A former Defence Minister says our geographical separation should negate the need to up our defence spending.

US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth's accused New Zealand of freeloading off the US military by spending 2 percent of GDP on defence. 

He's revealed expectations that US allies spend 3.5 percent of GDP, at a global security summit in Singapore. 

But Wayne Mapp says the Pacific isn't facing threats of invasion, the same way NATO countries are.  

"Everything that comes to New Zealand costs more. Every place we go to costs more, but there is one advantage we get out of it, and that's security." 

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