Incoming State Secretary says that the Netherlands will continue to support Ukraine

New State Secretary Gijs Tuinman (Defense) thinks the Netherlands should continue to have a "pioneering role" in supporting Ukraine in the war with Russia. He said this in a hearing with members of the lower house of the Dutch Parliament, the Tweede Kamer. He was asked about this because his party, the BBB, voted against a motion in December made by NSC and GroenLinks-PvdA calling for continued support for Ukraine. The PVV also voted against this motion.

Tuinman said that he would be able to remove those concerns. He sees that the Netherlands is currently one of the leaders in this and thinks that this "is a good position which also fits in how the Netherlands views the rest of the world."

Tuinman said that the Netherlands has always been one of the leaders when it comes to international cooperation in both the EU and NATO. "I do not think that is going to change in the future."

There are differences in opinion within the Coalition regarding supporting Ukraine. For the VVD and NSC, support goes without saying, but the PVV has always been very critical of it. In the coalition agreement, it has been agreed that Ukraine can count on political, military, financial, and moral support from the Netherlands.

Jimmy Nordkamp (GroenLinks-PvdA) mentioned a different motion from February, which stated that it is necessary to provide military support to Ukraine "for as long as necessary and at least at the same level." VVD and NSC also voted in favor of this motion, while PVV and BBB voted against it. Nordkamp asked new defense minister Ruben Brekelmans what he thinks of Tuinman's voting behavior regarding this motion.

"I will not be commenting on BBB's voting behavior," Brekelmans answered. He said he has worked with Tuinman for years about "how we can shape the support for Ukraine and push it further."

With the coalition agreement and Tuinman's answers, the incoming defense minister has "no doubt that we can implement this in a good way."