New Zealand to raise defence expenditure

The New Zealand government is to increase defence spending by 100.9 million NZ dollars (about $86 million) over the 2014-2015 financial year in the first of four annual staged increases in funding for the military, Xinhua reported..

Defence Minister Jonathan Coleman said Tuesday the first stage of an allocation of 535.5 million NZ dollars ($456 million) in new funding over the next four years would be included in the government Budget to be published next month.

The investment would address a long-term funding gap for the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF), Coleman said in a statement.

"It is vital that the NZDF can continue to meet the government' s requirements, whether it is carrying out humanitarian assistance and disaster relief work at home or in the Pacific, or contributing to wider global security efforts," he said.