The frigate was initially named after Dutch naval hero Egbert Bartholomeusz Kortenaer and then after Pavlos Kountouriotis, distinguished Admiral of the Hellenic Navy, responsible for Greek naval victories in the Aegean Sea that secured the Aegean for Greece during the First Balkan War.

In the early 1970s, the Royal Netherlands Navy developed a 'Standard' frigate design to replace the destroyers of the Holland and Friesland classes.

[2] Kortenaer's main anti-aircraft armament was an 8-round NATO Sea Sparrow surface-to-air missile launcher in front of the bridge.

[2][3] On 12 March 1979, she and the frigate Tromp, the destroyer Drenthe, and the replenishment ship Poolster departed for a trip to the Far East to show the flag.

[6] In 1988, Kortenaer and the frigates Jan van Brakel & Witte de With and the replenishment ship Zuiderkruis made a trip to the Far East and Australia to show the flag and for practice.

[8] The ship was put into service on 15 December 1997 as Kountouriotis (Κουντουριώτης) with the pennant number F 462,[5] using the radio call sign was "SZCT".