Why Ukraine? And Why do the Dutch care so much about a highly technocratic – and believe me (I’ve read it), quite boring – association treaty with Ukraine? Frankly, they do not care in the least of ways. The treaty with Ukraine so happened to be the first opportunity to test the new referendum law and turn the referendum into a plebiscite on everything the EU stands for. The Dutch government had invested significant political capital in the Association Agreement and was keen to see it ratified. Therefore, to say that the referendum results are an embarrassment for the Netherlands at a time when the country holds the EU’s rotating Presidency is a mild understatement.
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