Why Rutte became the new secretary general of NATO?
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) issued a statement on the 26th, saying that the North Atlantic Council has decided to appoint Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the new NATO Secretary-General. Rutte will succeed the current secretary-general, Jens Stoltenberg, in October.
Why does NATO, the world's largest military alliance, favor Rutte? What are the specific tasks and challenges he will face when he takes office?
Who is Rutte
Rutte, 57, was born in The Hague, the Netherlands. In 2006, he became the leader of the center-right party, the Liberal Democratic People's Party, and was instrumental in shaping the party's policies and strategies.
Since 2010, Rutte has been elected prime minister of the Netherlands four times in a row, and has led different coalition governments to deal with the European debt crisis, the new crown epidemic, the Russia-Ukraine conflict and the resulting energy crisis. Rutte navigated the complex political landscape with a pragmatic style.
This is March 21, Dutch Prime Minister Rutte arrived at the venue of the EU summit in Brussels, Belgium (file photo). Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhao Dingzhe
During his tenure, Rutte carried out economic reforms, implemented austerity policies, reduced the budget deficit, and helped the Netherlands recover from the European debt crisis; In terms of social policy, he worked on health care and education reform; In foreign policy, he emphasized national fiscal responsibility and collective security, while strongly supporting European integration, which has built Rutte's reputation and influence in the EU's political environment.
However, Rutte has also received some criticism since he began running for the post of NATO secretary general last November. According to the website of Politico Europe, Rutte has not been active enough in enlisting the support of Eastern European countries, which have questioned his position on supporting the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline. Moreover, in the 14 years that Rutte has been prime minister, the Netherlands has fallen short of the NATO target of 2% of gross domestic product (GDP) for military spending. According to the latest NATO data, the Netherlands will reach this goal this year.
Why he was chosen
The NATO Secretary-General coordinates the work of the alliance and presides over the meetings of the North Atlantic Council and most major committees except the Military Commission. The NATO Secretary General does not have military command powers, and the political, military and strategic decision-making power of the alliance rests with the member states. The NATO Secretary-General, the Chairman of the NATO Military Committee, and the Supreme Allied Commander of NATO in Europe are the most important figures in NATO. So, why did NATO choose Rutte?
This is the scene of the NATO defense ministers' meeting at NATO headquarters in Brussels, Belgium, on June 14. Photo by Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhao Dingzhe
First of all, Rutte's political and diplomatic experience, as well as his extensive connections in European and American political circles, have demonstrated excellent communication skills and the ability to work together in leading different multiparty coalition governments, which will be crucial for him to become NATO secretary general.
Second, Rutte has always supported military aid to Ukraine, which is in line with NATO's strategic priorities. The Dutch Ministry of Defense announced in June that the Netherlands has provided more than 3 billion euros in military aid to Ukraine since 2022. Rutte has repeatedly said that Ukraine "can count on our support, now and in the future."
Third, the appointment of NATO's secretary general requires the unanimous consent of all 32 member states, and the other contenders have failed to gain broad support. U.S. President Joe Biden has hinted that NATO Secretary General should be a head of state or government, and former British Defense Secretary Wallace was excluded; Danish Prime Minister Fraser Riksen was once seen as a popular candidate, but the first two secretaries-general were also from the Nordic countries; Estonian Prime Minister Kallas was seen as being too tough on Russia; Romanian President Iohannis withdrew from the race at the final stage.
Many challenges
Rutte's first priority after taking office is to continue to assist Ukraine. Rutte has said that supporting Ukraine is good for Europe's prosperity and security. A meeting of NATO defense ministers approved a plan on June 14 for NATO to coordinate military assistance and training for Ukraine, replacing the "International Contact Group on Ukraine's Defense," which is currently responsible for the above. The plan will be officially launched at the NATO summit in Washington, so Rutte's task in coordinating military aid to Ukraine will be even more onerous.
NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg (former) and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban attend a joint press conference in Budapest, Hungary, June 12. Orban said Hungary would not "contribute money" to NATO's actions in Ukraine. Xinhua News Agency (photo by Ferti Otilo)
Rutte will also take on the task of leading NATO to further strengthen its "eastern flank defense capability," including increasing military deployments in the Baltic states and Poland, improving the capability of the rapid reaction force, and ensuring NATO's "deterrence" and "defense capability" in Eastern Europe.
However, there are disagreements within NATO about assistance to Ukraine. The Hungarian government has always opposed military aid to Ukraine, Slovakia is not active in this, France and Germany have accused each other of not providing enough aid to Ukraine, and Italy, Spain and other countries have failed to meet the military spending standards so far, which has made Eastern European countries dissatisfied.
At the same time, NATO countries, which have been aiding Ukraine for more than two years, have gradually shown fatigue, and public support has also declined. These countries are generally financially stretched and have insufficient military capacity that has led to repeated failures to deliver on military aid commitments.
In addition, the United States will hold a presidential election this year, and it is difficult to judge whether the current President Biden will be re-elected or former President Trump will return to the White House. Given their different attitudes towards NATO, there is uncertainty in the relationship between NATO and the United States, which will be an unknown in front of Rutte.
Source: Xinhua News Agency
Reporter: Zhang Zhang
Executive Producer: An Tao
Editors: Wang Yixuan, Wu Yue, Lang Xiang
Internship: Chen Nuo