Dutch Foreign Policy. the Role of the Netherlands in World Politics

International Relations Studies Series, 6 (International Studies Library, 14) Since the publication in 1995 of the first Dutch language edition of Dutch Foreign Policy, the book has become a standard work about Dutch foreign policy. Both the first and later editions of the book have been commended for their ordered clarity. The work describes the fortunes of a power that, in spite of its limited size, was able to maintain its role as a centre of trade and colonial power up to the Second World War by exercising a policy of caution and free trade. After the war and a difficult process of de-colonialism, the Netherlands joined NATO. It became one of the founding fathers of European integration. To this day, the Netherlands is a state which plays an important role on the world's stage, actively participates in peace missions and relatively speaking, spends a great deal on foreign aid. Table of Contents Foreword 1 The rise and fall of a Great Power - From the sixteenth to the end of the nineteenth century 2 Decades of crisis and war - From the late nineteenth century to 1940 3 Impasse - The years 1940-1948 4 Change of direction - The years 1948-1952 5 Frustration and renewal - The years 1952-1963 6 Heyday of Atlanticism - The years 1960-1971 7 Change and continuity - The years 1971-1977 8 Consolidation and conservatism - The years 1977-1989 9 Hesitant reorientation - The years 1989-1998 10 Fading perspectives - The years after 1998 Epilogue Bibliography Index About the Author(s)/Editor(s) Duco Hellema is professor of the History of International Relations in the History Department at Utrecht University. He has published extensively on Dutch Foreign policy and post Second World War international relations.