Wilders Threatens Collapse Of Dutch Coalition If Asylum Freeze Is Not Implemented Within Weeks
Dutch right-wing leader Geert Wilders has issued a stark ultimatum to the country's ruling coalition, threatening to withdraw support from the government within weeks if it does not impose a strict asylum freeze.
'Otherwise we will get out,' the Party for Freedom (PVV) leader declared at a press conference on Monday, during which he presented a hardline 10-point plan aimed at radically curbing migration and dismantling existing asylum policies.
Wilders' proposals include closing the borders to all asylum seekers, deploying the military to enforce border controls, halting family reunification for recognized refugees, and deporting tens of thousands of Syrians with temporary protection status. He also called for the closure of asylum seekers' centers, the fast repeal of the Dispersion Act, which distributes asylum seekers across municipalities, and the withdrawal of housing priority for status holders.
'Our patience has run out now,' said Wilders, claiming his party has been 'very reasonable and very patient' over the past year while waiting for tougher migration policies. He invoked Article 72 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), which allows member states to act unilaterally on matters of internal security, to justify a total border closure for asylum seekers.
'My limit, and the limit of a lot of Dutch people, has been reached,' he told journalists, as cited by TPO. 'Holland must become Holland again. The PVV will wait no longer.'
One of the more radical proposals is the forced return of around 60,000 Syrians to what Wilders claims are now 'safe' areas of Syria following the fall of deposed former Syrian president Bashar al-Assad. 'The EU and the U.S. recently lifted the sanctions on Syria. So, it's time to go back!' he said.
The plan further demands the immediate deportation of asylum seekers and dual nationals convicted of violent or sexual crimes. For dual citizens, Wilders proposes stripping them of Dutch nationality and removing them from the country, even if this means unilaterally exiting the European Convention on Nationality.
He also criticized Dutch police leadership and local authorities for what he sees as a failure to maintain order during public unrest. Citing riots in Scheveningen and pro-Palestinian demonstrations, Wilders demanded tougher police intervention and said mayors who stand in the way should be suspended. 'If a mayor fails to let the police do their job, and when necessary use violence, they should pack their bags,' he said.
Click here to read more…
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Gulf Insider
5 days ago
- Gulf Insider
Europe's Populist Parties Keep Gaining Ground
Across the European continent, despite gaining considerable proportions of the vote, populist parties are increasingly being frozen out of governing in coalitions by political opponents who regard them as extremist. Proponents of the tactic known as a 'cordon sanitaire' or 'firewall' say it's not an attack on democracy but a defense of it. But one war expert said the tactic will only arouse anger in voters and that 'there is no potential for peaceful political change.' Coalitions are part and parcel of political life in many European countries. But the cordon sanitaire, a measure normally directed at keeping out fringe outliers, is now being used to keep out parties that are gaining majority-level support. Such parties include the Alternative for Germany, France's National Rally, Austria's Freedom Party, Spain's Vox, and the Netherlands' Party for Freedom. They all deny being 'far-right' as they are often dubbed by media, opponents, or academics, but their political opponents regard them as beyond the pale and have formed coalitions on the promise of shutting them out of governance. The AfD, an anti-mass immigration party, which came second in Germany's national parliamentary elections, earning nearly 21 percent of the vote, was recently denied allotted committee chairmanships and vice-chairmanships. The party is locked in a legal battle with the state to avoid being branded an 'extremist' right-wing movement by Germany's domestic intelligence agency. AfD's policies include strong support for traditional marriage between a man and woman and the nuclear family, the preservation of national independence in the face of the European Union's increasing power, the preservation of German culture amid 'European integration' and Islamization, and border security, including the expulsion of illegal immigrants. But this doesn't seem to have dented the party's popularity in the polls. According to a recent INSA survey, the AfD is at 24.5 percent, hot on the heels of the CDU at 26 percent. A similar pattern is being seen in other countries. Early in June, the Dutch government collapsed after Party for Freedom (PVV) leader Geert Wilders said his party would pull out of the governing coalition. Wilders asked coalition partners to sign up to a plan to cut illegal immigration, which included using the army to protect Dutch borders, rejecting all illegal immigrants, sending Syrian refugees back to their country, and closing asylum shelters. At the time, he said that if the country's immigration policy was not strengthened, the PVV would be 'out of the Cabinet.' He followed through on the threat. In Austria, conservatives, Social Democrats, and liberals