Dutch referendum could cause trouble for European Union

The awkwardness for Prime Minister Mark Rutte is that while the Dutch Parliament has ratified the agreement, an instrument of ratification must be deposited with the European Union in Brussels for it to be legal. This gives legal space to the referendum, said Rem Korteweg, a Dutch analyst with the CER. If Dutch voters oppose the deal against the vote of their duly elected Parliament, as they are currently expected to do, Mr Rutte "will have to find a middle road," Mr Korteweg said. After all, he noted, the Netherlands currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Council.

...Mr Putin is watching the referendum carefully, since a "no" vote "feeds into his agenda because it shows disunity in Europe on Ukraine policy," Mr Korteweg said.