Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Netherlands)

Ministry of Foreign Affairs
Ministry overview
Formed12 March 1798; 226 years ago (1798-03-12)
JurisdictionKingdom of the Netherlands
HeadquartersRijnstraat 8, The Hague
Employees3,000
Annual budget€13 billion (2023)[1]
Minister responsible
Deputy Minister responsible
Ministry executive
WebsiteMinistry of Foreign Affairs

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs (Dutch: Ministerie van Buitenlandse Zaken; BZ) is the Netherlands' ministry responsible for foreign relations, foreign policy, international development, international trade, diaspora and matters dealing with the European Union, NATO and the Benelux Union. The ministry was created in 1798, as the Department of Foreign Affairs of the Batavian Republic. In 1876, it became the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs is the head of the ministry and a member of the Cabinet of the Netherlands, the incumbent minister is Caspar Veldkamp. The Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Aid is a minister without portfolio within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Its incumbent minister is Reinette Klever.

Part of the Politics series
Politics of the Netherlands
Azure, billetty Or a lion with a coronet Or armed and langued Gules holding in his dexter paw a sword Argent hilted Or and in the sinister paw seven arrows Argent pointed and bound together Or. [The seven arrows stand for the seven provinces of the Union of Utrecht.] The shield is crowned with the (Dutch) royal crown and supported by two lions Or armed and langued gules. They stand on a scroll Azure with the text (Or) "Je Maintiendrai" (French for "I will maintain".)
Constitution
Monarchy
Cabinet
States General
Judiciary
Elections
Local government
Foreign relations
Related topics
icon Politics portal
  1. ^ "Visuals – Ministerie van Financiën - Rijksoverheid". Rijksoverheid. Ministerie van Algemene Zaken. 20 September 2022. Retrieved 12 April 2023.