Dutch Euroskeptics Win the Day

Dutch Euroskeptics Win the Day

Posted by: Judy Dempsey

Thursday, April 7, 2016 | http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/?fa=63265&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTWpRMU5UUXlZMkpsWlRobSIsInQiOiJ3aFlNOFZ0XC83TEpFT3VOTjBKS1ZSMldwXC9GM0hmazUxYWlwWnpMUEI3NlR3OFwvaFIyNkRobEpaNUJQTWpYeDM0TTBcLzdxeWVGcDd5RXN6V3U4N01Ba3FRUFM0ZWFXWmJock15Q0RPOEhzZ2M9In0%3D

In the first referendum of its kind, Dutch voters on April 6 rejected a far-reaching EU trade and political accord with Ukraine. Roughly 64 percent of voters opposed the EU-Ukraine Association Agreement, while 36 percent supported it, according to preliminary results. As if that were not bad enough for the Dutch government, the turnout was over 30 percent, the minimum required to make the referendum valid.
Even though the result is nonbinding, the reality is that neither Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte nor the EU can ignore it. This is because the outcome is a vote against European integration. It is a fillip for Euroskeptics across the bloc. It will give a big boost to Brexit supporters, who want Britain to leave the EU when the UK votes in its own referendum in June. And it is a very welcome present for Russian President Vladimir Putin, who seeks a weakened and divided EU.
Viewed from outside, the EU, which is already split over the refugee crisis and nowhere near out of the woods with regard to the eurozone crisis, is fragmenting instead of integrating.http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/?fa=63265&mkt_tok=eyJpIjoiTWpRMU5UUXlZMkpsWlRobSIsInQiOiJ3aFlNOFZ0XC83TEpFT3VOTjBKS1ZSMldwXC9GM0hmazUxYWlwWnpMUEI3NlR3OFwvaFIyNkRobEpaNUJQTWpYeDM0TTBcLzdxeWVGcDd5RXN6V3U4N01Ba3FRUFM0ZWFXWmJock15Q0RPOEhzZ2M9In0%3D