About Jeanine Hennis-Plasschaert
Jeanine Antoinette Hennis-Plasschaert (born 7 April 1973) is a Dutch politician of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) and diplomat who has been serving as United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Safety and Security under the leadership of Secretary General António Guterres since 2026. Hennis-Plasschaert, a civil servant by occupation, was elected as a Member of the European Parliament for the Alliance of Liberals and Democrats for Europe group (ALDE) after the European Parliament election of 2004 on 20 July 2004; she was reelected after the European Parliament election of 2009. She was elected as a member of the House of Representatives after the general election of 2010 and resigned as a Member of the European Parliament the same day she took office as a Member of the House of Representatives on 17 June 2010. Following the election of 2012 and after the cabinet formation the Second Rutte cabinet was formed with Hennis-Plasschaert becoming Minister of Defence. She stepped down as a member of the House of Representatives on 5 November 2012, the same day she took office as Minister of Defence. She served as Minister of Defence until her resignation on 4 October 2017. After the election of 2017 she returned as a member of the House of Representatives, serving from 23 March 2017 until 13 September 2018. Hennis-Plasschaert served as Special Representative of the Secretary-General for the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq from 2018 and as United Nations Special Coordinator for Lebanon from 2024. Hennis-Plasschaert was put on the 4th place on her party's list for the Dutch general election of 2010 and became a member of the Dutch House of Representatives. Under Hennis-Plasschaert's leadership, the Netherlands committed in 2013 to purchasing 37 Lockheed Martin F-35 Lightning II fighter jets for about €4.5 billion to replace its ageing fleet of General Dynamics F-16 Fighting Falcon.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.