Misplaced loyalty to a superpower 'ally' is not a good enough reason to stay.

Official figures show Afghanistan most hazardous overseas posting for personnel.

The aviation colour code around Mt Tongariro has been downgraded from red to orange, but the volcanic alert level remains at 2.

News of Tongariro's eruption sparked a flurry of activity by Kiwis who have been awake into the early morning.

The Government has agreed for Kiwi troops to work in a wider radius outside Bamiyan province after two soldiers were killed there on Saturday.

Prime Minister John Key has revealed the two dead soldiers were both in their 20s and did not have a lot of family in New Zealand.

Two New Zealand Defence Force personnel have been killed and six injured in Afghanistan. The NZDF said in a statement the two were serving with the New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team.