KABUL - After nearly two decades, the Dutch military involvement in Afghanistan will come to an end this month. According to a media source, the Ministry of Defense has presented two Dutch mission flags to the National Military Museum in Soesterberg to mark the occasion.
In a speech, interim Defense Minister Anke Bijleveld said, “We are leaving with mixed feelings. We see the images of Taliban progressing.” “The security situation is worrying, and some of the progress may be lost,” Bijleveld expressed concern.
The flag ceremony gathered dozens of people, but 25 seats were left vacant to honor the 25 Dutch troops who died in Afghanistan. According to Bijleveld, there was also a moment of silence for the “many Afghans who have died, the soldiers and colleagues.”
After twenty years, all 10,000 foreign troops, including the 160 Dutch soldiers who remained on the ground, are leaving the country. At a NATO summit in April, US President Joe Biden stated that US combat forces would depart Afghanistan by September of this year.
Sigrid Kaag, the Dutch Minister of Foreign Affairs, highlighted that the Netherlands and Afghanistan have a long-term connection. “We have entered into a long-term relationship with the Afghan people. A relationship that we do not want to break 20 years later,” she further added. (Khaama Press)