Germany and Netherlands Plan Joint Cabinet Talks This Month to Boost Ties

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will hold a joint cabinet meeting later this month in a bid to step up bilateral cooperation in energy and defense, according to people familiar with the matter.

(Bloomberg) — German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will hold a joint cabinet meeting later this month in a bid to step up bilateral cooperation in energy and defense, according to people familiar with the matter.

The meeting will take place in Rotterdam on March 27, said the people, speaking on condition of anonymity as the plans have not yet been made public.

They’ll discuss a wide range of topics including military integration and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, according to the people. Also on the agenda will be Berlin’s plans to purchase the local unit of power operator TenneT Holding BV from the Dutch government for more than €20 billion ($21 billion), and cooperation on hydrogen and natural gas.

The Dutch officials will also try to convince their German counterparts to change their stance regarding a vote on the European Union’s combustion-engine ban, one of the people said. Germany is in a dispute with the EU over plans to ban new combustion-engine cars in the bloc from 2035.

Germany has put pressure on the European Commission, the EU’s executive arm, to come forward with a proposal that would allow combustion cars running exclusively on so-called e-fuels to continue to be sold after the cut-off date. A final vote was due to take place on March 7, but was indefinitely delayed amid German objections.

In the meantime, Germany and the Netherlands aim to seal an agreement about TenneT’s German unit this year as Berlin seeks ownership of the national grid to shore up energy security following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

The two countries will also discuss military cooperation as the Netherlands is getting ready to integrate the rest of its combat brigades into the German army this year, amid increased security threats in the region after Russia’s invasion.

The Dutch land force has three combat brigades and two of them are already integrated into the German military. The merger of the last remaining 3,000-soldier brigade may come as early as April but the Dutch government has yet to make its final decision, Bloomberg reported last month.

–With assistance from Diederik Baazil.

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