Ministry of Defence (Netherlands)
| Ministerie van Defensie | |
Flag of the Ministry of Defence
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Coat of arms of the Netherlands
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 Ministry of Defence |
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| Department overview | |
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| Formed | November 29, 1813 |
| Jurisdiction | Kingdom of the Netherlands |
| Headquarters | Plein 4, The Hague, Netherlands |
| Employees | 44,302 active duty 3,339 reserve forces 3,000 paramilitary 18,000 civilian staff |
| Annual budget | €7,1 billion (2013) |
| Minister responsible |
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| Department executive | |
| Child agencies | |
| Website | Ministry of Defence |
The Ministry of Defence (Dutch: Ministerie van Defensie; MinDef) is the Dutch Ministry responsible for the armed forces of the Netherlands and Veterans Affairs. The Ministry was created in 1813 as the Ministry of War and in 1928 was combined with the Ministry of the Navy. After World War II in the ministries were separated again, in this period the Minister of War and Minister of the Navy were often the same person and the State Secretary for the Navy was responsible for daily affairs of the Royal Dutch Navy. In 1959 the ministries were merged. The Ministry is headed by the Minister of Defence, currently Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert.
The ministry has the responsibility for:
The ministry consists of the Minister and the State Secretary of Defence, the so-called Central Staff, the Netherlands Armed Forces, and two supporting organisations.
The Central Staff of the ministry is led by the Secretary-General, the highest civil servant. The most important elements of the Central Staff are:
The highest military official is the Chief of Defence (Dutch: Commandant der Strijdkrachten). He is a four-star general and controls the branches of the armed forces, which are organised in three operational commands:
The fourth branch of service, the Royal Netherlands Constabulary, falls directly under the Secretary-General.
The armed forces are supported by two civil organisations that reside under the Ministry of Defence:
The ministry employs over 70,000 civil and military personnel.
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