Netherlands

official website of the Royal Netherlands Navy

Chief of Naval Staff:
Vice Admiral Matthieu Borsboom

Vice Admiral Matthieu Borsboom was born in 1959 in The Hague. He joined the Royal Netherlands Navy in 1978 as midshipman. Being commissioned in 1981, he served on the flagship HNLMS Tromp, as navigation officer on the minesweeper HNLMS Naaldwijk (in STANAVFORCHAN) and as executive officer on the minehunter HNLMS Veere. In 1983, after finishing a year of further study at the University of Groningen, he served as executive officer on the patrol vessel HNLMS Hadda. In 1986 he qualified as Principal Warfare Officer at the Operational School in Den Helder and consequently joined the air defense frigate HNLMS Witte de With. After serving on the flagship HNLMS De Ruyter, he became Antisubmarine Warfare (ASW) officer and later head of the operations department on Sclass frigate HNLMS Piet Hein. In 1989 he was posted with the Operational School leading the office of ASW systems. In 1991 Lieutenant-commander Borsboom was transferred to the operational department of the Centre for Automation of Weapon and Command Systems (CAWCS). In 1993 he went back to sea to serve on the M-class frigate HNLMS Willem van der Zaan (participating in the UN operation 'Support Democracy' near Haiti) and later on Sclass frigate HNLMS Philips van Almonde as executive officer. During 1996 he attended the 'Long Staff Course' at the Defense Staff College.

In November 1998 he was promoted to Commander and became head of the bureau for
underwater sensors at the materiel department of the Ministry of Defense in The Hague for a
period of 2 years. In November 1998 he was given command of M-class frigate HNLMS
Tjerk Hiddes. From March 1999 until June 2001 he commanded M-class frigate HNLMS Van
Speijk (in STANAVFORLANT). After this command tour he was assigned to the Admiralty in
The Hague working in the National Plans and Policy department. Being promoted to Captain
in June 2002, he became Director of the Centre for Automation of Mission-critical Systems,
Force Vision (former CAWCS). During the first half of 2004 he attended the 'Advanced
Defense Course' at the Defense Staff College.

In February 2005 was assigned to the Defense Staff and was promoted to Rear Admiral
Lower Half. In the new defense organization he was responsible for the requirements
process of the armed forces and also chaired the Network Enabled Capabilities-board. In
June 2007 he was promoted to Rear Admiral Upper Half and became Director of Operational
Policy, Requirements and Plans.

He has been Deputy Chief of Staff Stability in ISAF Head Quarters in Kabul, Afghanistan
from November 2008 until November 2009. Directly under COMISAF, he was responsible for
the governance and development lines of operation and for election support. On the 4th of
January he got promoted to Vice Admiral, and on the 22nd of January Vice Admiral
Borsboom became Commander Royal Netherlands Navy.

Vice Admiral Borsboom married in 1981, and lives with his wife Ernie Borsboom-Miga and
daughter Carine (born 1984), son Max (born 1986) and daughter Lisanne (born 1989) in Den
Helder.