March 22, 2025 (EIRNS)—The Netherlands is weighing a major expansion of its military forces, with the total number of personnel potentially rising to 200,000, Dutch public broadcasting system Nederlandse Omroep Stichting (NOS) reported on March 21.
At present, the Ministry of Defense employs approximately 75,000 people, including both military and civilian staff, and maintains a reserve force of about 8,000. However, State Secretary for Defense Gijs Tuinman had reportedly cited the 200,000 figure during a recent closed-door meeting with labor unions and ministry officials, according to NOS.
In January, Tuinman publicly acknowledged that the Dutch Defense Ministry has a plan to increase the size of the armed forces by at least 25%. “We are currently at about 74,000 people, a medium-sized city,” he said at the time. “That is quite a lot, but it must quickly grow to 100,000 men.”
Tuinman rejected mandatory military service, adding that the ministry is focusing on voluntary recruitment and the recently introduced “service year” program, which allows young people to work in defense roles for a year.
