Meeted for hours about sanctions against Israel: Veldkamp did not get Embargo and then the size was full

Former Foreign Minister Caspar Veldkamp (NSC) made far -reaching concessions last Friday during negotiations against Israel to reach an agreement with VVD and BBB, argue sources in The Hague. For example, Veldkamp first wanted to announce a full arms embargo of six months – which turned out to be indigestible for the coalition partners.

Veldkamp took this loss, but then wanted at least a national trade boycott of companies in Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank. When after hours of negotiation, the two coalition partners continued to block every concrete measure, Veldkamp stepped up-followed by all other NSC ministers.

The discussion then focused on an economic boycott of illegal Israeli settlements

The crisis was created when outgoing Minister Veldkamp could not give a judgment during a debate in the Lower House about Gaza (‘appreciation’) about some motions, including one of Member of Parliament Jan Paternotte (D66). He asked to announce a trade boycott against the settlements.

During the Council of Ministers last Friday, Sources claim both a arms embargo (only not for parts for the Israeli air defense system Iron Dome) and a trade boycott. This met with BBB and VVD resistance. In order to come to a compromise, outside the Council of Ministers was negotiated all day by outgoing Premier Dick Schoof and the outgoing ministers Sophie Hermans, Mona Keijzer (BBB) ​​and Eddy van Hijum (NSC), in company of Veldkamp, ​​Ruben Brekelmans (Defense, VVD, VVD, VVD, VVD).

Scenario

During those conversations, Veldkamp had to abandon the proposal for a complete arms embargo: he agreed to the proposal to put the steps that the cabinet had already taken to restrict the arms export to Israel into a letter to parliament.

Last year the free weapon trade with Israel was already strongly restricted. An export permit must since be issued for each party of weapons. If it is clear that they can be used in Gaza or on the West Bank, the permits will be refused. This has happened eleven times since October 7. Thus the Netherlands deleted Three requests for parts for the Israeli navy. Earlier, by order of the Court of Appeal The Hague, the Netherlands had to stop the transit of parts for Israeli F-35s.

Although the Netherlands no longer delivers weapons de facto, an official embargo went too far according to VVD and BBB.

The discussion then focused on an economic boycott of the illegal Israeli settlements in Palestinian. Although Veldkamp wanted to announce it immediately, he agreed that the Netherlands would first try to get other countries, at the next meeting of the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the European Union.

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Narrow part

The question was only what to do, if that fails: a non-public scenario. In that case, Veldkamp wanted the space to announce a national economic boycott itself. In the last of a total of four draft versions of a (ultimately non-driven) letter to the Lower House, however, it was only that the cabinet wanted to ‘consider’ a national boycott. According to Veldkamp, ​​this was insufficient and reason to step up, followed shortly thereafter by the rest of the NSC-SMALLEMEN.

The departure of NSC led to bitter reproaches from VVD and BBB. Minister Brekelmans said late on Friday evening in the Lower House that Veldkamp had ‘run away’. VVD and BBB expected until that moment that a compromise could still be reached, so both parties were surprised that Veldkamp was now full. “We got closer together step by step,” said Brekelmans in the talk show last Sunday Café Kockelmann.

Although the Netherlands no longer supplies weapons, an official embargo went too far according to VVD and BBB

But according to other insiders, Veldkamp’s departure was no surprise. The Minister of Foreign Affairs had returned from vacation at the end of July to consult with cabinet members about the rapidly expanding humanitarian disaster in Gaza. Consultation on the Catshuis resulted in a letter to parliament in which the cabinet promised by trying to change the Netanyahu government ‘pressure and dialogue’.

In practice, Veldkamp experienced, he said after he had resigned, ‘counter pressure’ from the cabinet to ‘really’ do something. That did not change when the Israeli armed forces started a new offensive against Gaza city and the Israeli government decided to build settlements in the ‘E1’ region on the occupied West Bank. This would split the area of ​​the Palestinian authority in two, which makes a two -state solution de facto impossible.

Mistrust

Last Thursday, the day after the Gaza debate, Veldkamp sent a letter to the Chamber in which he announced that the cabinet would consider ‘additional measures’ against Israel on Friday. In addition, he relied on the Catshuis letter of 28 July. The same evening, Deputy Prime Minister Van Hijum shoved with Prime Minister to say that it was of the utmost importance for Veldkamp to achieve something. At that time, the opposition had submitted a motion of no confidence against the Minister of Foreign Affairs, which still had to be voted on.

When Veldkamp had not brought in any concrete measure against Israel at half past seven in the evening, the size was full for him, sources say. The minister told the press that he had “insufficient trust” that he could still play a meaningful role as Minister of Foreign Affairs, since there was no room to “pursue policies and set a course.”

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