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Marcel de Haas

At the Defence , - (RNLAF) Dr M de Haas was responsible for the NDD as Editor and as Chairman of the Working . Currently, he is assigned to the Netherlands Institute of International Relations Clingendael in , as Senior Research Fellow on doctrine, strategy, and security policy of NATO, EU, and CIS.

Comments to: [email protected]

Left: Royal Netherlands F-16s flying over the West Frisian Islands.

Source: All images from collection of the Netherlands Institute of Military History/RNLA.

Dutch Defence Doctrine The have worked with the Dutch Royal Marines in the Anglo-Dutch Amphibious Force. Dutch have served under British command in Bosnia, they have also served with British troops in and are about to do so in . Marcel de Haas asks - what makes the Dutch tick?

he recently published did not have an overall defence (RNLAF) also published the first ‘The NDD Netherlands Defence doctrine, but the individual version of its Air Power Doctrine includes the Doctrine (NDD) represents Services had developed their own (APD) in 1996. The RNLAF relied current Western thinking doctrines. mainly on the NATO view of the newest doctrinal T on the use of military power as role of air power and the other developments, part of security policy. Marcel de • In the , the Royal elements of air forces as well as Haas describes the development Netherlands Navy (RNLN) on the opinions of the main for instance of the NDD, as well as the central concentrated mainly on tactics Allies. with regard to points of its content. and procedures developed within national security NATO defines military doctrine the context of NATO. In • The Royal Netherlands as ‘fundamental principles by December 2005 it has published Marechaussee (RNLM, and complexities which the military forces guide its own Service doctrine, the constabulary force) does not of current their actions in support of Guideline for Maritime have its own Service doctrine. operations’ objectives’. The function of military Operations (GMO). It relies For its operations abroad, during doctrine is not to draw up a series particularly on NATO’s exercises and on missions, the of specific rules, but to guide the perspective on naval operations RLNM refers to the doctrine of thinking on the use of military and the views of main Allies. the RNLA, the RNLAF and the capability, thus promoting a better RNLN. understanding or unity of opinion. • The Royal Netherlands Military doctrine provides a (RNLA) started publishing Army Over the past few years, the need framework for operational Doctrine Publications (ADPs) in for an integrated defence doctrine activities and contributes to the 1996. In the development of this for the interoperability of a joint/combined series, the RNLA also drew on had increased. In its final report in operation. Furthermore, it the latest NATO doctrine and April 2002, the advisory committee provides information for a wider that of main Allies, and also on the introduction of a joint high audience in respect of the armed opted for a Service-specific (known as the forces’ tasks and deployment translation into Dutch. Franssen Committee) stated that options. joint operations were fast Until now the Netherlands MoD • The Royal Netherlands Air Force becoming the norm and that close, 24-27_Netherlands.qxd 27/2/06 11:22 am Page 3

