Foreign Minister of Netherlands resigns amid evacuation chaos in Afghanistan

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Netherlands
Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Sigrid Kaag, announces her resignation, after MPs voted in favour of a motion of censure against her [Bart Maat/EPA]

After the Dutch lower house of parliament issued a censure motion against the government over its management of evacuations from Afghanistan after the Taliban takeover, Foreign Minister Sigrid Kaag resigned.

In a parliamentary discussion on Wednesday night, Kaag said that the government's tardy or unclear response to warnings about the situation in Afghanistan meant that some local employees and translators for Dutch troops in Afghanistan were not evacuated.

Kaag quickly announced her resignation after the resolution was passed on Thursday, claiming that parliament had concluded that the cabinet had acted irresponsibly.

“As the minister with ultimate responsibility, I can only accept the consequences of this judgment,” she continued.

Kaag served as a minister in the Dutch caretaker administration, which is in power due to protracted negotiations to create a new ruling coalition following a general election in March.

Kaag, the centrist D66 party leader, and caretaker Prime Minister Mark Rutte, whose conservative People's Party for Freedom and Democracy won the most seats in the election, have been actively involved in those talks.

It was unclear what impact her resignation would have on such talks right away. According to the Dutch public broadcaster NOS, Kaag stated that she would continue to lead D66 and participate in coalition talks.

D66 ministers would remain in the caretaker government, she stated in her resignation speech.

Kaag resigned a day after British Prime Minister Boris Johnson sacked Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab in a cabinet shuffle.

Raab had come under fire for taking a vacation in Greece during the Taliban's takeover of Afghanistan last month.

Publish : 2021-09-17 13:35:00

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