Dutch police chiefs back a proposal to send 50 trainers to Afghanistan to help train local police officers, the Volkskrant reports on Friday.

Not only would this benefit the local population but would allow Dutch police officers to develop contacts in the world’s biggest source of heroin, a spokesman told the paper. Some 18 Dutch police trainers are already working in the country as part of a European initiative.
A slim majority of MPs backs a compromise proposal by the left wing greens GroenLinks and D66 Liberals to send a ‘sizeable’ police mission to Afghanistan to train local officers.
D66 leader Alexander Pechtold said the proposal should bring an end to the ‘deafening silence’ about Afghanistan since the cabinet fell over the issue in February.
Labour pulled out of the coalition because it opposed any continuation in the Dutch military mission in Afghanistan, despite US and Nato pressure on the Netherlands to stay. It also opposes the police training compromise.