Don't touch my defense?
(BRUSSELS2) The Batavian army should be no more than a shadow of itself within a few years. The Netherlands has already adopted a savings target of 1 billion euros over 4 years (250 million per year). The effort will focus on the men and women of Defence: 12.000 budget posts must be eliminated. And no one is in a hurry to go against these economies. The trade unions - The Netherlands authorize the unionization of the military - have moreover launched a campaign "Hands off the defence". But there is still a long way to go to counter an increasingly strong feeling in public opinion, which considers that even if it means saving money, you might as well do it on Defense, the ideal place to exert pressure. The electoral campaign has started; the early renewal of Parliament is scheduled for September. And few political parties (except the liberals of the VVD) have no idea how to save on defence.