It all started with the Conference of NATO Member Parliamentarians at NATO headquarters in Paris from July 18 to 22, 1955, seventy years ago next month. Delegation leaders from 25 NATO member states, including fifteen parliamentary presidents, gathered on Friday, June 20, in the Belgian Chamber of Representatives to reflect on seven decades of allied parliamentary diplomacy. Extensive discussions were also held in Brussels about the upcoming NATO summit of heads of government in The Hague. Representing the Dutch parliament was First Chamber President Jan Anthonie Bruijn.
Democratic Foundations
The President of the Belgian Chamber of Representatives, Peter De Roover, and Vincent Blondel, President of the Belgian Senate, welcomed the participants. De Roover stated: Especially in these turbulent times, it is good to have friends. A certainty that we are not alone and that like-minded nations - with respect for each others autonomy and all the differences that naturally exist - will row in the same boat when it really matters.
NATO PA President Marcos Perestrello referred in his opening speech to the founders in 1955: They came together with one firm conviction: NATOs commitment to collective defense must be firmly anchored in the democratic foundations of the alliance. This requires the active involvement of allied citizens through their elected representatives. He continued: For 70 years, this Assembly has voiced the concerns of allied citizens and has helped strengthen our NATO alliance. For 70 years, we have made it clear to our citizens that NATO is the essential foundation for the security of Europe and North America.
Warning from Max van der Stoel
First Chamber President Jan Anthonie Bruijn referred in his speech to Max van der Stoel, one of the most illustrious Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Netherlands and former member of the First Chamber.
Bruijn said: In 1961, Van der Stoel warned during a debate on the defense budget about the expansive nature of the Soviet Union and its allies. He also expressed concerns about the growing anti-NATO sentiment in the Netherlands. Finally, he urged the Dutch government to defend the credibility of the alliance. And here we are, 64 years later. The issues Van der Stoel raised have never been more urgent than now. The war in Ukraine has shocked us all. Europe is now at the heart of brutal aggression.
According to Bruijn, the NATO Parliamentary Assembly is crucial because parliamentary oversight in matters of war and peace is essential. He referred to active Dutch parliamentarians in the Assembly, such as Bert Koenders, who served as NATO PA President from 2006-2007, who have helped shape what the Assembly is today: a parliamentary forum grounded in freedom, security, and solidarity. A testament that the NATO PA is just as important today as it was seventy years ago, said Bruijn.
A day before the conference, on Thursday, June 19, 2025, the parliamentary presidents were received at NATO headquarters for a networking event looking ahead to the NATO summit in The Hague.