Netherlands–Russia relations

Bilateral relations

Netherlands–Russia relations

Netherlands |
Russia

Netherlands–Russia relations is the relationships between the two countries, the Kingdom of the Netherlands and the Russian Federation. Russia has an embassy in The Hague, and the Netherlands has an embassy in Moscow, a consulate in Saint Petersburg, and an honorary consulate in Yuzhno-Sakhalinsk.

Since the year 2013 the political relations have become strained due to a number of conflicts and incidents, the most prominent being the annexation of Crimea in 2014, the shooting down of MH17 in 2014 that killed 193 Dutch nationals, and the war in Donbas.

In October 2018, the Russian Ambassador to the Netherlands was summoned to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as the Dutch accused four Russians with diplomatic passports for attempting to carry out a cyber-attack in April on the headquarters of Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons in The Hague. Ank Bijleveld told Dutch broadcaster NPO that the Netherlands is in a state of "cyberwar" with Russia.[1]

In 2022 the Netherlands, a NATO member, gave strong support to Ukraine when it was invaded by Russia. Most economic and cultural ties were ended and sanctions imposed.[2]

## History

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Maurice, Prince of Orange receives a delegation from Russia in 1614 Alexander I of Russia and William I of the Netherlands in Amsterdam in 1814

### Early relations

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In the late 16th and 17th centuries, merchants from the Netherlands engaged in lively trade with Tsarist Russia; Dutch ships arrived in Russia via the port of Arkhangelsk, where they acquired wood, furs, and other raw materials. In return, the Dutch exported weapons and shipbuilding materials to the Russians, among other things, which contributed to Russia's military modernization. Peter the Great whilst on his tour of western Europe (1697–1698) visited the Netherlands and practised as a shipwright in Zaandam. During his stay he managed to recruit some Dutch maritime expertise for the newly established Russian navy. One of the most notable Dutch members of the Russian navy was the Norwegian-born captain Cornelius Cruys, who after several years of service reached the rank of admiral and became the first commander of the Baltic Fleet. Influenced by his experiences, he introduced many Western European influences to Russia. For example, the new capital city of Saint Petersburg (founded in 1703) was modeled on Amsterdam, and even the Russian tricolor flag is based on the Dutch flag.[3]

Statue of Peter the Great in Rotterdam, Netherlands.

### Napoleonic Wars until the Russian revolution

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Dutch Grenadiers of the Imperial Guard and other Dutch units took part in the French invasion of Russia in 1812.

Tsar Alexander I of Russia played a central role in the restoration of the Netherlands. Alexander promised to support Prince William and help restore an independent Netherlands with William as king. Russian and Prussian troops drove out the French in 1813.

To strengthen relations, Alexander's sister, Grand Duchess Anna Pavlovna, married Prince William, thereby establishing a family bond between the royal houses.

The Netherlands remained neutral in the conflicts of the 19th century and did not come into direct confrontation with Russia. For example, it remained neutral in the Crimean War (1853–1856). A sign of cooperation was that, on the initiative of Russian Tsar Nicholas II, the Hague Conventions of 1899 and 1907 were held in the Netherlands.

The Netherlands remained neutral in the First World War (1914–1918), while Russia fought on the side of the Entente.

### From the revolution until the Cold War

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Since the Russian Revolution, the Netherlands did not have any diplomatic relationships with the Soviet Union until the end of the Second World War.[4] During the war, the Dutch government was in exile.

During WW2, 25,000 Dutch volunteers[5] joined the Waffen SS, and fought on the Eastern front against the Soviet Union. They were not supported by the government in exile.

### During the Cold War

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During the Cold War, all the Dutch consecutive governments perceived the Soviet Union and the Warsaw pact as a threat to its safety.

### Russian Federation

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Nord Stream 1 opening ceremony on 8 November 2011 with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte Ukrainian flags in front of the Russian embassy in The Hague as protest against the Russian invasion of Ukraine

As the Netherlands is a member of the European Union, the relation between Russia and the Netherlands is closely related to the Russia–European Union relations.

In October 2011 president Dmitry Medvedev met in the Kremlin with the Prime Minister of Netherlands Mark Rutte to discuss bilateral ties.[6]

Aside from commerce and politics, there have been some notable Dutch influence on Russian football, with Guus Hiddink in 2006–2010 followed by Dick Advocaat in 2010–2012 as head coach of the Russian national team.[7]

In the year 2013 a number of cultural activities took place in the Netherlands and Russia to celebrate 400 years of diplomatic ties.[8] Russian president Vladimir Putin visited Amsterdam. In October 2013, the ties between the countries were strained when a group of Greenpeace activists were arrested during a protest on an Arctic oil rig owned by Gazprom. On 9 October, the minister counsellor Dmitri Borodin, working at the Russian embassy in The Hague, was detained after allegations of abusing his children.[9] Dutch minister of foreign affairs Frans Timmermans apologized later for the violation of the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. Subsequently, on 15 October, the Dutch diplomat Onno Elderenbosch was physically attacked in his apartment in Moscow by two men posing as electricians.[10] During the 2014 Sochi Olympic Games, Vladimir Putin visited the Holland Heineken House and drank a beer with King Willem Alexander.[citation needed]

