Eurodéfense-Nederland

Date of creation : 1995

Honorary President : Wim van Eekelen

President: Ernst van Hoek

Secretary-general : Bart Brouwers

Email : ednl@eurodefense.nl

The President

Dr Ernst van Hoek worked at the Ministry of Defence (1970-2005) of The Netherlands. He has in his career focused on science and technology and international cooperation. After studying Nuclear Physics at the VU University Amsterdam, he joined LEOK, the Laboratory for Electronic Developments for the Armed Forces. Through LEOK he joined a NATO group “Improved Hawk Guided Missile System”. Between 1976-1985 he was detached to the NATO Hawk Management Office near Paris, first as missile expert, then as Head of Industrial Division.

In 1985 he returned to the Ministry of Defence, Directorate of Scientific Research and Development (DWOO). In 1989 he was appointed Director there. Ernst van Hoek was active in both NATO and European (IEPG, later WEAG) R&D collaboration. As chairman of the NATO Defence Research Group, he was instrumental in setting up the NATO RTO (later STO).

In 1997 he became the first director of the NATO Research & Technology Agency (RTA) in Neuilly, France. In 2000 he returned to his old job at the Netherlands MoD. When The Netherlands had to provide the chairmanship of the WEAG (part of the WEU) from 2002 till 2005, Ernst van Hoek was awarded this position. After that, Ernst van Hoek represented TNO in Brussels and advised NIDV for several years. He has been participating in Eurodefense Nederland from 2001 onwards.

The Secretary General

Bart Brouwers is a secretary at CAOP, in which capacity he supports reorganisations and Human Ressources processes at the Dutch Ministry of Defense. He has completed his Bachelor in History from the University of Amsterdam, and Master in International Relations in Historical Perspective from the University of Utrecht. During his studies his primary focus was on laying connections between historically developed national identities and contemporary European politics. After his studies he became a member of Eurodefense Netherlands in 2020 and secretary not long after. Besides this he is also active as editor for VN Forum, the magazine of the Dutch Association for the United Nations, and policy contributor to the political party Volt.