New Zealand is increasing the numbers of military personnel at its borders as it fights a new wave of COVID-19 infections and seeks to ward off future compromises to its health protocols.
Some 500 additional armed forces will be sent to patrol important quarantine areas - nearly twice the current number, Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said.
The military will also be deployed to keep a watch on the country's maritime boundaries as large-scale clinical testing continues for thousands of workers in Auckland and Tauranga.
Health and local authorities in New Zealand are proposing that the country's Defense Force be deployed on long-term rotations in order to reduce movement in and out of isolation zones.
By scaling up New Zealand's military force they can minimize their dependence on private security contractors - especially in the country's highest-risk centers, the prime minister said.
New Zealand registered its first local COVID transmission in more than 100 days last week. Since then Ardern has ordered Auckland to be placed under a two-week lockdown to curb the spread. So far the virus has sickened 75 people.
The testing of people who live near borders is now compulsory. The extra 500 military are being deployed to New Zealand's 32 quarantine centers to increase safety measures.
Compared with other countries New Zealand has done well combating the virus because of the early lockdown measures it initiated.
The easing of the measures resulted in a sudden number of new infections last week in Auckland that prompted health officials to impose an immediate lockdown.
Authorities have ordered New Zealand's borders to remain shut to foreigners. Residents returning from other countries must isolate for two weeks and will be tested.
