NATO Secretary General Rutte Agrees With Trump That Some Allied Countries Were Tested and Failed During the Iran Crisis
Rutte is struggling to keep NATO together.
When the former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte was chosen as Secretary General for the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), many were left optimistic.
On the left, they saw him as some sort of ‘Trump whisperer’ that could steer the Alliance despite the diverging US agenda, while on the right, they celebrated that Rutte did not suffer a bad case of ‘Trump Derangement Syndrome’ (TDS).
But despite his best effort, the experienced Dutch politician now fears that the Alliance may well collapse under his watch.
Yesterday, Rutte said that ‘some NATO countries were tested and failed’ during the Iran crisis by not helping the US in the military operations, and even withholding help and the use of air bases.
Reuters reported:
“Rutte’s comments came after a meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump at the White House earlier in the day.
During an interview with CNN, the NATO chief was asked if he believed NATO countries were tested and failed.
‘Some of them yes, but a large majority of European countries, and that’s what we discussed today, have done what they promised before in a case like this’, he told CNN.”
9News reported
“Rutte, who described the meeting as a frank and open discussion between ‘two good friends’, told CNN that he understood the president’s disappointment.
But he said he pointed out to Trump that many European nations helped in other ways, including by providing logistics, overflights, basing and other support.
[…] Rutte declined to answer whether the president said he would attempt a withdrawal.
‘Well, as I said, there is a disappointment, clearly, but at the same time, he was also listening (carefully) to my arguments of what is happening’ Rutte said when pressed on the matter.”
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