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Dutch justice minister David van Weel has maintained that an EU payment to Sierra Leone was withheld over drug crime, despite an EU commissioner’s technical explanation.
What has changed? · 02/10/2026, 08:07 UTC
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The EU is suspending €18 million in budget support for Sierra Leone for 2026. EU Commissioner for Home Affairs Magnus Brunner said on Thursday that the move was for technical reasons, but gave no further detail because the matter was outside his portfolio. [1]
Dutch justice minister David van Weel described the suspension as a clear signal that Sierra Leone must stop sheltering criminals. Sierra Leone has refused to extradite convicted criminal Jos Leijdekkers to the Netherlands, but Brunner did not directly link that refusal to the funding decision. [1]
Brunner also called for action against countries that shelter drug traffickers and said the EU was concerned about drug trafficking, cross-border crime and organised crime in Sierra Leone. [1]
Dutch justice minister David van Weel said in Luxembourg on Thursday that Sierra Leone could resolve its dispute over delayed EU budget support within 24 hours by arresting Jos Leijdekkers and extraditing him to the Netherlands. He defended the withholding of an expected €18 million payment for 2026 as a signal to Sierra Leone to stop sheltering criminals, while acknowledging that the amount itself was unlikely to have much immediate impact. [2] [9]
Leijdekkers was sentenced in absentia by a Rotterdam court in 2024 to 24 years in prison for offences involving cocaine smuggling, a violent robbery and attempting to instigate a murder. [4] [5] European Commissioner Magnus Brunner attributed the payment delay to technical reasons. NOS reported that the Commission cited administrative errors and that extradition was not among the conditions for the budget support. [1] [6]
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Sierra Leone’s information minister, Chernor Bah, said the delay arose from procedural issues with an amended financing agreement, not talks with the Netherlands or an individual case. He said disbursements were now proposed for 2027 and 2028. [7]
ANP reported on 1 October that the EU had decided to provide no further budget support to Sierra Leone in 2026. Dutch justice minister David van Weel welcomed the decision in a post on X, describing it as a good start. [10]
The Netherlands wants Sierra Leone to extradite Jos Leijdekkers, known as Bolle Jos, who has been convicted of drug crimes. Dutch efforts to secure his extradition have so far failed. [10]
Van Weel is also seeking EU sanctions against countries that shield convicted drug criminals from extradition. The proposal was under discussion by EU justice ministers in Luxembourg on Thursday. [10]
Van Weel said on Friday that the European Commission needed a formal reason to withhold the payment, but maintained that his discussions with European counterparts and a commissioner pointed to tackling drug crime as the purpose. He said he remained determined to bring Leijdekkers to the Netherlands. [11]
Brunner had described the suspension as a technical matter. He said he could not explain it further because budget support was outside his portfolio, although he also called for action against countries harbouring drug traffickers. [1]
NOS reported that Leijdekkers’ extradition is not among the contractual conditions for the budget support. Sierra Leone’s government says the payment was delayed by the timing of a proposed amendment to its financing agreement, and that the EU proposed moving payments scheduled for 2026 and 2027 to 2027 and 2028. [6] [7] [12]