums, foreign aid, diplomacy and peacekeeping duties. But our nuclear-free zone has given us diplomatic distance and the ability to choose our level of involvement in conflicts.
Hegseth’s comments could be batted aside because our relations with the US are friendly, but we aren’t in a close security embrace. And the Trump Administration is unpopular in the US and abroad. A drubbing for Republicans in November’s Midterms could mean a hostile Congress for Trump.
Knocking back Hegseth was a free hit for NZ.