Hegseth’s comments come just two days after New Zealand laid out a financial plan aimed at boosting defence spending to just over 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) over eight years – a far cry from Hegseth’s demands.
Defence Minister Chris Penk.
Penk also noted that New Zealand provides and receives great value through its involvement in surveillance network Five Eyes.
“We receive the insights of the other four nations within the network in ways that help us to understand the threat environment further afield, but also, at times, closer to home.
“And we do provide value in return, in terms of intelligence that we are able to obtain, and we share with those other partners. So, it is very much a two-way street.
“There’s value for us in being valued by others. We are respected and a credible member of the Five Eyes network. So, they [the US] always reflect to us that that’s important to them, but, because it’s in our interest, we will continue to be involved along those lines,” Penk said.