News / EU

Dutch lawmakers urge military to join US-led airstrikes in Syria

Friday, 04 December 2015 5:45 AM [ Last Update: Friday, 04 December 2015 5:46 AM ]

An image grab taken from a handout video released on November 17, 2015 by France purportedly shows French warplanes bombing operational sites at a stronghold of the Takfiri Daesh terrorists in Raqqah, Syria. (Photo by AFP)

Several Dutch lawmakers have called on the government of the Netherlands to join the US-led coalition that is involved in a bombing campaign against purported positions of the Takfiri Daesh terrorists in Syria.

The lawmakers made the plea at a meeting of the Parliament’s Commission for Foreign Affairs late Thursday.

"As far as we are concerned it's high time action is taken against IS (Daesh) in Syria," said lawmaker Raymond de Roon from the far-right Freedom Party (PVV) at the Thursday meeting.

Han ten Broeke of the People’s Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) also said that it "will be good to see a stop being put to IS's Syrian pipeline."

The Netherlands deployed four F-16 warplanes to Iraq in October 2014 to bomb what was announced as Daesh targets.

Foreign Minister Bert Koenders also told the lawmakers that France and the United States have asked the Netherlands to join the operations in Syria.

Koenders said the Netherlands has already been "very active" in the fight against Daesh, but the government would only join the bombing campaign after "all military and political aspects" of the Syria conflict have been addressed.

A British Royal Air Force Tornado GR4 aircraft takes off from the RAF airbase in Norfolk, east England, on December 3, 2015 to be deployed for Syria operation. (AFP photo)

The pressure on the Dutch government came after Britain decided on December 2 to join the so-called anti-Daesh campaign. The UK bombers conducted the first combat sortie on Thursday, attacking oilfields in eastern Syria.

Russia welcomed the move, but called for a broader coalition that would include Moscow, the West and some Middle Eastern states and would work with an approval from the Syrian government.

Moscow started its airstrikes against Daesh positions in Syria on September 30, following a request from Damascus. Russia says the Western campaign is not legal since it lacks either a formal request from Damascus or a UN Security Council mandate.

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