Hon Dr Jonathan Coleman
Minister of Defence
1 April 2012
Media statement
Minister: Job well done NZSAS
The Minister of Defence, Dr Jonathan Coleman, today formally acknowledged the contribution of the New Zealand Special
Air Service Regiment in Afghanistan as the two-and-half year deployment comes to an end.
The NZSAS were posted to Afghanistan in September 2009 – the fourth deployment of the unit to Afghanistan. This current
mission officially ceased on 31 March, 2012.
Photo caption.
Fearsome haka by NZ SAS to Norwegian special forces in Kabul to mark handover.
“The New Zealand Government deployed NZ Defence Force personnel to Afghanistan to help ensure Al Qaeda could not
maintain safe havens in Afghanistan from which to plan further attacks.”
“In this sense, the NZSAS deployments have directly helped protect New Zealanders from the risk of international
terrorism,” said Dr Coleman.
The NZSAS has conducted operations against insurgent networks, predominantly insurgent IED and suicide bomber networks.
Equally significant has been the military assistance mission to improve the capability of the Ministry of Interior
Police Crisis Response Unit (CRU) in the conduct of Counter Terrorist operations.
“This was a direct response to the international community’s goal of increasing the capacity and capability of the
Afghan National Security Forces,” said Dr Coleman.
Dr Coleman says the NZSAS has won accolades for the way it has carried out its mission, noting the former NATO-ISAF
commander General Petraeus’s praise of the NZSAS task group, in co-operation with the CRU, in disrupting ‘a fairly
constant stream of threat to the security of Kabul’.
The Minister also acknowledged the loss of Corporal Douglas Grant, and Lance Corporal Leon Smith, who were killed in
2011 in separate operations.
“They were brave men who made the ultimate sacrifice in the service of New Zealand. Our thoughts continue to be with
their families and colleagues.”
The families of the two NZSAS soldiers killed in Afghanistan have been presented with the NZ Memorial Cross. Lance
Corporal Leon Smith has also been posthumously awarded the Charles Upham Award for Bravery.
“The SAS have served New Zealand with distinction over the course of their deployments in Afghanistan. It’s been a job
well done,” said Dr Coleman.