New Zealand’s Foreign Affairs Minister, Winston Peters announced that talks of the nation’s partnership with the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (N.A.T.O.) will conclude in “coming months.” The alliance and New Zealand have been negotiating a partnership that aligns with N.A.T.O.’s new Individually Tailored Partnership Programme (I.T.P.P.) model. New Zealand is committed to supporting collective security through this partnership.

According to Peters, “New Zealand must be prepared to do its part” for global security. Negotiations began in June of 2023, and are likely to conclude as the one-year mark closely approaches. The partnership will cover shared topics of interest including climate change, cyber security, and the international rules-based order.

This partnership is an exciting moment for international relations at large. Cooperation between multiple nations across the globe to address critical and wide-scale issues is a step towards improving them. We need to strive for increased communication between regions. An issue as devastating as climate change, for example, requires joint efforts to make a difference. This new I.T.P.P. presents us with the hope that change can happen once the international community collaborates for shared interests.

New Zealand has been a N.A.T.O. partner since 2012, but is not a member, although they have engaged in dialogue and cooperation with the alliance since 2001. They are one of N.A.T.O.’s partners in the Indo-Pacific region along with Australia, Japan, and the Republic of Korea. New Zealand has participated in multiple Foreign Minister meetings in recent years. The first participation of New Zealand in a N.A.T.O. summit was in June 2022, at Madrid which included the leaders of other partners from the Indo-Pacific region.

This partnership is seen by the New Zealand government, among other things, as a crucial way to provide support for Ukraine amidst the war against Russia. They have provided tremendous support and aid for Ukraine following the outbreak of violence. Peters mentioned that the war will have major impacts on global security, and New Zealand’s support for Ukraine’s self-defense is an example of their contribution to maintaining collective security.

Hopefully, this I.T.P.P. will be finalized and begin functioning very soon. New Zealand’s future partnership with N.A.T.O. will tie this Indo-Pacific nation and the alliance’s 32 member countries to one another in a productive way. Negotiations have been forms of communication regarding what areas of interest are shared between New Zealand and N.AT.O., creating shared goals for the future. Overall, this is a partnership that will bolster the international community and further encourage nations to work together.