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Rembrandt, the Midnight Round |
POLITY |
Lamoral, Count of Egmont (*), Prince of Gavere (18 November 1522 – 5 June 1568) was a general and statesman in the Spanish Netherlands just before the start of the Eighty Years' War, whose execution helped spark the national uprising that eventually led to the independence of the Netherlands. The Dutch United Provinces declared their independence from Spain in 1581 (the Act of Abjuration); during the 17th century, they became a leading seafaring and commercial power, with settlements and colonies around the world. After a 20-year French occupation, a Kingdom of the Netherlands was formed in 1815. In 1830 Belgium seceded and formed a separate kingdom. The Netherlands remained neutral in World War I, but suffered invasion and occupation by Germany in World War II. A modern, industrialized nation, the Netherlands is also a large exporter of food and agricultural products. The country was a founding member of NATO and the EEC (now the EU) and participated in the introduction of the euro in 1999. In October 2010, the former Netherlands Antilles was dissolved and the three smallest islands - Bonaire, Sint Eustatius, and Saba - became special municipalities in the Netherlands administrative structure. The larger islands of Sint Maarten and Curacao joined the Netherlands and Aruba as constituent countries forming the Kingdom of the Netherlands. |
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30 September 2024, there was a presentation about investing in earning potential. This event discussed the future of our prosperity and ways to strengthen it.
There is no space on the power grid and there are restrictions on nitrogen emissions. Global free trade is also under pressure as a result of increased geopolitical tensions and global warming requires a reconstruction of the economy. |
Reduction of fossil fuel consumption, an adapted (energy) infrastructure and a switch to other products and production processes await us. |
President Zelensky met with students |
President Zelensky met with students via livestream Leiden University on Campus The Hague, Tuesday 12 September, 2023 The city in the Netherlands not only has a university, but also hosts international organizations, (international) tribunals, ministries and several think tanks. |
IO's and The Netherlands |
The Netherlands is a founding member of the EU, Eurozone, G-10, NATO, OECD, WTO and a part of the trilateral Benelux economic union. The country is host to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons and five international courts: the Permanent Court of Arbitration, the International Court of Justice, the International Criminal Tribunal for the Former Yugoslavia, the International Criminal Court and the Special Tribunal for Lebanon.
The first four are situated in The Hague, as is the EU's criminal intelligence agency Europol and judicial co-operation agency Eurojust. This has led to the city being dubbed "the world's legal capital". The Netherlands is also a part of the Schengen Area. The Netherlands joined the UN Security Council in 2018. UPF organized a discussion of the nation’s greater role in international affairs and worldwide security issues. The meeting was chaired by Mr. Berend Stuit, a former submarine captain of the Royal Dutch Navy. He gave a brief explanation of the background of the topic and provided great moderatorship. The first speaker, Professor Nico Schrijver of the Faculty of Law of Leiden University, gave a concise narrative of the last century and the approaches and roles of the Netherlands in international affairs: |
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American-Dutch Friendship Day |
Every year on April 19, the American-Dutch friendship day is celebrated. John Adams was a remarkable political philosopher who served as the second President of the United States from 1797 to 1801, after serving as the first Vice President under President George Washington.
John Adams was admitted by the States-General of the Dutch Republic on April 19, 1782, as Minister of the United States of America. Thanks to that, he obtained the second diplomatic recognition of the United States as an independent nation. In that same year, Adams signed the first Treaty of Amity and Commerce between the Netherlands and the United States as America’s first ambassador to the Netherlands. |
This treaty helped the United States to take its rightful place in the world as a sovereign state. The agreement strengthened the economic ties between the Netherlands and the United States that started in the 17th century, as diplomatic and consulair relations did. |
In 1982 President Ronald Reagan designated this day as Dutch-American Friendship Day. He explained that our relationship is “the United States’ longest unbroken, peaceful relationship with any foreign country.” The relationship between these two nations remains strong today, as evidenced by their robust economic ties and joint efforts in international and NATO missions. The U.S. and the Netherlands have values in common worth celebrating. This day commemorates the 4.5 million Americans who have Dutch heritage. It is also honored the sacrifices the U.S. has made to secure our freedom in the Netherlands. |
Macron in The Netherlands |
Exactly 75 years after the Congress of Europe took place in The Hague – where Winston Churchill, Konrad Adenauer, Raymond Aron, Bertrand Russell, a young François Mitterrand, and other politicians and intellectuals sowed the seeds of what would become the European Union – and exactly 20 years after George Steiner’s famous Nexus Lecture The Idea of Europe, President Emmanuel Macron unfolded his ideas about the future of Europe, as part of his State Visit to the Netherlands. |
“This is our goal.
