Dutch Government Launches International AI Strategy

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is fundamentally reshaping the geopolitical landscape. With a new international AI strategy, the Dutch government sets out how it wants to work with international partners to contribute to a safe, fair and responsible AI transition, protecting our shared values while unlocking AI's benefits for societies. Minister of Foreign Affairs Berendsen, Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation Sjoerdsma, and Minister for Digital Economy and Sovereignty Aerdts submitted the strategy to the House of Representatives today.

Opportunities and risks

AI offers significant opportunities for strengthening our security, from cyber resilience to defence innovation. The government also wants to strengthen European AI capacity and infrastructure, improve international market access for AI providers, and deepen international cooperation on research, innovation and talent.

At the same time, there are shared risks that no single country can address alone. The dependency of Europe's AI infrastructure on a small number of non-European providers comes with economic and security risks in a changing geopolitical environment. The government wants to work with European and like-minded partners to reduce strategic dependencies in the global AI value chain and strengthen collective resilience. AI also makes it easier for malicious actors, such as criminals and hostile states, to attack digital infrastructure and spread disinformation at scale. This is a risk that undermines trust in democratic institutions and calls for coordinated international action.

Concrete actions

By working together with like-minded partners, the Netherlands wants to help shape how AI is used worldwide: safely, fairly and with respect for people. Decisions made in international AI negotiations ultimately affect societies everywhere. The government will therefore focus on three lines of action:

• Targeted diplomatic efforts, in Brussels, contributing to effective and workable European AI legislation and regulation; and globally, by investing in diplomatic knowledge and skills on AI to support substantive dialogue with partners.
• New coalitions and partnerships, to protect shared values, prevent misuse of AI and strengthen innovation. The Netherlands wants to build new partnerships with like-minded countries worldwide.
• Strengthening European AI capacity and infrastructure, to build a stronger shared knowledge base on the opportunities and risks of AI, enabling the Netherlands and its international partners to jointly shape the global AI agenda and strengthen industry on both sides.