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ZOETERMEER, the Netherlands, April 23 (Reuters) – The Netherlands is facing the greatest threat to its national security since the end of World \u200cWar Two, chiefly from Russia and China, against the backdrop of \u200ca much more “unpredictable” world order, Dutch intelligence agency AIVD said on Thursday.<\/p>\n
“In the 80 years of \u200bour existence, we have not seen a threat level like the current one, where national security has been put under pressure from so many sides at once, for such a long time,” AIVD director Simone Smit said at the presentation \u200cof the agency’s annual report.<\/p>\n
“We \u2060see an unstable and unpredictable world order, after decades where stability and predictability were the foundation of prosperity and peace.”<\/p>\n
As \u2060in past years, the AIVD stressed the threats to the Netherlands, a founder member of both NATO and the European Union, emanating from Russia and China.<\/p>\n
It said \u200bRussia had \u200bbecome even more aggressive against Western \u200bcountries including the Netherlands, mainly through \u200ccyber attacks.<\/p>\n
“Russia is preparing for a long confrontation with the West,” the AIVD said. “As a consequence, a military conflict between Russia and the West is no longer unthinkable.”<\/p>\n
Russia denies any plan to attack NATO countries but accuses what it calls the “collective West” of threatening its own national security, especially through its \u200cfinancial and military support for Ukraine.<\/p>\n
The AIVD \u200bsaid China was continuing “illegal” efforts to acquire advanced \u200btechnological expertise in its push “to \u200breshape the world order .. to better serve its own interests”.<\/p>\n
The \u200cAIVD has long labeled China as \u200bthe largest threat to \u200bDutch economic security, and said that threat had deepened in 2025.<\/p>\n
China denies acting illegally in pursuit of its economic interests or posing any \u200bthreat to Western countries.<\/p>\n
Domestically, \u200cjihadist and far-right groups pose the main security threat in the Netherlands, \u200bwith both groups gaining a worrying popularity among some young \u200bpeople, the agency said.<\/p>\n
(Reporting by Bart Meijer)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n