Closing by Jan van Zanen press tour program NATO summit, June 23, 2025

Dear representatives of the international press,

We are on the eve of a crucial NATO summit, the meeting for which you all came to The Hague. A summit in a time of great geopolitical tensions. A period of time in which we have become extra aware of our freedom, democracy and the richness of a free culture.

My name is Jan van Zanen. Mayor of The Hague, the international city of peace, justice and most certainly security. It is with pride and a great sense of responsibility that we are hosting the first NATO summit on Dutch soil. Today, The Hague & Partners, our city marketeer, were pleased to introduce you to the city and its commitment to the cause of peace and justice.

The culture press tour dealt with the roots of our national government and democracy that lie here in and around the Binnenhof. About the buildings that remind us of this and what is excavated during the large-scale renovation of the medieval complex.

Those of you interested in cybersecurity also came to The Hague at just the right moment. Today, the province of South Holland and the municipality of The Hague brought together a large number of companies and organizations for civil and military innovation at the Securing The Future event.

Through The Hague Security Delta – one of Europe’s largest security clusters – we bring together knowledge and entrepreneurship. Reducing our digital vulnerability within the walls of our own city hall is also a great priority. We now have an annual tradition, called Hâck The Hague, where dozens of honest hackers test the municipality’s digital infrastructure. In all openness, in front of the public in our beautiful City Hall Atrium.

And then of course the theme of Rule of Law, which already laid the foundation for our profile as an international city hundreds of years ago. We can go all the way back to Hugo Grotius, who laid the foundation for current international maritime law with his Mare Liberum, the Free Sea back in 1609.

In 1899, the first Hague Peace Conference took place here in The Hague. An early plea for peaceful conflict resolution through the application of international law. Andrew Carnegie provided funding to the creation this Peace Palace – just here behind me – in 1913. The seat of the Permanent Court of Arbitration and the International Court of Justice. The International Criminal Court also has its seat in The Hague, in addition to numerous other international institutions in the field of peace and justice.

Despite two world wars and numerous other armed conflicts, we hold on to the idea of ​​an international legal order that resolves conflicts without violence. To a legal order in which countries and individuals responsible for crimes are brought to justice.

An idea that we share with a large part of the international community, but also an idea that is under growing pressure. Concerned by this development, the Hague Humanity Hub has called on people to endorse its Stand for Just Peace statement. A call that asks everyone gathered for the NATO summit to continue to work for social cohesion and good governance. You can find the statement on justpeacethehague.org.

I hope that this day has made you more aware of the importance of the International Institutions we host here in The Hague and their contribution to creating a better and more just world. I also hope that you have gotten a good impression of our city and what it stands for in this regard.