To the Netherlands, being a small country with a dense population in a delta area, environment is of outmost importance. Environment plays a mayor role in Dutch politics and policy-making. As environmental problems do not stop at national borders, its solutions have to be found in international agreements for which environment is of major interest to the Dutch foreign policy.

The Dutch Minister for Spatial Planning and the Environment has selected 8 priorities for the period 2007-2010:

1. Climate and Energy
2. Markets for Sustainable Products
3. Sustainable Spatial Planning (“Mooi Nederland”)
4. Citizens in a Healthy, Safe and Sustainable Environment
5. Strengthening the Dutch Input in the EU and the World
6. “Urgentieprogramma Randstad”
7. Better Regulation
8. Sustainable Development

The international dimension of environmental protection is gaining a prominent role. The Netherlands is trying to reduce the rate of correlation between pollution and economic growth. It sees the integration of the environment policy in sectors such as agriculture, transport and energy supply as an important instrument for this purpose.

The cooperation between Georgia and the Netherlands on environmental issues dates since more than a decade. In 2007, the Dutch Minister has agreed to prioritise her bilateral efforts in Turkey and Georgia. Environment has become one out of six strategic areas for cooperation with Georgia and Georgian partners. Assistance is provided (financial / technical) to Georgian partners (Government, Non Government) via the Dutch Ministry of Housing, Spatial Planning & Environment, the Dutch Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Dutch environmental institutions in a range of projects.

Bilateral cooperation between the two Ministries for Environment complete the multilateral activities that are taking place in the framework of the Pan-European programme Environment for Europe, the European Neighbourhood Policy (ENP) and multilateral organisations such as EBRD and the OSCE.