Cabinet wants to force Defense firms to prioritize the Netherlands during threats of war

The caretaker Cabinet wants successive governments to be able to intervene in the defense sector if the Netherlands is facing a threat of war. A new law is expected to be put forward by the outgoing Cabinet that would allow the Dutch government to demand companies in that sector "only work for us," confirmed outgoing Minister Kajsa Ollongren.

Cabinet members were expected to decide on Friday to approve putting making the bill available for public comment on the internet during the final meeting of ministers under the Fourth Cabinet of Prime Minister Mark Rutte. The proposal is "actually about the defense industry as a sector," Ollongren explained on one of her last days as defense minister.

"On the one hand, it must be protected: that there is no interference from countries with a different agenda," she said. The other necessity is that the military is able to obtain what they require when a serious threat is present. More details still need to be worked out, she said.

The sector continues to operate in the free market. According to Ollongren, that is "fine, but it must be regulated." This is especially the case if there was an attack on a NATO ally. The aim of the regulation is "that you can say if there is a threat of war, 'Drop everything, we have now agreed that you will only work for us.'"

Security is "a top priority", explained outgoing Economic Affairs Minister Micky Adriaansens. "We have to be able to take care of ourselves. That is one of the biggest concerns we have. You have to be able to live securely and freely." But the Cabinet will have to carefully consider when to be coercive, the minister noted.

Ollongren is confident that her successor will continue with the law. However, it was important to arrange this now. "We have no time to lose," she said.

The availability of enough equipment is also important. As far as the minister is concerned, the scale-up since the Russian invasion in Ukraine is still too slow.