News | 29-08-2022 | 16:52
(Washington, DC) — Economic ties between the Netherlands and the United States are stronger than ever on the eve of a working visit to the United States by Their Majesties King Willem-Alexander and Her Majesty Queen Maxima, new figures reveal.
While in the United States, the royal couple will visit Austin and Houston on September 8th and 9th. During the visit, the King and Queen will meet with elected officials, including Governor Greg Abbott, Mayor Steve Adler, Mayor Sylvester Turner, and many leaders. In the fields of technology, defense, water management, energy and healthcare.
economic relations
The Netherlands and the United States enjoy a strong long-term partnership that creates jobs, healthy investments and opportunities for both countries. Looking at US trading partners on a global scale, the Netherlands is the trading partner with which the US has the largest trade surplus.
In 2021, the Dutch-US economic ties supported an estimated 955,000 US jobs (up 11% from 2020), of which an estimated 106,000 were based in Texas (up 24%).
Additionally, Lone Star State is #1 on the list of the top 10 U.S. states that export the most goods and services to the Netherlands. These statistics underpin robust trade and mutually beneficial economic relations between the two countries.
The King and Queen’s visit to the United States underscores the Dutch belief that trans-Atlantic cooperation is essential to safeguarding the security and prosperity of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. The United States is the Netherlands’ most important partner in NATO and a key partner on global challenges such as climate change, the energy transition, mobility, urbanization and healthcare. Innovation hubs where smart solutions to these challenges are being developed, the cities of Austin and Houston share similar ties to the Netherlands in the areas of mobility, resilience, startups and technology.
The Dutch Minister for Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation, Riesche Schleinemach, will accompany the royal couple. Aruba’s Minister of Public Health and Tourism Danguillaume Odubert, Minister of Economy, Communications and Sustainable Development Jeffrey Weber and Curacao’s Minister of Economy Luisandro Cinche will also participate in the visit.
“The cities of Austin and Houston demonstrate concrete partnerships with the Netherlands in the areas of cycling, the energy transition and water management. We shared our management experience with Houston officials,” said Dutch Ambassador André Haspels. “The visit of His Majesty King Willem-Alexander and Her Majesty Queen Maxima is a recognition of these deep and strong ties not only in these areas, but also in healthcare, startups and defense.”
Austin
In Austin, the King and Queen will meet with Governor Abbott to discuss the close economic ties between the Netherlands and Texas and common challenges in the areas of health, resilience and energy transition. The royal couple will also meet with Mayor Adler, who will issue a proclamation marking his 10th anniversary of the city’s commitment to adopting the core tenets of Dutch bikeway network design. Dutch mobility experts have been sharing their cycling expertise with Austin representatives for years. In fact, Mayor Adler visited the Netherlands in his 2016 visit to explore how data can improve the quality of life for city dwellers at his exchange for “smart cities” innovation. His ThinkBike workshop with Dutch experts in 2012 informed Austin’s bike plans and today Austin is considered an urban mobility innovator among similar cities in North America. Also in Austin, the King and Queen attend an event at the Capital Factory, where an American start-up pitches innovative ideas to her CEO in the Netherlands.
The royal couple will attend a seminar on the future of healthcare hosted by the Austin Healthcare Council. The Queen will also visit the Hogg Foundation to exchange ideas with local youth about community initiatives to address mental health issues.
The King visits Fort Hood, where Dutch pilots have trained for over a quarter century. The King’s visit will focus on international security and cooperation between the Dutch and US forces. The King talks to Dutch and American officials at a base where Dutch Chinook and Apache helicopters are stationed.
The royal couple will attend an official dinner at Austin FC, which will be attended by the local and Dutch business community, also highlighting Austin FC’s cooperation with Dutch companies such as SGL and KLM.
houston
In Houston, the King and Queen are welcomed by Mayor Turner. The royal couple will attend a roundtable discussion on how to protect the city from flooding.
King Willem-Alexander will continue to focus on water management issues when he attends events on coastal defense. He will then participate in a roundtable discussion on the use of port infrastructure to facilitate the energy transition.
Queen Maxima takes a look at healthcare and tours the Innovation Center at the Texas Medical Center. While at TMC, the Queen will also attend lunch with Dutch and Texas female role models from the world of business and governance, MD at Anderson Cancer Center where the Queen tours the children’s ward.
media opportunities
Please register your media coverage for the event below.
September 8
- Fort Hood: King Willem-Alexander will arrive by military helicopter to meet with Dutch personnel from the Dutch Air Force and Dutch Army stationed at Fort Hood. The King thanks American Lieutenant General Robert White, commander of the 3rd Panzer Corps and Fort Hood, for his 26 years of support to the Dutch forces at the base.
- Capital Factory Innovation Center: The King and Queen will tour the center and attend events for local startups, technology companies and investors. There, startups will pitch focusing on common challenges. Dutch CEO provides feedback. Members of the press are encouraged to contact Carley Deardorff (carleydeardorff@capitalfactory.com) or Remi Donnelly (remidonnelly@capitalfactory.com) to register for this event by the close of business on September 2nd.
September 9
- Urban Resilience Roundtable: Both Houston and Rotterdam will have to deal with the effects of rising sea levels. The King and Queen attend the Roundtable on Urban Resilience, his event following up on his 2018-2019 Living with Water Houston workshop. At the event, Dutch and American experts will provide recommendations for improving Houston’s resilience. After the event, the King and Queen board a boat on the waterways of Buffalo His Bayou. Media should contact Ms. Mary Benton at Mary.Benton@houstontx.gov to register to cover her table at Urban Resilience Her Round by the close of business on September 2nd. Logistics details for these events will be provided during media registration.
Members of the media should contact:
