Middle East

Dutch Asylum Minister rejects calls to stop returning Yazidis to Iraq

Dutch Asylum Minister Bart van den Brink / photo: EUCO

Poor conditions and trauma among Yazidis living in displacement camps in Iraq are not in themselves sufficient grounds for asylum in the Netherlands, according to Dutch Asylum Minister Bart van den Brink. Despite pressure from parliament and thousands of petitioners, he is sticking to the current policy, at least until a new government assessment of Iraq is completed.

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Dutch parliament fears ICC could be weakened in US sanctions talks

The Hague is playing a crucial role in diplomatic efforts to avert sweeping US sanctions against the International Criminal Court. But reports about the compromises being discussed are now causing alarm in the Dutch parliament, raising an uncomfortable question for the host country: how far can it go to save

Dutch coalition crisis: VVD threatens to quit coalition over D66-CDA tax deal with left

The Netherlands’ fragile minority government has been pushed towards a potentially existential crisis after D66 and CDA struck a tax deal with left-wing opposition parties PRO and Volt, prompting the VVD to openly question whether it can remain in the coalition. D66 and CDA, however, are refusing to back

Prime Minister Jetten cancels EU summit as Dutch coalition crisis escalates over tax deal

Prime Minister Rob Jetten has cancelled his trip to an EU leaders’ summit in Dublin as the political crisis inside his own coalition intensifies. After already pulling out of the climate summit, Jetten is now staying in The Hague for an emergency parliamentary debate that could determine whether his three-

Dutch government to tie foreign aid more closely to democratic values

The Netherlands is preparing to spend hundreds of millions of euros extra on strengthening democracy, civil society and the rule of law abroad, while making respect for democratic values a more explicit factor in deciding where Dutch development money goes. The new strategy signals a significant shift in how The

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Dutch parliament fears ICC could be weakened in US sanctions talks

Dutch coalition crisis: VVD threatens to quit coalition over D66-CDA tax deal with left

Prime Minister Jetten cancels EU summit as Dutch coalition crisis escalates over tax deal

Dutch government to tie foreign aid more closely to democratic values