Joint patrols, defense agreements bolster New Zealand-Philippines strategic partnership

Maria T. Reyes

New Zealand and the Philippines are expanding their security ties with a focus on promoting regional peace and stability. In a notable move, the Royal New Zealand Navy deployed its largest ship, HMNZS Aotearoa, to join vessels from Australia, Japan, the Philippines and the United States for South China Sea patrols in September 2024. Manila and Wellington also signed a mutual logistics support agreement in June 2024.

“Defense cooperation with partners in our region is commonplace,” the New Zealand Defence Force (NZDF) told the Philippine News Agency after the patrols. “It is an opportunity for the participants to strengthen the defense cooperation between them and support regional stability, while at all times observing the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea.”

The joint maritime patrols were conducted near the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone (EEZ) off Luzon. They included maritime domain awareness and replenishment-at-sea drills to enhance operating procedures and task group integration, according to the NZDF. The HMNZS Aotearoa, a replenishment tanker, has been engaged in Indo-Pacific activities since June 2024.

The drills came amid escalating tensions in the South China Sea, where the People’s Republic of China continues to push its arbitrary and discredited territorial claims, including in the Philippines’ EEZ. Chinese coast guard ships repeatedly have used water cannons and conducted dangerous maneuvers against Philippine vessels, injuring Philippine Sailors and damaging supply boats.

Joint patrols such as those involving the Armed Forces of the Philippines (AFP) and the NZDF bolster partner nations’ “maritime domain awareness capabilities to monitor and stave off misbehavior at sea,” Joshua Bernard Espeña, vice president of the International Development and Security Cooperation think tank in Manila, told FORUM. “Complementing each other through exercises builds a picture of the operational horizon and builds trust with other regional players like Japan and Australia.”

The logistics agreement, meanwhile, facilitates cooperation between the AFP and NZDF and paves the way for additional collaboration, Espeña said. The nations are finalizing a status of visiting forces agreement to allow joint training and sharing of military equipment. Manila has similar arrangements with Australia, Japan and the U.S.

New Zealand’s increasing presence in the region sends a signal “at a time when a revisionist power is challenging the international rules-based order,” Espeña said. He noted that the move aligns with New Zealand’s long-term interests by demonstrating that the nation is committed to upholding rules while expanding its regional role.

During their meeting in Manila in April 2024, New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon and Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said their nations are committed to “maintaining and strengthening defense engagements while exploring new frameworks of cooperation to deepen defense ties,” according to a joint statement. The leaders emphasized the importance of maritime law enforcement, particularly in addressing threats such as piracy, illegal fishing and terrorism.

AFP-NZDF engagements seek to enhance operational capabilities across land, air, sea and cyber domains, Espeña said.

“This aims at establishing a networked approach with partners to make sure all defense systems move, shoot and communicate with each other,” he said. “The bigger picture behind this approach is the backdrop of how strategic competition could result in a high-tech conventional war.”

Maria T. Reyes is a FORUM contributor reporting from Manila, Philippines.