With Donald Trump heading back to the White House next week, much discussion has focused on the future of New Zealand's trade relations with the United States. There has been less commentary on the implications for our national security.

ACT has consistently argued that New Zealand's defence posture is overdue for a serious upgrade. We can no longer rely solely on goodwill and historic alliances, and it is time to strengthen our own defence capabilities.

ACT has proposed a commitment of at least two percent of GDP to Defence. We’re currently investing just 0.9 percent.

Leaders like Trump have sent a blunt message: allies who don’t pull their weight shouldn’t expect protection.

New Zealand has long enjoyed a benign state of relative isolation, protected by geography and our friends in the West. But that world is gone. Our neighbours in the Indo-Pacific are boosting their military budgets and global power shifts are becoming more unpredictable. We need to face a new global reality where threats could come from many directions and complacency is a luxury we cannot afford.

Our friends in Australia and Southeast Asia are already stepping up. Australia’s defence spending has now surged above two percent, heading to 2.4 percent by the end of the decade, recognising the strategic instability in the region. By failing to invest in our own defence, we risk not only our physical security but our position in the international community.

Trump’s return brings a stark, clear-eyed view of alliances: they’re built on mutual strength, not nostalgia or sentimentality. Whether we like him or loathe him, his vision demands that America’s allies bring real capability to the table. We can’t expect American protection just because we’ve been a good partner in the past. In Trump’s world, allies are only as good as what they can contribute when things get tough.

If we want to be taken seriously, we need to take our own defence seriously. That doesn’t mean buying flash toys; it means building a sustainable, credible deterrent that aligns with our strengths and values.

It means investing in the New Zealanders who are ready to put their lives on hold, and sometimes on the line, for our security. It means training them well, equipping them properly, and giving them meaningful roles.

Attrition in our Defence Force is already high – service members didn’t sign up to be shuffled into managed isolation facilities. They deserve to train and exercise with global partners, building skills and capabilities that will serve them throughout their careers.

From ACT’s perspective, this is not just about geopolitical prudence. It is about standing on our own two feet. Depending on others for our security is fundamentally inconsistent with values of self-reliance.

The political challenge with defence spending is that it may not feel urgent until it is too late. Inaction will be far more costly in the long run than the financial commitment needed today, and in previous alternative Budgets ACT has proposed a range of savings initiatives to make a real investment possible.

A credible plan to lift our defence spending to the two percent NATO benchmark will demonstrate that we are a serious ally worth defending. For our security and for our freedom, it is an investment we cannot afford not to make.

- Mark Cameron and Laura McClure

Mark Cameron is ACT’s Defence spokesperson and ACT MP Laura McClure (formerly Laura Trask) sits on Parliament’s Foreign Affairs, Defence and Trade select committee.

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