[10] On 12 January 2012 De Ruyter sailed from her home port of Den Helder to take up the role of flagship for Standing NATO Maritime Group 1.

[12] De Ruyter located two skiffs 200 nautical miles (370 km; 230 mi) north east of Eyl, which split up when approached.

[15] De Ruyter served as the flagship for the maritime component of the NATO exercise "Steadfast Jazz 2013", which took place in the Baltic Sea in October and November 2013.

[22] On 3 July 2018 De Ruyter once again became the flagship of Standing NATO Maritime Group 2, taking over from the Royal Navy's HMS Duncan, with Dutch Commodore Boudewijn G.F.M.

[23] In September 2018 De Ruyter and Standing NATO Maritime Group 2 took part in the Hellenic Navy's biennial multinational naval Exercise Naias 2018.

[25] On 28 January 2020, De Ruyter left Nieuwe Haven to join the French-Led Task Force, European-led Maritime Awareness in the Strait of Hormuz (EMASOH), in the Persian Gulf.

[26][27][28][29] Between 7 and 8 February 2020, the vessel participated in a joint training operation with the Maritime Squadron of the Armed Forces of Malta which involved various scenarios at sea.