New Zealand committed to Five Powers Defense Arrangements: minister

New Zealand committed to Five Powers Defense Arrangements: minister

New Zealand Defense Minister Wayne Mapp said Monday the country still valued its inclusion in one of the world's oldest defense alliances as he left for Singapore to mark its 40th anniversary.

Mapp would represent New Zealand at the anniversary of the Five Power Defense Arrangements (FPDA), a defense agreement between Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, the United Kingdom and New Zealand, said a statement from Mapp's office.

"This multilateral security framework is a tribute to the commitment of these countries, and a comment on the value of long- standing and stable security agreements in these ever-changing times," said Mapp in the statement.

A meeting of the FPDA defense ministers would also coincide with the major FPDA military drill, being conducted around Singapore and Malaysia.

Exercise Bersama Lima 11, running from Oct. 17 to Nov. 4, is a combined air, ground and naval exercise designed to improve coordination and interoperability between the five nations.

"Our participation in these exercises is part of our contribution to regional peace and security," said Mapp.

Mapp is scheduled to return to New Zealand on Friday.

A report commissioned by the Asia New Zealand Foundation and released earlier this month said New Zealand needed to improve its defense capabilities in order to strengthen its ties to Southeast Asia.

Better defense capabilities would enable New Zealand "to be more than a bit player" in the FPDA, wrote the report's author, Southeast Asian security expert Daljit Singh, a senior research fellow at the Institute of Southeast Asian Studies in Singapore.

Editor: Xiong Tong

English.news.cn   2011-10-31 13:52:44 FeedbackPrintRSS
WELLINGTON, Oct. 31 (Xinhua)