AMSTERDAM: US President Donald Trump’s new envoy to the Netherlands said on Friday a comment he made two years ago about Dutch politicians being set on fire by Muslim immigrants was “just wrong,” two days after he refused to answer questions about what he had said.
In an interview with the newspaper Telegraaf, Pete Hoekstra, a former Republican congressman for Michigan appointed by Trump as ambassador, apologized for the 2015 statement.
“The Islamic movement is now gotten to a point where they have put Europe into chaos,” Hoekstra had said at a November 2015 event sponsored by the right-wing David Horowitz Freedom Center gathering, which was recorded.
He added: “There are politicians that are being burned.”
Reflecting on his remarks, Hoekstra told the Telegraaf: “That one shocked me personally ... While you know there have been other issues in other countries in Europe, you know that has never been the circumstances here. That was a wrong statement. That was just wrong.”
The interview emerged two days after he angered the Dutch press by refusing to answer questions about the remarks at a meeting with reporters. It coincides with a furor ignited by Trump himself who reportedly referred to various countries as “*hithole countries,” although he later denied this.
Under Secretary of State Steve Goldstein told a briefing on Thursday the State Department “does not agree” with Hoekstra’s remarks about Muslim migrants in the Netherlands.
“The ambassador made mistakes in 2015, made comments that should not have been made. He recognizes that,” Goldstein said. “We have made clear to the ambassador that he must move to get this behind him. And he definitely understands that. He feels great remorse.”
Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte told journalists in The Hague on Friday he too disagreed with the comments, but declined to elaborate.
In December, Hoekstra denied making the 2015 remarks, telling the Dutch television program Nieuwsuur it was “an incorrect statement ... fake news.” Later in the same interview, he denied calling it fake news.
Trump’s envoy to Netherlands admits Muslim comment was ‘just wrong’
Trump’s envoy to Netherlands admits Muslim comment was ‘just wrong’
Italian PM pledges to deepen cooperation with African states
- The plan, launched in 2024, aims to promote investment-led cooperation rather than traditional aid
ADDIS ABABA: Italy pledged to deepen cooperation with African countries at its second Italy-Africa summit, the first held on African soil, to review projects launched in critical sectors such as energy and infrastructure during Italy’s first phase of the Mattei Plan for Africa.
The plan, launched in 2024, aims to promote investment-led cooperation rather than traditional aid.
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni addressed dozens of African heads of state and governments in Ethiopia’s capital, Addis Ababa, and reiterated that a successful partnership would depend on Italy’s “ability to draw from African wisdom” and ensure lessons are learned.
“We want to build things together,” she told African heads of state. “We want to be more consistent with the needs of the countries involved.”
Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed said Italy had provided Africa with a gateway to Europe through these partnerships.
“This is a moment to move from dialogue to action,” he said.
“By combining Africa’s energetic and creative population with Europe’s experience, technology, and capital, we can build solutions that deliver prosperity to our continents and beyond.”
After the Italy-Africa summit concluded, African leaders remained in Addis Ababa for the annual African Union Summit.
Kenyan writer and political analyst Nanjala Nyabola said tangible results from such summits depend on preparations made by countries.
African governments often focus on “optics instead of actually making summits a meaningful engagement,” she said.
Instead of waiting for a list of demands, countries should “present the conclusions of an extended period of mapping the national needs” and engage in dialogue to determine how those needs can be met.
Since it was launched two years ago, the Mattei Plan has directly involved 14 African nations and has launched or advanced around 100 projects in crucial sectors, including energy and climate transition, agriculture and food security, physical and digital infrastructure, healthcare, water, culture and education, training, and the development of artificial intelligence, according to the Italian government.
