Traffic, border controls, hard to reach Randstad: NATO summit impacts whole Netherlands
The NATO summit in The Hague starts with a press conference by NATO leader Mark Rutte on Monday afternoon. The consequences of the measures taken to keep the world leaders safe will be felt throughout the Netherlands in the form of traffic from road closures, border controls, and large parts of the Randstad being harder or even impossible to reach, NU.nl reported.
The heads of government, Foreign Ministers, and Defense Ministers of 45 countries will attend the NATO summit - the largest number of dignitaries to ever visit the Netherlands at the same time.
The first heads of government will arrive at Schiphol Airport on Monday, with some more arriving on Tuesday morning. The Polderbaan runway has been reserved for their use and will function as a separate airport during the summit. The government leaders’ planes will also be parked around the runway.
The entire area wedged between Schiphol, Hoofddorp, Vijfhuizen, and Badhoevedorp will be off-limits for anyone who has no business there for the duration of the summit. The A5 highway, which crosses this area, is also closed.
Some world leaders will travel from Schiphol to The Hague by road. During these transports, roads will be closed to keep them safe. That could cause traffic chaos in the entire western Randstad throughout Monday and on Tuesday morning.
After Rutte’s press conference to open the summit at 3:00 p.m. on Monday, Defense Ministers will meet with experts from the defense industry during the day on Tuesday, and the Ministers of Foreign Affairs will discuss Ukraine in the evening. King Willem-Alexander has invited the world leaders, including the leaders of Ukraine, Australia, Japan, New Zealand, and South Korea, to dine with him and Queen Maxima on Tuesday evening.
The main meeting, the North Atlantic Council, will happen on Wednesday, after which the summit will close with press conferences by Rutte, the Dutch government, and several other NATO allies. The dignitaries will then leave for Schiphol, again closing many roads in the region between The Hague and the airport.
In addition to the road and area closures, air defenses are active on land, at sea, and in the air. The Hague police have already intercepted multiple drones.
