Lying Dutchman: Netherlands’ FM Loses His Job For Spreading Fake News About Putin

Foreign Minister of the Netherlands Halbe Zijlstra was going to fly to Moscow tomorrow. He planned to meet Sergey Lavrov and discuss bilateral relationships. Alas, he's not coming. A couple of hours ago, he announced his resignation. He personally admitted that his reputation had been damaged beyond repair and he wouldn't be able to continue his work. The Parliament opposition urged him to do that. They called for a public discussion whether Zijlstra is fit for such an important position after being caught openly lying. The issue is a point of hot debate in the Old World.

It appears he faked a story of a meeting with Vladimir Putin in his country house in 2006, where the President allegedly called Ukraine, Belarus, the Baltic countries, and Kazakhstan the parts of 'Greater Russia', sharing his imperialistic ambitions. The meeting was vividly discussed in the European media. The word "made up" doesn't really describe the situation. It appears the original source of the story is the former CEO of Shell Jeroen van der Veer.

Anna Redkina will tell us why he needed to fake the story.

- An odd lie coming from a well-respected entrepreneur.

- Well, the recent hacker attack story showed that things might get even worse. Halbe Zijlstra, a traditional lying Dutchman. A picture fit for comic star sketches. During the last several days, our hero assumed many roles. The television is trying to keep up with the Web. The large-scale political fantasy was discussed today even in a popular sports show.

"Do you believe Zijlstra actually met Vladimir Putin or was he imagining things? Did he think Putin would invite him for a ride on the presidential plane?"

But the issue turned out to be more serious than the jokes about the topic. 24 hours after his confession, the actions of Halbe Zijlstra are being thoroughly discussed in the Parliament. However, a vote of confidence wasn't necessary: At the beginning of the debates, the failed minister announced his resignation.

Halbe Zijlstra, Foreign Minister (Netherlands): "Lying about meeting with President Putin was the biggest mistake of my political career. "I agree that the Netherlands deserves a foreign minister who is above any doubt".

Critics claim he got off cheap. Many wanted to see the politician answer awkward questions, such as why he needed to lie and why he kept insisting to the last. The information about that very meeting was shared by a reliable source whose name was not to be disclosed for security reasons. However, one day later the former CEO of Shell Jeroen van der Veer made an open statement. The story happened to be only partially true.

Joost Niemöller, political analyst: “It's not about whether he met Vladimir Putin in 2006. What matters most is how he used the fake story later on. The story of the Russian President thinking about expanding his country's borders absorbing the neighbor countries was used multiple times for agitation purposes. We, the Dutch, must fear the Russians. They want war and we'd better prepared for it".

Sounds familiar, doesn't it? A great legend to justify the expansion of the military budget. And don’t forget about their NATO buddies. The cyber space conflicts could also use such fake news. It's clear why the distinguished audience didn't have an issue with just a single character.

Ebru Umar, journalist: "At first, our mainstream media were trying to save him. Somebody even fall for their justification. They claimed no one could be labeled a liar based on a single occurrence that happened twelve years ago. It's nonsense, but there's a more important issue. It appears we don't have a concept of "news" anymore. Politicians lie, and journalists don't check the information".

There's still a chance to belie everything later. Or fire the failed politician as collateral damage. But what if it turns out to be even worse?

Igor Shatrov, political analyst: "They instantly begin supporting. And then all the insinuations that they've been spreading happen to harm their political system and the image of the politicians. These signals mean that the Europeans have their own pride and insist on having their own foreign policy".

Perhaps the story of Dutch Minister Halbe Zijlstra will set a political trend for this year: It's not out of date to lie in Europe.

The origin of the rumors covered by Anna Redkina.