Dutch PM Jetten refuses to rule out cooperation with MP Markuszower

Prime Minister Rob Jetten said that MP Gidi Markuszower had placed himself “outside the constructive forces” after the right‑wing politician called for “maximum violence” to stop Palestinian refugees, a comment he later claimed referred to the Royal Marechaussee and did not fully retract. Coalition parties D66, VVD and CDA condemned the remarks but stopped short of outright excluding Markuszower from future cooperation.

Opposition figures Jesse Klaver (GroenLinks‑PvdA) and Esther Ouwehand (Party for the Animals) demanded that Jetten explicitly break ties with Markuszower, describing the premier’s stance as “bewildering” and warning that it normalises extremist rhetoric. The debate unfolded amid the coalition’s reliance on the splinter PVV faction to secure votes on issues such as the proposed increase in the state pension age, a plan the cabinet eventually abandoned.