Dutch slam US general's claim about gay soldiers (Roundup)

Mar 19, 2010, 17:28 GMT

Amsterdam/Washington - The Dutch government and military Friday reacted angrily to a claim by a former US general linking the fall of the Muslim enclave Srebrenica in 1995 to the presence of gays in the Dutch army.

Testifying Thursday in front of the US Senate Armed Services Committee, John Sheehan said that Dutch military officials had told him the presence of gays was 'part of the problem' that led to the army's failure to stop the Srebrenica massacre.

Dutch Prime Minister Jan Balkenende called Sheehan's remarks 'disgraceful, shameful and unacceptable.'

'This is not the way to talk about people who do their jobs under difficult circumstances,' he added.

Foreign Minister Maxime Verhagen wrote on Twitter that the remarks had 'more to do with the US debate on homosexuality in the army.'

Wim van den Burg, head of the Dutch military union AFMP FNV, said 'it is ridiculous to think there is a relationship between the soldiers' sexual orientation and the fall of Srebrenica.'

Sheehan, a former supreme allied commander of NATO, testified that after the Cold War many European armies had 'made a conscious effort to socialize their military,' which included 'open homosexuality.'

'That led to a force that was ill-equipped to go to war,' he continued. 'The case in point that I'm referring to is when the Dutch were required to defend Srebrenica against the Serbs.'

Asked if Dutch military officials had told him the Srebrenica debacle was linked to the prevalence of gay soldiers he responded, 'Yes ... They included that as part of the problem.'

US politicians strongly rejected Sheehan's comments.

'Srebrenica was an unconscionable massacre, but it's way off the mark to attribute it in any way to the fact that gays can serve openly in the Dutch military,' said Senator Carl Levin, chairman of the committee that questioned Sheehan.

Balkenende said that no special action would be taken towards the US as the Dutch government had made its position clear. He also pointed out that US President Barack Obama had pushed for increased tolerance for gays in the military.