The Secretary-General met today with H.E. Ms. Lilianne Ploumen, Minister of Foreign Trade and Development Cooperation of the Netherlands.

The Secretary-General expressed his appreciation for the Netherlands’ strong support for international development and for the long term development activities of the United Nations.  They discussed progress made towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs), the work that remains to be done and priorities within the post-2015 development agenda.

The Secretary-General and the Minister exchanged views on Mali and Syria, and on the situation in the Great Lakes region. The Secretary-General thanked the Government of the Netherlands for its support to assist refugees and victims of the conflict in Syria.