Martin Wijnen (born 1966) is a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

retired military officer and government official who currently serves as the Director-General of

Rijkswaterstaat Rijkswaterstaat, founded in 1798 as the ''Bureau voor den Waterstaat'' and formerly translated to Directorate General for Public Works and Water Management, is a Directorate-General of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Water Management, Ministry ...

since January 1, 2024. A retired

lieutenant general Lieutenant general (Lt Gen, LTG and similar) is a military rank used in many countries. The rank traces its origins to the Middle Ages, where the title of lieutenant general was held by the second-in-command on the battlefield, who was norma ...

, he previously served as the fifth Commander of the Royal Netherlands Army before stepping down in 2024. Wijnen also previously served as the Commander of the 43 Mechanized Brigade.

Biography

After graduating from the Royal Military Academy in civil engineering, Martin was, for his junior officer assignments, stationed in Germany as an armoured engineer. In 1992, he moved back to work in the G3 Branch of a Divisional HQ after being promoted to the rank of captain. His first deployment followed later that year as CO of a Mine Clearance Training Team in Cambodia. Two more deployments followed shortly thereafter: as liaison officer for an Emergency Relief Detachment in the Netherlands Antilles and as second-in-command of the Engineers Company of IFOR-1 in

Bosnia Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

. As of mid-1997, he attended the CGSOC at the Netherlands Defence College (NDC). He was subsequently promoted to the rank of major and served as Staff Officer for the Plans Branch, RNLA Staff. He was then selected to attend the US Army Command and General Staff Officers Course (2000-2001), Fort Leavenworth. He obtained his degree as Master of Military Art and Science (MMAS) on the basis of his research in the field of interagency cooperation. Upon his return to the Netherlands, he was promoted to the rank of lieutenant colonel and appointed as Head of the Strategy Division, NDC. During this period – in 2002 – he was deployed to CENTCOM, Tampa, as an MoD LSO for OEF and ISAF. In 2003, he again served as Staff Officer for the Plans Branch, this time at the Defence Staff. In 2005, he assumed command of 11 Armoured Engineer Battalion. In late 2007, he was promoted to colonel and appointed Head of the Policy Support Division, Commander RNLA. In 2009, he was deployed to Kandahar, Afghanistan, to serve as Chief CJ5,

ISAF The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) was a multinational military mission in Afghanistan from 2001 to 2014. It was established by United Nations Security Council Resolution 1386 according to the Bonn Agreement, which outlined t ...

RC South. Following this deployment, he attended the Advanced Defence Course at the Netherlands Institute for International Relations ‘ Clingendael’. As of Mid 2010, he worked for the National Coordinator for Counterterrorism. In June 2012 he was promoted to the rank of brigadier general and appointed Deputy Director Plans, Defence Staff. And at 13 July 2017 he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant-general and appointed Vice Chief of Defence. in 2019 Wijnen was appointed as the fifth Commander of the Royal Netherlands Army. Wijnen stepped down from his post in 2024, following his appointment as Director-General of

References

1966 births Living people Royal Netherlands Army generals Royal Netherlands Army officers {{Netherlands-mil-bio-stub