Press Officer
Royal Netherlands Embassy
Washington, DC
202-274-2632
March 2005

The Netherlands and Iraq

How many troops does the Netherlands have in Iraq?

The Netherlands currently has 1,684 troops in Iraq region.

When are the troops leaving Iraq?

The Netherlands will complete its mission in the Southwest region of Iraq as part of the Multinational Force Iraq (MNF-I) as of March 15th. Around 350 troops will stay for another 6 to 8 weeks to wrap up the mission.

Since June 2003, when the Netherlands decided to take part in the Multinational Force, more than 6,000 Dutch troops have served in Iraq. The Netherlands mission was to help the Iraqis build a stable and secure environment to enable them to develop political, economic and security structures, e.g. through the training of 2,800 Iraqi security officers, as well as through various projects in support of the local authorities.

Netherlands contribution to NATO?

Developments in the southern part of Iraq enable the Netherlands to shift its attention to other areas where assistance in needed. As was the case on a local level, the Netherlands will now contribute to the training of Iraqi security forces on a national level.

The Netherlands will provide 25 service personnel for the NATO training mission in Iraq. This is in line with the Iraqi interim government's request for assistance in training and equiping the Iraqi security forces. This is also in keeping with the wish of the American government.

The Netherlands will remain a part of the broader coalition efforts and will continue its economic, humanitarian and military assistance to Iraq and other regions of the world. The Netherlands armed forces are actively involved in several operations outside of Iraq, providing security and fighting international terrorism. 480 military personnel serve in Bosnia-Herzegovina as part of EUFOR and 278 military personnel serve in Afghanistan as part of the NATO operation there and as part of Operation Enduring Freedom.