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Royal decoration for Chief of the Australian Defence Force
26 May 2011, 14.28 hrs
On Tuesday 18 May, Air Chief Marshal Allan Grant Houston was made a Commander in the Order of Orange Nassau, with swords, in Canberra. He received the honour for his efforts in support of Dutch operations in Afghanistan. Houston also played a key role in the successful cooperation with the Australian armed forces.
He was presented with the decoration by his Dutch counterpart, Chief of Defence General Peter van Uhm, who is currently on a working visit to Australia. “During the period in which the Netherlands was lead nation, from 2006 to 2010, the Chief of the Defence Force Australia was a strong advocate of mutual understanding, respect, trust and synergy between the Dutch and Australian units in Uruzgan”, said Van Uhm. His efforts were instrumental in achieving great effectiveness in the combined Australian-Dutch operations in the province.
Partly owing to Houston’s efforts, the Netherlands was able to obtain 25 Bushmasters at very short notice, from the Australian armed forces' own fleet. The good protective qualities of these armoured vehicles shielded the Dutch military personnel on deployment in Uruzgan on many occasions against, for instance, roadside bombs.
Houston was very appreciative of the honour and reaffirmed the good cooperation between the two countries. He said that in those four years, the Netherlands had been a great partner. His people were very pleased with the excellent cooperation in creating a safe living environment and in various reconstruction and social projects.
The rest of General Van Uhm’s visit will focus on the military cooperation between Australia and the Netherlands in various areas and possible expansion of that cooperation.
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