THE HAGUE, 22/12/06 - The government has appointed a large number of ambassadors. The host countries still have to give their approval (agrÈment), before they become definitive.

Bob Hiensch will be ambassador in India. He was previously Consul-General in the US and in recent years, ambassador in Israel. There, he will be succeeded by M. den Hond. H. Scheltema will be Consul-General in New York.

J. Blankenberg, presently ambassador to Yemen, will succeed Roeland van de Geer in the Afghan capital of Kabul. In the Iraqi capital of Baghdad, R. Brinks will be replaced by R. GabriÎlse, presently employed at the Security Policy directorate of the foreign ministry.

Other ambassadorial appointments:

E.Chr.W. van der Laan - Mali (Bamako) B.M. ten Tusscher - Bangladesh (Dhaka) J. Verheul - Kenya (Kampala) C. Minderhoud - Mexico (Mexico) R.H. Buikema - Yemen (Sana'a) G.A. Beschoor Plug - United Arab Emirates (Abu Dhabi) J.M.P.F. van Vliet - Jordan (Amman) R. Zeldenrust - Lebanon (Beirut) T. Kamper - Guatemala (Guatemala) E. Berends - Congo (Kinshasa) R.G. Brinks - Philippines (Manila) S.L.J.M. Filippini - FYROM (Skopje) B. ter Haar - UNESCO (Paris)

Other appointments:

K.A. Koekkoek - deputy ambassador in Jakarta (Indonesia) P. de Klerk - deputy ambassador to the UN in New York E.F. Verwaal - consul-general in Shanghai (China) J.J. van de Velde - consul-general in Barcelona (Spain) K.V.A. van Spronsen - consul-general in Dubai (UAE)

Appointments at the ministry:

J.M.G. Brandt - deputy DG International Cooperation E.F.M. Twaalfhoven - director Cabinet and Protocol F.M. de Man - inspector A.P. Hamburger - Human Rights ambassador