Defence is on the front lines of climate change

For the first time, New Zealand's defence policy has included a recognition of, and strategy to deal with, the impacts of climate change.

Defence Minister Ron Mark's rebooted Strategic Defence Policy Statement, released on Friday, recognises the pressure and challenges put on the New Zealand Defence Force by climate change.

"Not only will the impacts of climate change contribute to instability and insecurity around the world, climate change will increase the demands on the New Zealand Defence Force to respond to natural disasters here at home and in the Pacific," Mark said.

LAWRENCE SMITH/STUFF Defence Minister Ron Mark says climate change is here and NZDF personnel are on the frontlines.

The minister said this was an area where the previous white paper, released in 2016, fell short.

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Mark had spoken extensively about New Zealand's navy dealing with 20-metre waves in the Southern Ocean, and the impacts of climate change on the Pacific.

In the Southern Ocean, New Zealand's ships were not equipped to get into the floating ice, he said.

"Hailing fishing vessels, asking them to come out so we can board them and inspect them, is a ludicrous situation."

Meanwhile, the frequency and magnitude of storms in the Pacific was increasing, meaning New Zealand Defence Force deployments would increase, not decrease.

SUPPLIED Increasingly large waves (up to 24m) are also posing a challenge.

"Global warming is real, it's happening, the consequences are being seen, and our defence force people are on the front line," Mark said.

"The Policy Statement sets out a challenging strategic environment for New Zealand, in which the international rules-based order is coming under pressure from a range of forces... As a small state, New Zealand relies on the international rules-based order and multilateral approaches – alongside its international partnerships – to protect its interests and amplify its ability to be a positive global contributor."

The policy, which replaced the former government's 2016 white paper, focused on three areas: community (supporting New Zealand's community and environmental wellbeing and resilience); nation (keeping New Zealand safe and secure); and world (maintaining the international rules-based order).

NZDF/SUPPLIED NZDF are dealing with the impacts of climate change in the Southern Ocean, including increased amounts of floating ice in areas they need to patrol fishing activities.

Mark said the policy updated New Zealand's defence strategy and policy to reflect the coalition Government's foreign policy and national security priorities. It also comes ahead of the review of New Zealand's defence capability plan, which is due to be released later this year.

"There have been significant developments in the global strategic environment since the Defence policy settings were last reviewed in 2016's White Paper… We live in turbulent times, the world is changing and there has been a re-emergence of great power competition," he said.

The rules-based order was coming under pressure from three "broad forces", Mark's policy statement said:

1. The growing importance of spheres of influence, with some states pursuing greater influence in ways that, at times, challenge international norms

2. Challenges to open societies and western liberalism, driven by rising disillusionment with existing arrangements within these societies, threatened to reduce the willingness of open liberal states to champion the rules-based order

3. A collection of complex disruptors, including an array of impacts from climate change, new technologies changing the nature of conflict, extremist ideologies, and transnational organised crime.

"In the context of competition among powers, complex transnational threats will disrupt New Zealand's neighbourhood in ways not previously seen," according to the defence strategy.

The greatest uncertainties and effects might lie at the intersection of key trends, such as climate change contributing to further resource competition in already contested areas, cyber technologies' ability to disrupt through terrorist recruiting and subversion of democratic processes, and more sophisticated technologies in the hands of more diverse threat actors, Mark said.

"The nature of these threats and their complex interplay will challenge states' capacities for awareness and monitoring, policymaking at pace, and effective responses," he said.