Gijs Tuinman

Gijs Tuinman
RMWO
Tuinman as Lieutenant Colonel
State Secretary for Defence
Incumbent
Assumed office
2 July 2024
Prime MinisterDick Schoof
MinisterRuben Brekelmans
Preceded byChristophe van der Maat
Member of the House of Representatives
In office
6 December 2023 – 1 July 2024
Personal details
Born
Gijs Pepijn Tuinman

(1979-11-15) 15 November 1979 (age 44)
Heerlen, Netherlands
Political partyFarmer–Citizen Movement
Children1
Residence(s)Oud-Beijerland, Netherlands
Education
Awards
Military service
Allegiance Netherlands
Branch/serviceRoyal Netherlands Army
Years of service1998–2012, 2013–2023
Rank Lieutenant Colonel
UnitKorps Commandotroepen
Battles/warsWar in Afghanistan

Gijs Pepijn Tuinman RMWO (pronounced [ˈɣɛis pəˈpɛin ˈtœymɑn]; born 15 November 1979)[1] is a Dutch military officer and politician of the Farmer–Citizen Movement (BBB), who has served as State Secretary for Defence in the Schoof cabinet since July 2024. He was a member of the House of Representatives in the preceding seven months. Tuinman is one of the only three living knights (4th class) of the Military Order of William, the oldest and highest order of chivalry of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Biography

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Gijs Tuinman was born in 1979 in Heerlen, Limburg, where he attended the Bernardinuscollege from 1992 to 1998. In 1998, he went to the Royal Military Academy in Breda. In 2001, he became a platoon commander in the Korps Commandotroepen to be.[1] By 2009, he had been on at least five deployments to Afghanistan, several to Africa and other missions.[2] On 7 October 2009, for a mission in 2006, he was awarded the Bronze Lion, the second highest military decoration awarded by Queen Beatrix.[3]

From 2009 to 2012, he worked as a special operations policy advisor at the Ministry of Defence in The Hague. After this, he became a 'civilian' consultant at Deloitte. He returned to military duty in 2013.[1][4]

Military Order of William

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On 4 December 2014 at the Binnenhof in The Hague, Tuinman was knighted by King Willem-Alexander, receiving the fourth class knighthood of the Military Order of William. The King referred to Tuinman and Epke Zonderland in his Christmas speech in 2014.

Politics

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He was elected to the House of Representatives in November 2023 as the third candidate of the Farmer–Citizen Movement, and he became the BBB's spokesperson for foreign affairs, trade, defense, and kingdom relations.[5][6] Tuinman told in February 2024 – during the Russian invasion of Ukraine – on BNR Nieuwsradio that he believed the Netherlands should more actively support NATO's defense of Central and Eastern Europe against Russia. He suggested Dutch soldiers should be permanently stationed in Lithuania or Poland.[7]

After the PVV, VVD, NSC, and BBB formed the Schoof cabinet, Tuinman was sworn in as State State Secretary for Defence on 2 July 2024.[5][8] His portfolio includes personnel, materiel, real estate, defence industry, IT and innovation, physical and social security, and resilience.[9] In September 2024, Tuinman and Minister Ruben Brekelmans announced €2.4 billion in increased yearly funding for the Netherlands Armed Forces. Coalition parties agreed to increase defense spending to adhere to the NATO norm of 2% of GDP in response the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The additional funding would go towards attracting more personnel and the purchase of munitions, 50 Leopard 2A8 battle tanks, six F-35 fighter jets, two Anti-Submarine Warfare Frigates, and several NH90 military helicopters. The Netherlands had been left without tanks since 2011 because of budget cuts.[10][11]

Electoral history

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Electoral history of Gijs Tuinman
Year Body Party Pos. Votes Result Ref.
Party seats Individual
2023 House of Representatives Farmer–Citizen Movement 3 5,834 7 Won [12]

Decorations

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References

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  1. ^ a b c Gijs Tuinman, held tegen wil en dank, de Volkskrant, 20 October 2014.
  2. ^ Bescheiden maar doeltreffend, Defensiekrant, 24 October 2014.
  3. ^ Onderscheidingen aan Nederlanders voor deelnames aan internationale Vredesoperaties, Onderscheidingen.nl. Bezocht op 31 October 2014.
  4. ^ Curriculum vitae majoor Gijs Tuinman, defensie.nl
  5. ^ a b "Ridder Gijs Tuinman wordt staatssecretaris op 'zijn' departement" [Knight Gijs Tuinman will become state secretary for 'his' department]. NOS (in Dutch). 13 June 2024. Retrieved 15 June 2024.
  6. ^ "Gijs Tuinman". Farmer–Citizen Movement (in Dutch). Retrieved 15 May 2024.
  7. ^ Kock, Remy (5 February 2024). "BBB: 'Nederlandse krijgsmacht moet grondig gereorganiseerd worden'" [BBB: 'Dutch military should be thoroughly reorganized']. BNR Nieuwsradio (in Dutch). Retrieved 5 February 2024.
  8. ^ "Ministers en staatssecretarissen kabinet-Schoof beëdigd" [Ministers and state secretaries of Schoof cabinet sworn in]. NOS (in Dutch). 2 July 2024. Retrieved 2 July 2024.
  9. ^ "Gijs Tuinman". Government of the Netherlands (in Dutch). Retrieved 5 July 2024.
  10. ^ "Defensienota: leger redt het niet met alleen beroepsmilitairen en reservisten" [Defense memo: Army needs more than just professional soldiers and reservists]. NOS (in Dutch). 5 September 2024. Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  11. ^ Derix, Steven (5 September 2024). "Tanks, vliegtuigen en fregatten zijn niet genoeg: defensie heeft de samenleving nodig" [Tanks, aircraft, and frigates are not enough: Defense needs society]. NRC (in Dutch). Retrieved 7 September 2024.
  12. ^ "Proces-verbaal van de uitslag van de verkiezing van de Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal 2023 d.d. 4 december 2023" [Report of the results of the election of the House of Representatives on 4 December 2023] (PDF). Dutch Electoral Council (in Dutch). 4 December 2023. pp. 125–182, 245. Retrieved 21 December 2023.
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Political offices
Preceded by State Secretary for Defence
2024–present 		Incumbent
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