Defence wants to use TikTok to reach young people, but the government bans the app
The Ministry of Defence wants to fight disinformation about conscription and recruit soldiers on TikTok, a platform the Dutch government has itself banned from official use.
The Dutch Ministry of Defence wants to be on TikTok. On the platform, the armed forces want to run "targeted media campaigns" to counter disinformation about topics such as conscription and to recruit soldiers.
There is one problem. The Chinese social media platform is banned from use by the Dutch government. The ministry's plan therefore runs into the government's own rules.
The aim is to reach young people, the group Defence wants to inform about conscription and attract as recruits. TikTok is one of the places where that group spends time online.