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New Documents from Dutch Archives

CWIHP e-Dossier #21 - "A mass psychotic movement washing over the country like a wave": Explaining Dutch Reservations About NATO's 1979 Dual-Track Decision, by University of Amsterdam Professor Ruud van Dijk.

CWIHP is pleased to announce the publication of e-Dossier #21, "A mass psychotic movement washing over the country like a wave": Explaining Dutch Reservations About NATO's 1979 Dual-Track Decision, by University of Amsterdam Professor Ruud van Dijk.

Drawing upon newly declassified documents from Dutch archives, University of Amsterdam Professor Ruud van Dijk traces the evolution of Dutch policy and international diplomacy leading up to the 12 December 1979 dual track decision on the modernization of Theater Nuclear Forces (TNF) in Europe. Pressure from the United States and NATO allies to accept TNF modernization, as well as strong Dutch domestic opposition to modernization, placed the Dutch government in a challenging position.

The 16 documents on interactions between Dutch leaders and their alliance peers that form the basis for this e-Dossier provide unique insights not only into Dutch politics, but also into the dynamics of alliance politics and the important role that public opinion within a single country can play in international affairs.

The release of the documents presented in this e-Dossier was occasioned by the 10-12 December 2009 international conference The Euromissiles Conference and the End of the Cold War, hosted by the Machiavelli Center for Cold War Studies (CIMA) at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Rome, Italy.

Click here to read e-Dossier 21.

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