Mark Rutte, ex-prime minister of The Netherlands, has been named to serve as the next Secretary-General of NATO (Credit: Rijksoverheid.nl )
By Gary Raynaldo – DIPLOMATIC TIMES
A former Netherlands Prime Minister will serve as the next Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO). The North Atlantic Council on Wednesday appointed outgoing Dutch PM Mark Rutte to serve as the new NATO chief, succeeding Jens Stoltenberg. Rutte will assume his functions as Secretary General from 1 October 2024, when Stoltenberg’s term expires after ten years at the helm of the Alliance. Rutte is a Dutch politician elected PM of the Netherlands in 2010. He resigned last July after his coalition government collapsed amid wrangling over a new migration policy. Stoltenberg said on social media that world’s largest security organization will be is solid hands after Rutte takes over as boss.
“I warmly welcome NATO Allies’ choice of Mark Rutte as my successor. Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands.”
-NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg
Russia – Ukraine War and Possible Return of Donald Trump as U.S. President Challenges for New NATO Chief Rutte
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (left) is welcomed by Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte at pre-Summit working dinner in The Hague, Netherlands Jan. 27, 2023 (Credit: NATO.Int.)
Rutte, 57, is known as a staunch ally of Ukraine and a ferocious critic of Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Dutch PM will settle into the powerful NATO seat in October as Russia’s war with Ukraine continues and one month before the U.S. presidential election between Donald Trump and Joe Biden. Trump has said he will solve the Russia-Ukraine conflict within a day and let Putin do whatever the hell he wants if Europeans don’t increase their defense spending. NATO’s secretary-general said the comment “undermines all of our security, including that of the U.S.” Trump also said during a 2016 presidential campaign rally that NATO was “obsolete”. Meanwhile, Rutte is looking forward to taking up his new NATO position.
“It is a tremendous honour to be appointed Secretary-General of NATO. The Alliance is and will remain the cornerstone of our collective security. Leading this organisation is a responsibility I do not take lightly. I’m grateful to all the Allies for placing their trust in me. I look forward to taking up the position with great vigour in October, as successor to (Jens Stoltenberg), who has provided NATO with outstanding leadership for the past 10 years, and for whom I have always had great admiration.”
-Mark Rutte posted on social media X.
NATO is a military and political alliance of 32 countries from Europe and North America that was established in 1949. NATO’s goal is to “protect the security and freedom of its members through political and military means.”
