The far-right leader of the Netherlands, Geert Wilders, winner of last November's general elections, resigned this Wednesday to be prime minister. “I can only become prime minister if all parties in the coalition support me. This is not the case,” the Islamophobic politician tweeted.
Wilders' resignation unravels negotiations for the formation of a coalition government between the four conservative parties that have been trying for four months to find a formula to replace the Executive headed provisionally by the liberal Mark Rutte. This is Wilders' far-right PPV; the Christian Democrat NSC, led by Pieter Omtzigt; the right-liberal VVD, led by Dilan Yeşilgöz; and the BBB farmers' party, by Caroline van der Plas.
The newspaper De Telegraaf reported this Wednesday that Wilders' step aside would also be accompanied by the resignation of the other three leaders of the coalition from becoming premier.
Former social democratic senator Kim Putters, who acts as a mediator between the four conservative parties to reach a programmatic government agreement, announced that the leaders of these parties are willing to take “the next step.” Putters must present a report to Parliament this week with the results of the negotiations.
The same newspaper assured that the formula of the next executive could be what is known in the Netherlands as “extra-parliamentary government”, where the four right-wing parties would provide ministers who would cohabit with other more technocratic ones who would not be directly linked to the parliamentary majority.
Wilders' decision and negotiations to form a new government accelerated after Rutte's name was put forward as a likely future NATO secretary general, a position that could be decided in April.
