The Netherlands has found no evidence that Russia is willing to negotiate peace with Ukraine in good faith, the country’s newly appointed Foreign Minister, Tom Berendsen, said during his first visit to Kyiv.
Speaking at a joint press conference with Ukraine’s Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha, Berendsen praised Ukraine’s commitment to achieving lasting peace but stressed that Moscow has so far shown no indication of willingness to end the war.
“Russia started this war, and Russia can end it. Right now, when choosing between war and peace, Russia has chosen war,” he said, adding that Russia has no right to decide Ukraine’s future or its place in Europe.
Berendsen also highlighted Ukraine’s progress on reforms and announced that an intergovernmental conference will be held at the end of March in the Dutch city of Breda to support Ukraine’s European Union membership efforts. The conference will bring together Dutch and Ukrainian officials to discuss rule of law, energy, social issues, and agriculture — all aimed at helping Ukraine meet the EU’s Copenhagen criteria.
“The rules are strict, but there is no requirement to walk this path alone. We look forward to continuing the Lviv conference in my hometown of Breda at the end of March,” Berendsen said.
The scale of Dutch support for Ukraine’s defense was also emphasized by Ukraine’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Andrii Sybiha. He noted that total assistance from the Netherlands has exceeded €14 billion, nearly €10 billion of which is direct military aid. He thanked the Dutch government for the rapid delivery of ammunition for Ukraine’s air defense.
“Netherlands is among the leaders in the PURL program, contributing €750 million. We also agreed to continue successful cooperation in drone technologies, including contracts for 600,000 drones worth €510 million and an additional 350,000 FPV drones valued at €300 million. We expect to scale up joint production, particularly within the Build with Ukraine initiative,” Sybyha said.
Berendsen and Dutch Defense Minister Kajsa Ollongren arrived in Ukraine on Saturday, February 28, for their first official visit since taking office.
