Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende is to give a second series of interviews in English exclusively for Radio Netherlands Worldwide. Speaking for a world audience he will set out his view of the Netherlands’ role in the international political arena.

The interview series hosted by RNW’s Brussels correspondent Vanessa Mock will be subtitled in Spanish, Indonesian, French, Arabic, Chinese and Dutch. Topics will range from cabinet decisions to the Dutch mission in Afghanistan, European cooperation and international terrorism. The first of this year’s video interviews with the Christian Democrat prime minister will appear on RNW’s website on 22 January.

Mr Balkenende recently came under fierce criticism in the Netherlands for his response to the Dutch Iraq inquiry. In an initial speech he dismissed the commission’s findings that in 2002 his centre-right government withheld intelligence information from parliament and gave its backing to an illegal invasion. Opposition protests forced him to backtrack. However, Labour Deputy Prime Minister Wouter Bos said at the weekend the row had left the three-party coalition in a fragile state.

The prime minister has been in office since 2002 and currently heads his fourth coalition government.

See RNW’s 2009 series of interviews with Jan Peter Balkenende here. 

© Radio Netherlands Worldwide