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internal cooperation in such operations was so vital that an ‘Nowadays, as a overarching doctrine was required. partner of other In order to meet this recognised departments, need, it was proposed that the doctrine be developed for all the the Defence main tasks of the Defence organisation Ministry, using NATO’s doctrine as a basis. The recommendation of fulfils a the Franssen Committee structural role confirmed that a doctrine was one in national of the instruments available to the CDS to fulfil his role as Corporate security’ Operator. The role of the director in respect of doctrine development by and within the Dutch armed Left: Royal forces should, therefore, be given Netherlands Army to the Defence Staff. The RNLA and combat vehicle of RNLAF doctrine publications also SFOR on in need to be revised and the RNLN Bosnia. has recently published the GMO which is the first Service doctrine in line with the NDD. With the disappearance of the -in-chief of the Services and their staffs, in September 2005, the increased responsibility and authority of the CDS and the fact that operations are increasingly shaped by the joint deployment of the RNLN, the RNLA, the RNLAF and the RNLM, it was no longer possible to do Defence White Paper. Main tasks and their without an overall defence The distinction between the operational execution doctrine. For this reason, the policy documents and the various The main tasks of the Dutch armed introduction of the NDD was highly doctrine publications lies forces are: expedient. particularly in the fact that the In many countries the usual policy documents determine the • protecting the integrity of procedure is that Service doctrines ambitions and the capabilities of the national and Allied territory, are drawn from the national armed forces and the doctrine including the Netherlands defence doctrine. However, the publications provide guidance for Antilles and Aruba situation in the Netherlands has the conduct of military operations. until now been different. Because The structure of the NDD is largely • promoting stability and the of this, a significant part of the derived from the British Defence international rule of law contents of the NDD has been Doctrine. The British Armed Forces taken from the existing doctrine can pride themselves on extensive • supporting civil authorities in publications of the various experience of military operations upholding the law, providing Services, underpinned by a and on meticulously written disaster relief and humanitarian strategic foundation from current doctrine publications. It is for that relief, both nationally and policy documents from the reason that a similar structure has internationally. Ministry of Defence, such as the been adopted in the NDD. Partly because of the increasing intertwining of internal and Levels of operation Doctrine publications and policy documents external security, the distinction between the main tasks of the Grand strategy • Policy documents – Minister of Defence armed forces has become blurred over the past few years. The 2000 Military – strategic • Policy documents – Chief of Defence Defence White Paper had already • Netherlands Defence Doctrine (NDD) established that the resources that were necessary for the first and Operational • GMO second main tasks were virtually • ADPs identical, given that defending • APD Alliance territory in practice amounts to regional crisis management at the borders of the Table 1: Hierarchy of Dutch doctrine publications and policy documents Alliance. 24-27_Netherlands.qxd 27/2/06 11:22 am Page 4

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The importance of the third ‘Cooperation main task has increased and the between the link with the first two has become stronger because of the threat of Services in terrorism. The three main tasks of joint operations the Defence organisation can be became so vital extrapolated in a list of more specific Defence tasks. The level of that an ambition – the qualitative and overarching quantitative level at which the Defence organisation wants to be doctrine was able to conduct military activities – required’ deals in terms with the nature of the tasks. In order to bridge the gap between ambition Right: Royal and means, the nature of the tasks Netherlands that Defence needs to be able to Marechaussee perform has to be specified. We refer to ‘Defence tasks’ and not exclusively ‘military tasks’ in order to indicate that the Defence organisation also performs non- military tasks, often at the request and under the control of civil authorities (Table 2). For instance, many activities performed by the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee stem from laws that place the authority for them with Ministers NATO’s invocation of this article become more high profile. It is other than the Minister of Defence. immediately after the terrorist crucial to have military units on attacks on the USA on 11 hand whose level of readiness and First main task and combat September 2001 and the mobility is such that they can be operations subsequent participation of Dutch deployed quickly virtually The protection of the integrity of military units in Operation anywhere in the world as soon as national and allied territory Enduring Freedom in Afghanistan the political decision-making about involves operations in the context and the Persian Gulf. the operation has been completed. of collective defence, as defined in In the context of the first main These units also need to be Article 5 of the NATO treaty. task, operations can also be sufficiently robust to be able to Examples of this are the Allied conducted on the borders of the operate effectively in military defence in the , and also NATO treaty area, if an unstable operations, even in the event of situation there could have escalation. implications for the territorial Depending on the desired integrity of the treaty area. One political and military end state, Netherlands Defence Doctrine such example was the deployment crisis management operations can of Patriot air defence units during be limited in terms of objective, In October 2005 the Dutch Chief of Operation Display Deterrence in assets, area of operations or Defence (CDS) presented the first in 2003. duration. It might be a question of Netherlands Defence Doctrine a specific and limited operation, (NDD) to the Minister of Defence. Second main task and crisis such as the evacuation of non- management operations combatants, for example from The publication marks a move to The aim of the second main task of Côte d’Ivoire in November 2004, or the next phase in the development the Dutch armed forces is to it could be more general and of Dutch military doctrine, which manage or resolve conflicts by longer-term in nature, such as the until then was characterised by the contributing to crisis management Dutch contribution to the Service-specific doctrines. operations. An important aspect in IFOR/SFOR/EUFOR operation in The NDD was distributed widely. this regard is to minimise the risk . Crisis All flag, general and field officers, of escalation by intervening at an management operations could be Cover of the as well as civilians working at the early stage. intended to prevent an armed Netherlands Defence Ministry of Defence in similar The past few decades have seen conflict (for example, the UN Doctrine. functions have received copies. a great many conflicts that have operation UNPREDEP in Together with the original in Dutch, spread or threatened to spread to Macedonia from 1995 to 1999), or an English version of the NDD was neighbouring countries (for to help with the reconstruction of a published. It is also published on example, in the former country after an armed conflict (for the Netherlands MoD’s website and Africa). Conflict prevention, in instance, ISAF in Afghanistan). (http://www.mindef.nl/organisatie/bele which military and civil At different times and in id/doctrine/index.aspx). organisations join forces to try to different places, a crisis nip a conflict in the bud, has management operation can be just 24-27_Netherlands.qxd 27/2/06 11:22 am Page 5

