Dutch soldiers to undergo preventive drug tests

Minister Henk Kamp of Defense wants to test soldiers for drug use preventively. "That is important because soldiers can always be deployed and then perform risky work under often difficult circumstances," the caretaker Minister said after reporting about this in De Telegraaf.

Based on "good employers," the Defense organization will soon carry out regular tests. This is already possible by law, but it still requires a measure that further elaborates existing rules in the law. The Ministry does not yet know when preventive testing will be put into practice.

The caretaker Minister's decision comes after reports from Curacao. Fourteen soldiers were arrested there last week on suspicion of possession and use of narcotics. "I am shocked by the reports from the West about the last number of soldiers associated with drug possession," said Kamp.