formed a coalition in March to block the anti-immigration and euro-skeptic Freedom Party from taking power, even after it won an electoral victory with 29 percent of the vote last September. The party was founded in 1956 by Anton Reinthaller, a former SS officer and member of the Reichstag. Last year, French President Emmanuel Macron called a surprise snap election on June 9, following his centrist Renaissance party's poor performance in European Parliament elections when the populist and nationalist party National Rally (RN) performed very strongly. But RN has increased its voter share ahead of the French presidential elections, which are scheduled to be held in or around April 2027, and is currently polling at 35 percent. In 2023, Socialist Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez called a snap national election after his party was beaten in local government polls by the conservative People's Party (PP) and the nationalist Vox. Sanchez managed to retain power but only after months of wrangling with regional parties and a controversial power deal with Catalan separatists. Vox, founded in 2013, is now the third-largest force in the Spanish Parliament. Explaining the AfD situation in Germany, Richard Schenk, research fellow at MCC Brussels, told The Epoch Times that freezing out the AfD will have 'certain consequences.' 'AfD can now just exactly claim: 'We were excluded from the decisions that led to this chaos. You excluded us. We wanted to participate, to put forward proposals, to take responsibility, but you excluded us. So we really do not have to do anything with the mess that's currently going on,'' said Schenk. Click here to read more Also read: Hungary Sues European Commission Over €1 Million-A-Day Migrant Fine
Daily Tribune
10-06-2025
- Daily Tribune
NATO chief urges 400% rise in alliance's air defence
NATO head Mark Rutte yesterday urged a 'quantum leap' in defence capabilities including a '400-percent increase' in air and missile defence to shield the alliance against Russia. His comments came as he pushes for NATO members to commit to ramping up defence spending at a key summit of the western military alliance later this month. 'We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,' the NATO secretary general said in a speech to the Chatham House think-tank in London. To maintain credible deterrence and defence, NATO needs 'a 400-percent increase in air and missile defence', the former Dutch prime minister added. 'The fact is, we need a quantum leap in our collective defence,' he said. Rutte is urging NATO members to commit to 3.5 percent of GDP on direct military spending by 2032, and an additional 1.5 percent on broader security-related expenditure. The proposal is a compromise deal designed to satisfy US President Donald Trump, who has demanded that allies each spend five percent of economic output on defence, up from a current commitment of two percent. Rutte said he 'expects' leaders to agree to the proposal at the summit of the 32-country alliance on June 24-25 in The Hague. 'It will be a NATO-wide commitment and a defining moment for the alliance,' he said in his speech. Russia condemned Rutte's comments before he took to the stage, denouncing NATO as 'an instrument of aggression'. NATO 'is demonstrating itself as an instrument of aggression and confrontation', Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters in Moscow. Rutte's speech came after he met UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday, their second Downing Street talks since the Labour leader came into power in July 2024. Starmer's government this year pledged to increase defence spending to 2.5 percent of GDP by 2027, but has not yet set a firm timeline for further hikes. On Monday, Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Canada would hit two percent this year. US Secretary of Defence Pete Hegseth said last week the allies were close to an agreement on the split five-percent target. 'That combination constitutes a real commitment, and we think every country can step up,' he said on Thursday. 'Fairer, more lethal alliance' NATO members have been scrambling to bolster their defence capabilities since Russia launched its invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Trump's return to the White House in January, and question marks over his commitment to European security, has added urgency. 'Danger will not disappear even when the war in Ukraine ends,' Rutte said at Chatham House. 'We must have more forces and capabilities to implement our defence plans in full.' He added that Russia currently produces the same amount of ammunition in three months as 'the whole of NATO produces in a year'. 'Our militaries also need thousands more armoured vehicles and tanks, millions more artillery shells,' Rutte added. Britain announced plans last week to build up to 12 nuclear-powered attack submarines and six munitions factories to rearm the country in response to what it said were threats from Russia. Rutte also warned that China is 'modernizing and expanding its military at breakneck speed'. 'NATO has to become a stronger, fairer and more lethal alliance,' he added. And he warned that if countries cannot commit to 5.0 percent for defence spending 'you could still have the National Health Service, or in other countries, their health systems, the pension system, etc, but you better learn to speak Russian. I mean, that's the consequence'.