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The fact that the new role of the Defence organisation in the ‘A defence Netherlands comprises more than doctrine was the that of a safety net is demonstrated by the missing link in organisation’s own, usually legally the hierarchy of supported tasks that it performs Dutch defence in respect of national security. This refers to the structural tasks policy papers carried out by Defence on a and Service- permanent basis, as well as to the incidental deployment of specific doctrine high-quality niche capabilities. publications’ The tasks of the Royal Netherlands Marechaussee and the Coastguard for the Netherlands Antilles and Aruba Left: Ratings of the are examples of the national Royal Netherlands Table 2: Deployment of the tasks performed by the Defence Navy on board a armed forces versus organisation on a structural frigate. Defence tasks basis. These are performed under civil authority and under their own operational command. Niche capabilities are specialist capabilities, such as the explosive ordnance disposal service and the Military operations Military Assistance special assistance units, which Aid to Civil Authorities can support the civil authorities Upholding the law Support on a more ad hoc basis to counter specific or more violent threats Command of land, sea and Separating parties Personal security airspace territory Stabilisation Ceremonial duties (for example, bomb threats or Engaging sea, land and air Military support Explosives clearance terrorism). forces Coastguard Host-nation support Securing land, sea and Marechaussee tasks Coastguard Importance of NDD for Dutch airspace territory Verification Military support security policy Protection on land, at sea Emergency assistance and in the air Training foreign units A defence doctrine was the Command and control Disaster response missing link in the hierarchy Evacuation (Hydrography) of Dutch defence policy papers Prevention, forward (Geography) and Service-specific doctrine deployment Special operations publications; the NDD fills this Engaging strategic targets gap. The NDD is as a ‘doctrinal Strategic transport basis’ from which various doctrine Hydrography publications, for instance for the Geography individual Services, will be drawn Strategic military intelligence gathering and developed. Furthermore, the NDD includes the newest national and international doctrinal developments, for instance with regard to national security and the complexity of current as intense as the collective Third main task and national operations. Moreover, the NDD defence of (parts of) the NATO security serves as a guide for operations treaty area. The greater the In conducting all its main tasks by the armed forces as a whole likelihood that the parties in the (protection of territory, and by the individual Services. It conflict will use force against each international crisis management, is expected that the NDD will be other or against the foreign force, support for civil authorities), the an important foundation for the the more robustly the crisis Ministry of Defence contributes to training for and the planning management operation should be national security. Society also and execution of joint military conducted. The international expects the presence of the armed operations by the Netherlands military force must also have a forces in the Netherlands if that Armed Forces in a national or certain level of escalation becomes necessary. It is no longer international context. As a dominance. The basis for this lies simply a question of the Defence connection between defence in the operation’s mandate and the organisation acting as a safety net policy and the conduct of rules of engagement and can be in the event of shortfalls in civil military operations, the NDD expressed in the operation plan, capabilities, but more a matter of highlights how the Defence the composition, the size and/or fulfilling a structural role as a organisation contributes to equipment of the military force. security partner. Dutch security policy.