FORA.tv Speaker - Eimert van Middelkoop

The Honorable Eimert Van Middelkoop attended Erasmus University where he obtained a bachelor's degree in sociology in 1971. In the years 1971 and 1972, he was a teacher at the Reformed Social Academy in Zwolle. In 1989, Mr. Van Middelkoop became a member of the Netherlands House of Representatives. He initially was a member of the Reformed Political Alliance until 2000, where he joined the Christian Union, a party formed by merging the Reformed Political Alliance and Reformatory Political Federation. As a parliamentarian he specialized in foreign and military affairs. Mr. Van Middelkoop led the investigation of a special committee investigating the role of the Netherlands in the fall of Srebrenica. From 2003 until 2007, Mr. Van Middelkoop was a member of the Senate. In the 2006 elections, the party doubled its seats and joined the fourth Balkenende cabinet. Mr. Van Middelkoop became minister of defense in 2007.