To achieve it, Europe has ceased to be naïve. It can now defend its interests, its values and its independence. → Advancing European industrial policy means better protecting our companies. This is the thrust of our strategy to combat distortions of competition, reduce our strategic dependencies, and protect our intellectual property. → The Net Zero Industry Act by simplifying our rules and procedures will allow us to accelerate the development of our industries that contribute to the climate transition. → A sector so essential for our industries, our economies and our societies, Europe had to invest in the semiconductors of the future. With the Chips Act, we stay in the race. In France, we are going to double our production capacities by 2030. More than 5,000 jobs will be created! This is essential, both to protect European consumers through strong standards that we already impose on ourselves, and for our businesses in the face of unfair competition. → In each trade negotiation, we must integrate sustainability criteria such as compliance with the Paris Agreement and the preservation of biodiversity, equity, balance, compatibility with our strategic interests. This is consistent with our climate goals and we will benefit from it mutually. We work for fair conditions of competition for our companies, for compliance by third countries with ambitious standards and universal values. A Europe that defends its interests and its values, remains in control of its destiny, creates jobs, successfully completes its climate transition, this is what we are building.” |
THE NETHERLANDS AND EUROPE |
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THE UKRAINE REFERENDUM |
DO NOT FALL FOR THE TRAP OF A 'NO' WITH THE DUTCH REFERENDUM.
The international agreement proposed by the EU with certain countries is mainly focused on far reaching cooperation, economic cooperation and strengthening trade relations. All this should lead to more prosperity and stability for the people in Ukraine and Europe. Everything else that has been published or which has been discussed does not answer reality. As the date of the advisory referendum approaches, the more attention to Ukraine and to the setup of the Netherlands is given. The yes or no is sometimes fiercely fought by groups. Recently it revealed that the initiators of the advisory referendum are not at all interested in the Ukraine, but in an exit of the Netherlands from the EU and in a thorough restoration of our democracy. Anyway, for Ukraine arises slowly but surely a moment to steer the country toward greater freedoms, less corruption and more opportunities. Young students from Ukraine born after 1990 , who recently visited the Netherlands, spoke to experience ever less freedom and want to build a country with strong institutions and less corruption. Together with other participants from different countries, many themes passed and was even sung a song. Let therefore arise movements which can let succeed the wanted and necessary change.
Dutch citizens vote in a consultative referendum on the Association Agreement between the European Union and the Ukraine on April 6. The discussion is heated. In Brussels, the EU keeps a close eye on the outcome in the Dutch referendum. At stake is not only a trade union and closer cooperation between these two parties, but also the relations between member states within the EU. Is this referendum not actually a turning point, a battle for the future of Europe? Opponents of the treaty with Ukraine consider it an undemocratic attempt to increase the power of the EU. In their eyes, the EU is a bureaucratic monster that gradually threatens the sovereignty of its member states while simultaneously robbing them. They turn their backs to the EU, reject the transfer of sovereign power to Brussels and withdraw behind clearly defined national boundaries. Proponents of the agreement emphasize the need to stand together within Europe in order to ensure security, stability and economic prosperity for all European citizens. Without dismissing the need for questioning the current EU, they still see it as the best way to reinforce European cooperation and values such as peace, civil rights, solidarity and prosperity – values that must be accessible to everyone. Where do Europe’s borders actually lie? Are these borders geographically, historically or culturally defined? Is further expansion of the EU necessary, and what is the role of America and Russia? ‘The Battle for Europe’ presents a lively debate between euro critics and euro lovers, between supporters and opponents of rapprochement with Ukraine and allows you to discuss with thinkers and politicians of international standing about the fundamental problem underlying the Dutch Referendum: What kind of Europe do we want?
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Events in and around Ukraine has become a pivot for geopolitical game. The main question, about transforming Ukraine, is thereby lost sight. Can 'Finlandization' contribute to a solution, which means that a country decides not to challenge a more powerful neighbour in foreign politics, while maintaining national sovereignty? There is after all a powerful country that strongly influences the policies of a smaller neighboring country, while allowing it to keep its independence and its own political system. |
(*) Lamoral, Count of Egmont, Prince of Gavere (18 November 1522 – 5 June 1568) was a general and statesman in the Spanish Netherlands just before the start of the Eighty Years' War, whose execution helped spark the national uprising that eventually led to the independence of the Netherlands. Beethoven composed an overture to chronicle the sixteenth century story of Lamoral, Count Egmont of the Netherlands who defied a Spanish attack captained by the Duke of Alva. The Overture to "Egmont" opens with a long-held, heavy, F minor chord (Egmont in prison) followed by a slow Sarabande in a 3/2 meter. The weight of Spanish occupation is clear. |