Ben Bot
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Bernard Rudolf "Ben" Bot (Script error: No such module "IPA".; born 21 November 1937) is a Dutch retired politician and diplomat. A member of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), he served as Minister of Foreign Affairs from 2003 to 2007 in the second and third cabinet of Jan Peter Balkenende. A career ambassador, he succeeded then-Minister of Foreign Affairs Jaap de Hoop Scheffer who resigned to become Secretary General of NATO.[1][2]
Early life and education
Bot was born in Batavia, Dutch East Indies (now Jakarta, Indonesia). The son of Theo Bot who served as Minister of Education, Culture and Science and Minister for Development Cooperation. He studied at the Leiden University where he earned an L.L.M. and a Ph.D. degree in law, and attended subsequently The Hague Academy of International Law and Harvard Law School (Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States) where he received a second L.L.M. degree from the latter.
Politics
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He served in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 1963 to 2002, including postings at the Permanent Representation of the Netherlands to the European Community from 1964 to 1970, the Netherlands embassy in Buenos Aires to 1973, and at the embassy in former East-Berlin in the DDR. In the period 1976–1982 he worked in the Netherlands for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague, after which he was Deputy Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) in Brussels.
From 1986 to 1989, Bot was Ambassador of the Netherlands to Turkey.[3] He served as Secretary-General of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in The Hague until 1992, when he was appointed as Permanent Representative of the Netherlands to the European Union in Brussels. He held that post for an unusually long period of 10 years.
On 3 December 2003, Bot succeeded former NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer as Minister of Foreign Affairs in the second Balkenende cabinet. Bot is a member of the Christen Democratisch Appèl (CDA) party. In February 2007 he was succeeded as foreign minister by Maxime Verhagen in the fourth Balkenende cabinet. Currently, Bot is a partner of the Praaning Meines Consultancy Group and holds various public posts including President of the Netherlands Institute for Multiparty Democracy[3] and Chairman of the Board of the Clingendael Institute in The Hague.
Political positions
Bot voiced concern over the 2006 Lebanon War. Bot has expressed "understanding for Israel's reaction" but said "it would be hard to support Israel in case there will be many civilian casualties".[4]
Bot was interviewed by the NRC Handelsblad newspaper in December 2007, where he reiterated his 2005 position that the 2003 invasion of Iraq was a mistake, and that he had to "redress" his comment in 2005 after heavy pressure from prime minister Jan Peter Balkenende. In response, Balkenende said that he would have asked Bot to step down if he did not revise his position at the time.
Other activities
- European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), Ex-Officio Alternate Member of the Board of Governors (2003-2007)[5]
Decorations
| Honours | ||||
| Ribbon bar | Honour | Country | Date | Comment |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:Order of Orange-Nassau ribbon - Officer.svg | Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau | Netherlands | 10 December 1985 | [3] |
| File:Order of the Netherlands Lion (Knight) - Ribbon bar.svg | Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion | Netherlands | 30 April 1993 | [3] |
| File:LVA Order of the Three Stars - Silver Medal BAR.png | Silver Medal of Honor of the Order of the Three Stars | Latvia | 2008 | |
| File:POL Order Zaslugi RP kl3 BAR.png | Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit | Poland | 29 June 2012 | [6] |
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References
External links
- Official
- Template:In lang Dr. B.R. (Ben) Bot Parlement & Politiek
- ↑ Template:In lang Bot vervangt De Hoop Scheffer begin december Template:Webarchive, De Volkskrant, 30 September 2003
- ↑ Template:In lang Ben Bot (65) nieuwe minister op BZ Template:Webarchive, Trouw, 30 September 2003
- ↑ a b c d nimd.org, Profile Ben Bot
- ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
- ↑ 2005 Annual ReportTemplate:Dead link European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD).
- ↑ Template:In lang Voormalig minister Bernard Bot onderscheiden met de Orde van Verdienste van de Republiek Polen, Meines & Partners, 29 June 2012
- Pages with script errors
- Pages with broken file links
- 1937 births
- Living people
- Ambassadors of the Netherlands to Turkey
- Ambassadors of the Netherlands to East Germany
- Christian Democratic Appeal politicians
- Commanders of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland
- Dutch expatriates in the United States
- Dutch expatriates in Belgium
- Dutch expatriates in Argentina
- Dutch expatriates in Germany
- Dutch expatriates in Turkey
- Dutch lobbyists
- Dutch nonprofit directors
- Dutch nonprofit executives
- Dutch Roman Catholics
- Indonesian people of Dutch descent
- Dutch prisoners of war in World War II
- Harvard Law School alumni
- The Hague Academy of International Law people
- Indo people
- Leiden University alumni
- Ministers of foreign affairs of the Netherlands
- People from Batavia, Dutch East Indies
- Politicians from The Hague
- Permanent representatives of the Netherlands to the European Union
- Permanent representatives of the Netherlands to NATO
- Officers of the Order of Orange-Nassau
- World War II civilian prisoners held by Japan
- Dutch people imprisoned in Japan
- 20th-century Dutch civil servants
- 20th-century Dutch diplomats
- 20th-century Dutch politicians
- 21st-century Dutch civil servants
- 21st-century Dutch diplomats
- 21st-century Dutch politicians
- Diplomats from The Hague