Ron Mark
A look inside Navy's new ship HMNZS Aotearoa
It was an early morning in Devonport yesterday, as HMNZS Aotearoa was officially commissioned by the Royal New Zealand Navy. The half-a-billion dollar logistics support vessel travelled from South… Video, Audio
Army purchases 43 Bushmaster armoured vehicles
The army is getting an upgrade with the purchase of 43 Bushmaster armoured vehicles. They can fit and protect up to ten army personnel and are expected to be used both in New Zealand and overseas. Our… Video, Audio
Devonport naval base welcomes HMNZS Aotearoa
Navy staff at the Devonport Base have welcomed their newest recruit - the HMNZS Aotearoa.
Measuring the length of two rugby fields and costing more than $500 million, Navy staff say the boat is… Video, Audio
Defence minister on isolation and quarantine system
The man now in charge of the isolation and quarantine system has declined to be interviewed on Morning Report.
Air Commodore Digby Webb is expected to hold a news conference later today.
Defence… Audio
Defence Force involved with isolation and quarantine of NZers
Defence Force personnel are guarding an Auckland hotel where two women who have since tested positive for Covid-19 were in managed isolation.
A person in a Navy uniform has been stationed outside the… Audio
Light rail fail: 'I'm always disappointed in NZ First' - Shaw
Green Party co-leader and government minister James Shaw admits he's always disappointed in New Zealand First, after RNZ revealed the coalition partner won't support Auckland light rail before the… Audio
NZ First calls for review of frontline police officer guns
New Zealand First is calling for an independent review into the arming of frontline police officers with military-grade assault rifles.
Semi-automatics are routinely stored in a lock box in patrol… Audio
Peace activists call for NZ to pull out of war games exercise
Peace activists say New Zealand shouldn't send a ship to take part in a major war games exercise off the coast of Hawaii.
The Rim of the Pacific exercise - or Rimpac - is the world's largest… Audio
Protests underway against Naval exercises in Hawaii
A petition and weekend of action is planned to protest New Zealand's involvement in a major naval exercise in Hawaii in August. The Rim of the Pacific exercise - or Rimpac, is the world's largest… Audio
Government spends $1.5b on new Air Force planes
The government is committing to buying more than $1.5 billion dollars-worth of new planes for the Defence Force.
It is purchasing five new Lockheed Martin Super Hercules to replace the outdated 1960s… Audio
Winston Peters ducks media amid SFO investigation
Winston Peters has a track record of using music as a diversion.
Yesterday as he ducked and dived media questions over a Serious Fraud Office investigation, he once again resorted to a musical… Audio
Defence Minister asks for national fire risk assessment as bush fires across the Tasman
The Defence Minister has asked for a national fire risk assessment as bush fires rage in Australia. Ron Mark says there's nothing to prevent large-scale blazes from also happening in New Zealand. It… Audio
Defence details revealed for NZ's Pacific Reset
The details of New Zealand's Pacific Reset have been fleshed out by a range of defence announcements. Audio
Defence Minister overrules noise restrictions at Whenuapai
With a stroke of a pen, Defence Minister Ron Mark has overruled an Environment Court decision on noise restrictions for plane engine testing at Auckland's Whenuapai Airbase.
The developer, Neil… Video, Audio
Vietnam veterans urged to get financial, health assistance
Hundreds of thousands of dollars set aside by the government to support Vietnam veterans and their families is going unspent.
The government has budgeted $1.1 million a year for the past three years… Audio
NZ declines request to join NATO Iraq mission
New Zealand has declined a request from NATO to join a mission in Iraq, working with its Defence Ministry to help rebuild Iraq's military institutions.
NATO's Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg… Audio
The mightier pen that (didn’t) cause WW2
There is in fact a lot of war at Parliament, and not just at question time. Somewhere there’s probably a sword, after-all there’s a mace and a mighty pen. Audio
Defence Force targets a more diverse military
The Defence Force wants to attract more diverse recruits.
Figures given to RNZ show that since 2003 the number of people in the military identifying as New Zealand European has risen. But the number… Audio
An escalation of concord
You may have noticed MPs fire sharp barbs. But sometimes they lay down weapons. In fact they even have a special committee for agreeing on things. Video, Audio
$20b Defence Force upgrades not only for conflict - Ron Mark
The Air Force's ageing Hercules aircraft are set to be replaced with five brand new Super Hercules planes at a cost of more than $1 billion.
The upgrade of the 50-year-old jets was the highest… Audio