New Zealanders will know next month whether the country will join the American-led fight against extremist group Islamic State (IS).
Prime Minister John Key said he was likely to get advice this week about what military support this country could offer.
The Government was likely to make its own decision about whether to support the campaign against IS, rather than wait for a call for assistance, he said.
There was a range of help which could be provided, and sending troops was at the outer edge of what Key would want to do.
However, he said he found what IS was doing in Iraq and Syria abhorrent.
“These are people that are lining up innocent journalists and foreign aid workers and beheading them,” he said.