Foreign Affairs Minister Winston Peters has announced that New Zealand will provide an additional two years of support to Tonga Police to strengthen its capacity to disrupt transnational crime.
The battle against drugs is one of the Tongan government's highest priorities, boosting police and customs' coffers by more than $1 million each, with New Zealand already providing a further $9 million.
So far, more than 250 people have been arrested as Tonga's police launches its war against methamphetamine.
Now the Government is extending that support further.
"New Zealand is committed to confronting the scourge of criminal gangs and organised crime that cause harm to our communities. It is vital that New Zealand works with all countries in the Pacific to secure the safety of our neighbourhood," Mr Peters said.
A special taskforce has also seized more than 30kgs of the drug in a wide-ranging operation.
The announcement was made today during a visit by Tonga Minister of Police, Hon Mateni Tapueluelu.
New Zealand, Tonga and Australia will jointly fund the programme which will see NZ Police officers seconded into Tonga Police to provide training and technical assistance.
In February 2019, New Zealand signed a Memorandum of Understanding with Australia, Tonga and Fiji to target transnational and organised crime in the Pacific.
The Tonga Police Programme will support leadership development, community policing and ensure that Tonga Police has the right infrastructure to deliver on its mandate of safer Tonga Communities.
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