Less recruits as risks in foreign missions increase 14/04/2008 00:00

Lieutenant-Colonel Brouwer said the increased risks faced by the Dutch mission to Afghanistan have led to less people joining the Armed Forces.

14 April 2008

In an interview broadcast on Sunday evening by the Dutch current affairs programme Zembla, a Lieutenant-Colonel said the increased risks faced by the Dutch mission to Afghanistan have led to a reduction in the number of people joining the Armed Forces.

Lieutenant-Colonel Brouwer, head of recruitment for the air force, said whenever there's a violent incident in Uruzgan, they see a 25 percent reduction in people joining up.

In the past, the Ministry of Defence has denied that there is any link between the number of new recruits and reports of casualties in Uruzgan, but has now admitted that there is after all a direct correlation.

At the moment, the Ministry has 6,000 vacancies and the response to recruitment campaigns has been disappointing.

According to Zembla, the shortage of new recruits is putting serious pressure on the Dutch military's ability to participate in foreign peacekeeping operations.

[Radio Netherlands / Expatica]