New Zealand Appoints First Defence Advisor to India, Boosting Strategic Ties

A Royal New Zealand Navy (RNZN) Commodore Andy Dowling, appointed to the New Zealand High Commission in New Delhi for a three-year posting in late January 2026, highlights India's expanding focus on defence cooperation and other strategic ties under the Act East Policy, a report in the military magazine 'Indo-Pacific Defense Forum,' stated on Wednesday.

"We're seeing the Act East with the Indian Navy in particular. They're deploying out of the Indian Ocean, exercising with other countries and visiting New Zealand and Australia. They're getting out and about and that's only going to increase in the coming years," the magazine quoted Dowling as saying.

According to the report, Dowling's appointment as New Zealand's first full-time Defence Advisor to India will allow Wellington to understand the system better "to identify and explore opportunities" for both nations to work together.

Dowling highlighted similarities between the two navies, particularly in air operations and refuelling at sea.

"They have P-8 aircraft like us, they operate the MH-60 helicopter which we're getting and they have the C-130J Hercules," he said. "Their hydrographer training is similar; they operate a sea training group very like our Maritime Training Group. So, they have structures and capabilities that we recognise," he stated

The report stated that Dowling's appointment followed a month after Prime Minister Narendra Modi and New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon unveiled a major Free Trade Agreement and emphasised development in defence cooperation.

"In the first half of 2025, as part of the United States-led multinational Combined Maritime Forces, the RNZN led a counternarcotics task force in the Western Indian Ocean, with the Indian Navy second in command. The Indian Navy frigate INS Tarkash seized more than 2,500 kilogrammes of hashish and heroin during the mission," it stated.

The RNZN frigate HMNZS Te Kaha, the report said, made a port call in Mumbai during its task force deployment. The visit coincided with Luxon's visit to India, which included discussions with PM Modi, including the signing of a defence cooperation agreement.

"I reiterated New Zealand's strong commitment to working with India to address shared concerns over our respective interests and contributions to ensure a strong, stable and prosperous region," Luxon said.

PM Modi also emphasised that both nations would deepen collaboration in areas such as counterterrorism.

"We both support a free, open, secure and prosperous Indo-Pacific. We believe in policies of development, not expansionism," he said.

- IANS