New Zealand's Defence Policy: From Realism to Idealism?

Over the last 25 years, the defense policy of New Zealand drastically changed from a Realist view of the world to a policy that has been influenced by a Liberal Internationalist view of international relations. Their new policy is primarily focused on peace-keeping while being independent of the allies. This major change is primarily influenced by the Labor party's ideology on defense policy as well as the result of an optimistic perception of the international environment. They still maintained the military forces for them to assist allies in collective endeavors so as to defend New Zealand when necessary. All four National party governments and the first three Labor party governments follows this principle. However, the last two Labor-dominated governments which has been influenced by their party's anti-militarist ideology follows their own principle. Meanwhile, New Zealand's effective expulsion has been overseen by the fourth Labor government from the ANZUS alliance while the current Labor-led government re-orients the military for peacekeeping sake.