Dutch King: Russian annexation of the Crimea impacts the continent security
In his throne speech on Tuesday, Willem-Alexander, the King of the Netherlands drew attention to trouble spots on the European borders – the Russian annexation of the Crimea, conflict in eastern Ukraine, conflicts in Mali, Yemen and Afghanistan. “All these developments directly and indirectly affect our security and freedom.” He announced on behalf of the government that more money is structurally being made available to the security services to arm the Netherlands against “the threat of radicalization and terrorist attacks in Europe” that put the society under pressure.
Abroad the Netherlands is choosing to cooperate with allies in the EU and NATO context. The government is setting more money aside for the armed forces from next year – 220 million next year, and 345 million in subsequent years. Security and integration will be the themes for the Netherlands spell as president of the European Union in the first half of next year.