Since March 2014 the Netherlands participated in the European Union economic sanctions against Russia due to the Russo-Ukrainian war. In August 2014 Russia installed a retaliatory boycott of EU agricultural products.[11]

Relations were further strained when Malaysia Airlines Flight 17, an airliner carrying 193 Dutch nationals, was shot down over Eastern Ukraine in July 2014, by a BUK missile launcher.[12] A few years later, a Dutch court found two Russians and a Ukrainian guilty. It is unlikely that these people will serve their sentences.[13]

After the Russian invasion of Ukraine started in 2022, the Netherlands, as one of the EU countries, imposed sanctions on Russia, and Russia added all EU countries to the list of "unfriendly nations".[14] The Netherlands joined other countries in spring 2022 in declaring a number of Russian diplomats Persona non grata. In May 2024, Dutch Foreign Minister Hanke Bruins Slot said that the Netherlands would not object if Ukraine used Dutch-supplied F-16 fighters to strike military targets inside Russia.[15]

## Trade

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Between 1995 and 2021 Russian exports to the Netherlands have risen by an average of 14.4% per annum.[16]

In 2021 there was an imbalance in trade with the Netherlands importing $39 billion from Russia, mainly crude and refined oil, with exports of only $7.8 billion.[16] In 2022 and 2023 the EU introduced sanctions over Russian oil and oil products as well as gas imports, which the Netherlands has complied with and will greatly reduce the trade imbalance with Russia.

## Notable Russians in the Netherlands

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* Peter the Great
* Anna Pavlovna of Russia
* Anish Giri
* Alexander Vakoulsky

## Notable Dutch in Russia

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* Dick Advocaat
* Willem Barentsz
* Cornelius Cruys
* Guus Hiddink
* André Kuipers astronaut.
* Karel van het Reve slavicist, essayist, correspondent of the Parool Dutch newspaper in the Soviet Union, ex-communist, influential anti-communist in the Netherlands.
* Derk Sauer Dutch entrepreneur, founder of the Moscow Times and many other popular magazines in Russia.[17]
* Andrew Vinius

## Resident diplomatic missions

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* the Netherlands has an embassy in Moscow and a consulate-general in Saint Petersburg.
* Russia has an embassy in The Hague.

* Embassy of the Netherlands in Moscow

* Consulate-General of the Netherlands in Saint Petersburg

* Embassy of Russia in The Hague

## See also

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* Foreign relations of the Netherlands
* Foreign relations of Russia
* Greenpeace Arctic Sunrise ship case
* Czar Peter House (Netherlands)
* List of ambassadors of Russia to the Netherlands

## References

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1. ^ "Minister Bijleveld bevestigt: we zijn in cyberoorlog met de Russen". nos.nl (in Dutch). 14 October 2018. Retrieved 25 January 2022.
2. ^ Dirk Christiaans and Paul Amberg, "Dutch government announces new EU sanctions measures against Russia and Belarus to enter into force on 24 February 2023," SANCTIONS & EXPORT CONTROLS UPDATE (2023) update.
3. ^ "Nederlands-Russische betrekkingen". IsGeschiedenis (in Dutch). 28 October 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2025.
4. ^ Reve, Karel van het Rusland hoe het was, Contact publishing house Amsterdam, 1976, page 119
5. ^ van Roekel, Evertjan. "Nederlandse SS'ers en de Holocaust". Retrieved 21 March 2015.
6. ^ Reuters, 20 October 2011
7. ^ "Dick Advocaat set to replace Guus Hiddink as Russia go double Dutch". The Guardian. 17 May 2010. Retrieved 2 December 2011.
8. ^ "Stedelijk Museum sluit Ruslandjaar af met Malevich". NU.nl. 17 October 2013. Retrieved 26 December 2013.
9. ^ Putin demands Dutch arrest apology as ties worsen BBC News Europe,retrieved 10 August 2013
10. ^ [1] BBC News Europe, Retrieved 16 October 2013
11. ^ "Over twee jaar heeft Rusland kasgroenten uit de EU niet meer nodig".
12. ^ [2] JIT: Flight MH17 was shot down by a BUK missile from a farmland near Pervomaiskyi, Retrieved 29 March 2017
13. ^ "Dutch court convicts three men for downing of Malaysia Airlines flight MH17". ABC News. 17 November 2022.
14. ^ Lee, Michael (8 March 2020). "Here are the nations on Russia's 'unfriendly countries' list". CTV News.
15. ^ "NATO chief reiterates Ukraine's right to strike 'legitimate military targets' inside Russia". Anadolu Agency. 31 May 2024.
16. ^ a b "Russia/Netherlands". January 2022.
17. ^ "Derk Sauer: "20 Years Later"". Moscow Times. Retrieved 29 November 2012.

## External links

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* Russian embassy in the Netherlands
* Dutch embassy in Moscow
* Rus trade
* Russia trade and economy Dutch government website with links to data about Russian-Dutch trade

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