New Zealand’s top military officer resigns over ‘inappropriate relationship’

Oct 23 (Reuters) – The chief of New Zealand’s Defence Force resigned on Friday over an “inappropriate relationship” he failed to disclose while in a position of command.

• Tony Davies has informed Defence Minister Paul Goldsmith of his resignation, the New Zealand Defence Force said in a statement.

• “The resignation is for personal reasons, and results from errors of judgement made by me in the past, for which I am taking responsibility. The errors of judgement were contrary to the values of the Defence Force,” Davies said.

• “These matters revolved around an inappropriate relationship I had when in a position of unit command, and I regret not disclosing this when I had the opportunity to do so.”

• Vice Chief Mat Williams would serve as acting chief, the Defence Force’s statement said.

• Goldsmith said he agreed Davies’ position was “no longer tenable”.

• “The reasons regarding his decision relate to integrity matters that he did not previously disclose,” he said.

• “I will be recommending to the Governor-General that she accepts Mr Davies’ resignation.”

• Davies joined New Zealand’s military in 1984 and was appointed to the top job in 2024.

(Reporting by Christine Chen in Sydney; editing by Lincoln Feast)

Brought to you by www.srnnews.com

Click here to read the full article