Minister Stef Blok of Foreign Affairs called his Turkish counterpart Mevlüt Çavusoglu on Monday to make clear that the Dutch government condemns Turkey's invasion of northeastern Syria, he said in a letter to parliament, NOS reports.
Blok asked Minister Çavusoglu to stop Turkish operations in the area and called his attention "to the need to monitor camps" where ISIS jihadists are detained. He also asked Çavusoglu to address the humanitarian need in the area.
American companies can again do business with the Isla refinery in Curacao, despite United States sanctions against the Venezuelan state oil company PdVSA. The Curacao government owns the refinery and leases it to PdVSA, NOS reports
Dutch customs officers at the port of Rotterdam intercepted a container with 90 thousand bottles of vodka, which were likely intended for North Korean leader Kim Jong-un and his army command, newspaper AD reports. The container was found in a ship, hidden under the hull of an aircraft on Friday.
The European Union placed two Iranians and Iran's military intelligence service on the European terrorism list after it was revealed that Iran was likely responsible for two murders in the Netherlands, NU.nl reports.
Iran is almost certainly behind the assassination of two persons of Iranian descent in the Netherlands, Ministers Stef Blok of Foreign Affairs and Kasja Ollongren of Home Affairs wrote in a letter to parliament on Tuesday.
Dutch companies like Shell, Boskalis and Van Oord may face sanctions if they remain connected to the Nord Stream 2 project, according to Pete Hoekstra, the United States Ambassador to the Netherlands. If the companies are sanctioned, they could find it difficult to do business with the U.S., NOS reports.
The United States is threatening with sanctions against the International Criminal Court in The Hague and its judges if the ICC participates in an investigation into possible war crimes committed by American soldiers in Afghanistan. "The United States will use any means necessary to protect our citizens and those of our allies from unjust prosecution by this illegitimate court", US national security adviser John Bolton said in a speech in Washington, the Guardian reports.
The Netherlands sees no sense in implementing more sanctions against Russia for its role in the situation in Syria, Minister Stef Blok of Foreign Affairs said. "The only real solution for the Syrian conflict lies at the negotiating table", the Dutch Minister said, NOS reports.
In a new verbal attack, Turkish president Recep Tayyip Erdogan holds the Netherlands responsible for the mass murder of thousands of Muslim men in Srebrenica in 1995. "We know the Dutch from the Srebrenica massacre", he said in a speech that was televised live in Turkey, according to the Volkskrant. "We know how rotten their character is due to their murder of 8 thousand Bosnians there."
Turkey is turning to the European Court of Human Rights in its political battle with the Netherlands, president Recep Tayyip Erdogan announced on Monday. He also announced a number of sanctions against the Netherlands, including that Dutch diplomats are no longer welcome in Turkey, NU.nl reports.
The Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs updated its travel advice for Turkey, due to current political tensions between the two countries. The Dutch government does not advise against going to Turkey, but does warn Dutch travelers to watch out for gatherings and avoid public places, ANP reports.
These warnings are on top of the already in place advice of risks in Turkey due to terrorist attacks and political tensions.
The Netherlands is currently on its second trade mission to Iran in a short time. Minister Henk Kamp of Economic Affairs sees many opportunities for Dutch companies in the Arabic country. Though Iran's significant problems with making international payments remains an obstacle, NOS reports.
Two employees at Shell Moerdijk were dismissed and sanctions were imposed against six others because of the 27.7 ton toxic gas leak at the plant between November and January, according to Union FNV. The gas leak poses no long- or short term risks for public health, according to a study done by the public health service and the RIVM
Ron van Dartel, the Dutch ambassador to Russia, describes the current situation caused by tensions between Russia and the Netherlands and rest of Europe as one of "undesired estrangement". These tensions have caused significant damage to trade and political relations between the Netherlands and Russia.
Extending the European sanctions against Russia is inevitable and necessary. The pressure on Moscow has to be kept as high as possible.
Three Dutch parliamentarians appear on a Russian list of people from the European Union that are no longer allowed to enter the country.
According to Minister Bert Koenders of Foreign Affairs, the "breach of trust" caused by Russia's illegal annexation of the Crimea and the country's interference in the conflict in Eastern Ukraine will first have to be repaired before the international approach to Russia can get back to normal.
Cuban-American brothers Alfredo and Gustavo Villodo filed a lawsuit in the United States worth between 1.7 and five billion dollars against ING for not complying with the economic sanctions against Cuba, reports NOS.
Dutch yacht builders are losing revenue because of the Western sanctions against Russia, and restrictions on several wealthy Russians who cannot enter European naval space. Shipbuilders in the Netherlands are losing several hundred millions in sales, reports FD.
Dutch exports are boosted by the low rate of the euro and the sharp fall in oil prices. The top three most important export markets for the Netherlands are the United States, Canada and Turkey. This is the first time since 2009 that the US is back in the top three.
Dutch companies maintain warm relations with the Crimea, the Ukrainian region that was annexed by Russia earlier this year.
According to Minister Bert Koenders of Foreign Affairs, the relationship with Russia should be reconsidered. He said this in the Second Chamber yesterday.
The Netherlands' Foreign Affairs Minister Frans Timmermans wrote on his Facebook page that he supports sanctions against Russia. He believes that it is the correct counter-measure for Russia's meddling in Ukraine, the NOS reports.
Boycotting the World Cup 2018 in Russia will not lead to a solution, according to FIFA. After the plane crash disaster in Ukraine last week, various newspapers and ex-international footballer John van 't Schip, have been pushing for a boycott.