Gulf Insider
09-06-2025
- Gulf Insider
"We'll Do It Ourselves!" Dutch Vigilantes Stop Cars At German Border In Protest Over Illegal Migration
A group of Dutch citizens staged an unauthorized border control operation this weekend between Ter Apel and the German village of Rütenbrock, citing frustration with what they describe as uncontrolled illegal immigration. Wearing reflective clothing and wielding torches, the group of around 12 men began stopping vehicles on Saturday evening along the N366, a key route between Germany and the Netherlands. The vigilantes, who pulled cars over and even inspected trunks, say they took action because authorities are failing to secure the border and stem the flow of asylum seekers entering the country. 'Nothing is happening. Then we'll do it ourselves,' said one activist, as cited by Algemeen Dagblad. The action, although brief, drew sharp criticism from police and government officials. The municipality of Westerwolde and Dutch police released a joint statement declaring that 'citizens are forbidden to stop cars' and that such actions 'create enormously dangerous situations' and are 'really unacceptable.' The vigilantes are believed to have violated road traffic laws, though it is unclear whether any formal charges will be brought. 🇳🇱‼️ Dutch vigilantes fed up with illegal immigration set up their own border controls with Germany this weekend, between Ter Apel and Rü Wilders, the PVV leader who just collapsed the Dutch government over asylum red lines, called it a "fantastic initiative." — Remix News & Views (@RMXnews) June 8, 2025 One vehicle stopped by the group turned out to be a German police van. The officers promptly ordered the group to leave German soil, threatening to tow their vehicles if they did not comply. The activists relocated their checkpoint to a parking lot on the Dutch side of the border and continued stopping traffic from Germany. The group, reportedly organized via Facebook, primarily includes residents from the municipality of Westerwolde. Outgoing Justice and Migration Minister David van Weel, of the center-right VVD, responded by urging the group to stop. 'I understand the frustration, but I really call on this group not to do this,' he said. 'Let the police and military police do their job and abide by the law.' Van Weel acknowledged the Netherlands 'cannot handle the current influx,' but insisted that border enforcement must remain the responsibility of the authorities. Mayor Jaap Velema of Westerwolde expressed sympathy for the frustrations, citing 'the lack of solutions to the crisis in asylum reception,' but warned: 'This is not the way to express frustrations. We can't all drive through red lights either.' Geert Wilders, leader of the anti-immigration PVV party, praised the citizens' actions on X, calling it a 'fantastic initiative' and adding, 'If [Prime Minister] Schoof and the VVD do not immediately deploy the army en masse for this, we will have to do it ourselves! I would like to participate next time!' Fantastisch overal aan de grens moeten gebeuren. Als Schoof en de VVD het leger niet meteen massaal hiervoor inzetten, moeten we het zelf maar doen!Ik wil de volgende keer graag meedoen!#asielstop #PVVOP1 #PVV — Geert Wilders (@geertwilderspvv) June 8, 2025 Wilders has been vocal about tightening the Dutch asylum regime. His party recently withdrew from the governing coalition after other parties refused to adopt his 10-point plan for what he called 'the strictest asylum policy ever.' The cabinet's collapse triggered early elections, which are scheduled to take place on Oct. 29, 2025. Van Weel reiterated the government's focus on 'stricter asylum laws and better border control.' Wilders, however, responded by accusing him of inaction. 'Weakling. You don't do anything at all. You could have had the army guard the borders now and sent away all asylum seekers on the basis of Article 72 TFEU, just like the Germans do,' he posted on social media. 'If people are frustrated, it is because the VVD is completely failing.' Ter Apel is the home of the Netherlands' largest asylum reception center, where officially around 2,000 asylum seekers are currently housed. In March, residents of Nieuw-Weerdinge, a Dutch town between Ter Apel and the nearest city of Emmen, launched a fundraiser in support of a 51-year-old local man convicted of assaulting an Algerian asylum seeker during an attempted citizen's arrest. He was found to have confronted an Algerian national from the reception center for allegedly stealing €40 from a delivery van. The town has established its own neighborhood watch app used by concerned residents to ensure anyone acting suspiciously in the area is identified after a surge in crime.
