Schoof I Cabinet squandered the Netherlands' influence in the EU, diplomats say
The Netherlands has lost quite a lot of clout in the European Union under the Schoof I Cabinet, several diplomats told NOS, one speaking of dwindling influence. The Cabinet charged in with unrealistic demands and made few concessions when faced with reality. “Nobody listens to the Netherlands anymore,” another top diplomat anonymously told the broadcaster.
When the Schoof I Cabinet started, it promised that the Netherlands would convince the EU to give it an opt-out on taking in asylum seekers and exceptions for nature and nitrogen targets. The Dutch government also wanted to contribute less to the EU budget. But the reality proved much more complicated, and Cabinet members were often faced with European Commission officials asking, “Why should we accommodate Schoof?”
“The Cabinet has, of course, enormously overestimated itself,” Henne Schuwer, the former Dutch ambassador to Belgium and the United States, told NOS. “They thought: the people who were in the Cabinet before me had no backbone, but I do, so I’ll show them how it’s done. But that’s not how it works. Brussels is a machine you have to get to know.”
Pieter de Gooijer, who served as the EU ambassador for the Netherlands for many years, also noticed the Schoof Cabinet’s struggles. “This Cabinet took relatively little initiative and contributed little to Brussels,” he told NOS. “Most parties were, of course, quite Eurosceptic. That made it very difficult for Schoof as well. He must have felt a bit like the remote-controlled man, with four party leaders at the controls.”
The frequent changes in positions after the Cabinet collapsed also didn’t help. Within a year, European migration ministers spoke to four different Dutch ministers - Marjolein Faber (PVV), Teun Struycken (NSC), Eddy van Hijum (NSC), and David van Weel (VVD). Foreign Affairs had a similar story, with European ministers meeting with Casper Veldkamp (NSC), then Ruben Brekelmans (VVD), and then David van Weel (VVD).
“I assume the other EU ministers also thought: I wonder which Dutch person we’ll see today,” former ambassador Schuwer said. He stressed that it is essential for medium-sized countries like the Netherlands to build relationships with their counterparts. “And you can’t build those relationships with a lottery like that.”
Journalist Andy Bounds, who follows the Nehterlands for the British newspaper Financial Times, told NOS that Schoof had a lot to live up to after so many years of Mark Rutte. “Yes, the Netherlands’ position is weaker than it was, but we shouldn’t exaggerate,” he said. “The Netherlands always performed above its level when Mark Rutte was still prime minister (...) Rutte knew everyone, and everyone knew him. He was respected. It was difficult for Schoof to make up for that loss, in any case."
The diplomats expect that a stable new government can help the Netherlands regain some ground, but they warned that European politics won’t stand still and wait for the Dutch Cabinet formation process. “The train is barreling along,” one diplomat said. “Right now, the debate about the new EU budget has already erupted in full force, and without a political mandate, it’s difficult to seize the initiative. You could end up with a fait accompli that's bad for the Netherlands, without the Dutch position being properly heard."
