The Political Section monitors, analyses and reports back to London on Dutch views on the major EU and foreign policy issues and on political developments in the Netherlands. It also lobbies the Dutch Government to ensure that the UK Government's position is well understood and to support British positions in the European Union, NATO, the UN and other international fora.

We act as a resource for the whole of British Government, with our work contributing to the FCO's departmental strategic objectives (DSO) 5 "Counter terrorism, weapons proliferation and their causes", DSO 6 "Prevent and resolve conflict" and DSO 8 "Develop effective international institutions, above all the UN and EU".  Our main activity in recent years has included:

• Foreign and security policy issues - Western Balkans, Afghanistan, Iraq and Iran
• Human rights issues and assistance to developing countries - with a major focus on Africa, and Sudan in particular
• EU issues - the Reform Treaty, enlargement, and the Common Foreign and Security Policy (CFSP)
• Reform of the UN
• Justice and home affairs issues - drugs and organised crime, asylum and immigration, integration, radicalisation and counter-terrorism
• Implications for the UK of developments in Dutch politics