Can Netherlands and India become 'made for each other' :::: Can New Delhi stall supply of arms to Pakistan from the European nation ?

Turkey and China are in news. Of course they have stuck to Pakistan albeit for different reasons. Turkey even forgot Indian sensibilities and past help !!

A recurrent theme of diplomacy always is the clash of interests.

Taking the debate little away; one can say while India has a strength in its diversity - some European and for that matter western countries have homogeneity of cultures. A few years Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his visit to Germany ( a powerful European nation) had said both India and Germany are made for each other.

Can something be workable vis-a-vis India-Netherlands visit.

Dr S Jaishankar just visited Netherlands and therein during a TV interview - the very first question he was posed : "Why Netherlands" for a visit now.

The context is serious. India just had a conflict with Pakistan and it should rather do diplomacy with the big players.

This is a situation where one can say -- the size does not matter.  

In India the national interests on the backdrop of foreign policy are growth, development and the aspirations to be a key Asian and if possible global player. In Netherlands and in many other European countries; the economic well-being and an open society are crucial elements. 

For Netherlands; the welfare also depends on international free trade. Here came Pakistan.

For Netherlands, Pakistan is the 6th largest non-European economic partner and 13th largest economic partner trading partner in the world. 

Pakistan does lot of defence procurement especially naval assets from Netherlands. Mine hunters are some of them. Even in 2021, Pakistan bought two 'second hand' naval mine hunters from Netherlands. 

Deals have been also inked for warships. In 2024 two warships were brought in and also commissioned. 

Dutch shipbuilder Damen built PNS Yarmook was commissioned in Feb 2020 while PNS Tabuk was commissioned on 12 November 2020. Batch-II ships are based on Damen OPV 2600. These ships are armed with AShM and anti-air systems.

External Affairs Minister Dr S. Jaishankar is on a visit to three European countries, which include Denmark and Germany as well as the Netherlands. In the 6-day tour, he first reached the Netherlands on May 19. 

This is Dr Jaishankar’s first foreign visit after Operation Sindoor and he started his tour from Pakistan’s second largest arms supplier. 

In March, international media reported that India has called on the Netherlands to suspend military exports to Pakistan, citing threats to regional security and allegations of terrorism support. 

Actually, Dr Jaishankar is only doing a follow up of what was started by Defence Minister Rajnath Singh in March.  

Rajnath Singh had pressed his Dutch counterpart Ruben Brekelmans (in New Delhi) to reconsider arms shipments, arguing that they enhance Pakistan’s ability to destabilize the region.

The request stems from India’s longstanding claim that Pakistan backs insurgent/militant groups and also terrorists who are trained and sheltered in Pakistan.

Rajnath Singh has also proposed expanding defense ties between New Delhi and Amsterdam.