Mark Rutte Officially Appointed as Next NATO Chief
The Facts
The North Atlantic Council on Wednesday selected Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to replace Jens Stoltenberg as the Secretary-General of the NATO military alliance from Oct. 1, 2024.
This comes as NATO ambassadors confirmed his appointment during a meeting at the alliance's headquarters in Brussels, ahead of a summit in Washington from July 9 to 11 where NATO heads of government will formally welcome Rutte.
The Spin
Narrative A
NATO will face many major challenges in the months ahead — including the continuing war in Ukraine and a possible return of Donald Trump to the US presidency — and Rutte is the best person to lead the alliance. He's a low-key, well-connected politician who can unite the allies and bolster both defense and deterrence policies.
Narrative B
It's comprehensible that some may believe that Rutte is the right man to lead NATO, especially if Trump were to return to the White House. After all, he is a skilled politician who had good relations with the former US president during his first term. That's not enough, though. NATO needs someone to win over America — and Rutte just can't do that.