Mark Rutte named new NATO chief: A master of compromises

The new NATO Secretary General is the outgoing Dutch Prime Minister, Mark Rutte. "He is a walking compromise machine," writes the German press.

"Süddeutsche Zeitung" writes: "From NATO's perspective, the 57-year-old Mark Rutte is an almost ideal candidate. On one hand, he is a proven supporter of transatlantic policy but not one who blindly follows Washington. On the other hand, he is a committed supporter of Ukraine but not a fierce opponent of Russia. His fifteen years leading Dutch coalition governments and an equally long tenure in the European Council have taught Rutte how to achieve success through negotiation and compromise. In an organization that operates by consensus, this is immensely valuable."

According to "Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung", "Mark Rutte is seen in Brussels as a kind of insurance policy against the return of Donald Trump because he allegedly got along well with the highly critical NATO Republican during Trump's first term. Trump usually cares about flattery, and in the case of his re-election, that would not be enough. As president, Trump adhered to two principles in foreign policy: keep America out of wars and shift costs to other countries, including allies. As Chancellor Scholz said in the Bundestag, that we could always rely on the USA sounds more like magic than an analysis. Hope for Biden's re-election is not yet a strategy. A forward-thinking policy would have to consider that Europeans may soon face much greater financial and military burdens."

"Straubinger Tagblatt/ Landshuter Zeitung" states: "Rutte is not an emergency solution. He is not just a statesman who has time now because he lost his position in the country after 13 years. Even before the crisis in his government, he was interested in the position at the head of the western Alliance. He brings qualifications that the Alliance can use well in these times. Rutte governed in different configurations, making him a walking compromise machine. He is considered an absolute pragmatist who does not see himself as the most important but puts matters and solutions first. Rutte, thanks to his long tenure as prime minister, has excellent connections on both sides of the Atlantic. A significant argument for his selection is that he was encouraged to run by not only US President Joe Biden but also his predecessor and potential successor, Donald Trump."

In a similar tone, "Volksstimme" from Magdeburg comments, emphasizing that persuading Viktor Orban to support his candidacy was no small diplomatic feat for the Dutchman. The newspaper also points out that "Rutte now has to maintain the unity of 32 countries and be very careful not to drag the Alliance into the war between Russia and Ukraine. On the contrary, NATO should try much harder to put an end to the bloodshed. It is probably a good thing that it did not give in to the pressures from Eastern Europeans who wanted to fill the position with someone from their ranks. Klaus Iohannis from Romania didn't stand a chance anyway, while with Kaja Kallas, the situation was different. She governs Estonia, which borders Putin's empire and has a significant Russian minority. Her staunch support for Ukraine may cloud her view of the overall situation in the Alliance. This also matters if Kallas becomes the EU's foreign affairs representative."