The Dutch town of Urk swiped the screen this weekend
Heavy armored vehicles, smoke grenades, soldier patrols
I thought the war had reached the Netherlands...
Let's take a look
▌ The Dutch town was amazed by the parade of tanks and soldiers
In the town of Urk in the Dutch province of Flefland, an unusual scene caught the attention of residents and the municipality on Friday morning, nos.nl reported. A CV-90, a military armored vehicle with a Dutch flag, accompanied by a convoy of cars, drove through the streets of the town, lighting smoke bombs in the process, and the scene was like war was coming.
Source: nos.nl
This operation was confusing to many witnesses, and even the city government was initially ignorant of it. The truth is soon revealed – it was part of a wedding. Rink, an employee of the Dutch Ministry of Defense, chose an unconventional way to celebrate his wedding: not a limousine, but a tank of the model CV-90 that he used in his work.
Link was allowed to temporarily borrow the military vehicle, which weighed more than 30,000 kilograms, to make it his and his bride's wedding car. The tank not only sparked buzz on social media, but also on the streets, especially when the groom walked through the village on the tank with flowers in hand. In addition, the wedding included some military elements, with soldiers in military uniforms patrolling around the vehicle, adding a bit of solemnity.
Despite this, a city spokesperson said that no special permit is required to drive such a vehicle. In addition, the incident also demonstrated the community's acceptance of such unconventional weddings, with residents, especially children, excited to see such a spectacular military vehicle up close and joyfully posing for photos with the military staff of the Ministry of Defence to celebrate the special day.
▌ Dutch NS plays a key role in NATO's combat readiness
According to telegraaf.nl, in the event of a conflict between NATO on its eastern defense, Dutch railways will play a crucial role. Military supplies will be loaded into Dutch ports and sent by rail to the rest of Europe. However, at this critical time, the Dutch rail operator ProRail was faced with a significant backlog of maintenance at the Port of Rotterdam, in addition to the urgent need for expansion of the rail system in other parts of the country.
Source: telegraaf.nl
In the Port of Rotterdam, along with several other key locations in the Netherlands, such as the low-lying deer (Lage Zwaluwe), the southern part of the Var Port (Waalhaven Zuid), the Onnen (Groningen) in Groningen and the Roosendaal (Roosendaal), waiting tracks and shunting lines for trains up to 740 metres long will be added. This is in response to the need for transshipment of military supplies from countries such as the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.
ProRail has embarked on a major repair project that will take three years to address the maintenance issue. This includes the rehabilitation of 51 switches, 10 pavements, 16 kilometers of track, and the renewal of 10 kilometers of foundations and 23 kilometers of cables.
However, the general state of the Dutch railway system remains a cause for concern. According to ProRail General Manager John Wopen, the entire rail system is at the end of its life cycle, which means that large-scale maintenance and updates must be carried out. In fact, the Dutch rail network has been in operation for almost 80 years since it was rebuilt after World War II and is in dire need of updating to accommodate modern transport needs.
Source: telegraaf.nl
In addition, such a state of Dutch railways poses a potential strategic risk for NATO. Over the past few years, due to political and military tensions, NATO has intensified its focus on its eastern borders and intends to strengthen its rapid deployment capabilities, and the Netherlands, as a member of NATO, has played an indispensable role in this.
Therefore, even if Dutch railways perform solidly in terms of civil and commercial transport, their importance at the military-strategic level cannot be overlooked. This requires ProRail not only to address current maintenance issues, but also to anticipate future challenges and ensure that military and civilian transportation needs can be met in the event of an emergency.
Source: telegraaf.nl
▌吕特北约秘书长之位悬而未决
According to rtl.nl reports, Mark Rutte is still not 100% sure whether he can become the next secretary general of NATO. This week's EU summit would have been a good opportunity to lobby for himself, but Rutte said he did not do so this time. Although it is difficult to verify whether this is true or not.
At a press conference at NATO headquarters ahead of the EU summit, Rutte appeared alongside the current secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, and the prime ministers of Denmark and the Czech Republic, as if to get an early taste of what it's like to be the leader of NATO. Rutte firmly stated: "Ukraine needs more air defense systems. ”
When a reporter asked Stoltenberg if he had shown Rutte his new office, there was a burst of laughter at the press conference, and Rutte himself laughed happily. To the question of his successor, Stoltenberg cautiously remained silent, and he replied that this was not what he should say.
Source: rtl.nl
Later, at the beginning of the European summit, Rutte warmly greeted the world leaders. He patted French President Emmanuel Macron on the shoulder and shook hands warmly with Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez of Spain, and when Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni of Italy joined him, the two men were clearly very close.
However, when Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán joined, the atmosphere was noticeably different. Orban had to clear his throat visibly to get the crowd out of the way. The body language of the other leaders clearly showed that there was little chemistry with the Hungarian. Rutte didn't even shake hands with Orban.
Rutte's relationship has been strained because of his past sharp criticisms of Orban's policies. Now, Orban has become Rutte's biggest obstacle to becoming NATO's new secretary general. In addition, the opposition of Romanian President Klaus Iohannis continues. Diplomats are convinced that Johannes is unlikely to be elected, but how to convince him to withdraw his candidacy is unclear.
The post of NATO Secretary-General requires unanimous agreement, and this unanimity cannot be achieved as long as there are opposing candidates. There is no official process, all discussions and negotiations take place in private, and sooner or later a consensus needs to be reached on a candidate.
Although Rutte has been in the lead and seems difficult to replace, the situation is still tense. The United States, for its part, wants to avoid taking over the issue of dominating the NATO summit in Washington in July, which will be a major celebration of NATO's 75th anniversary. If there is no clear information about the new secretary general by then, this will cast a shadow over the celebrations and show the divisions between the allies. But it remains unclear whether the final objection to Rutte can be resolved before time, especially since all decisions are made behind the scenes.