When Wouter Zwart of CNN affiliate and Dutch broadcaster NOS asked about those comments in an interview in the US Capitol, Ambassador Hoekstra said he never said them.

“That is actually an incorrect statement; we would call it fake news,” the Ambassador responded. “I never said that.”

Zwart’s report on NOS’ Nieuwsuur program then plays the specific portion of Ambassador Hoekstra’s 2015 comments. Zwart told CNN he did not play video of the remarks for Hoekstra, saying he “can’t imagine he did not know of its existence,” because it was widely available onlin