Mark Rutte, Prime Minister of the Netherlands, now the only candidate for the post of NATO Secretary General.
His only counterpart who remained in the race for the post of Secretary General, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, withdrew his candidacy. Thus, all 32 members of the bloc agreed with the candidacy of Mark Rutte for the post of NATO Secretary General.
Slovakia and Hungary support Rutte for the post of NATO Secretary General
Rutte was previously supported by Hungary and Slovakia, which opposed it. Reuters noted that the change in position from Budapest and Bratislava was an important step for Rutte towards obtaining this position.
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Hungary's support comes as a result of a meeting between Prime Minister Viktor Orbán and NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg last week, at which the parties agreed that Hungary would not block NATO's decision to provide support to Ukraine, but would not be involved in the process.
— Prime Minister Mark Rutte confirmed that he fully supports this agreement and will continue to do so if he becomes the next Secretary General of NATO, — wrote Orban on the social network X.
Media reports that the next head of NATO will be tasked with maintaining allied support in Ukraine's fight against Russian invasion, while preventing any escalation that could drag the military bloc directly into war with Moscow.
NATO makes decisions by consensus, so any candidate needs the support of all 32 members of the bloc.
Why Hungary changed its position on Rutte
Head of the permanent delegation of Ukraine to the NATO PA, MP Egor Chernev on the telethon said that certain levers of influence indicate a change in Budapest’s position on a number of questions.
— I see that they are finding leverage over Hungary and, to a certain extent, reaching agreements with it when it does not support, but does not put a spoke in the wheels, — said the politician.
To understand how much a change in the head of NATO can affect cooperation and issues regarding Ukraine, Chernev advises judging by Amsterdam’s assistance to Kyiv.
— The Netherlands is a country that is part of the same F-16 coalition and is one of the leaders in these issues and helps in many ways within the framework of Ramstein… I don’t expect any negative surprises here; there may be positive ones.
Chernev drew attention to the change in the rhetoric of the current NATO Secretary General from the fact that the bloc should in no way be drawn into war, to support for permission to use Western weapons on the territory of the Russian Federation. Chernev believes that Mark Rutte will pick up the same rhetoric.
What is known about Mark Rutte
Mark Rutte was born into a Protestant family in the city of The Hague. He studied at Leiden University, graduating in 1992.
From 1988 to 1991, he headed the Youth Organization for Freedom and Democracy (the youth wing of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy). After graduating from the institute, he worked for ten years at the food company Unilever, and in 2002 moved into the field of national politics.
During the 2002 parliamentary elections, Rutte worked at the headquarters of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy, and was subsequently appointed Secretary of State for Social Affairs and Employment in the first Balkenende government.
After the resignation of the government, he was briefly a member of parliament, and then was again appointed to this position in the second government of Balkenende.
From June 17, 2004 to June 27, 2006, he worked as Secretary of State for Higher Education, Science and Culture in the second cabinet of Balkenende.
Rutte later returned to the second chamber of the States General and soon became the leader of the parliamentary faction of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy.
In the 2010 parliamentary elections, he headed the list of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy.
A center-right coalition was formed in parliament between the People's Party and the Christian Democratic Appeal, which was supported by the Freedom Party under the leadership of Geert Wilders.
October 8, 2010 Mark Rutte was appointed head of government and formed his cabinet.
Rutte is the first prime minister of the Netherlands from outside the Christian Democratic Party and the Labor Party since 1918. He is also the first Prime Minister of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy.
Mark Rutte’s attitude to the war in Ukraine
The Netherlands is one of the largest European allies for Ukraine.
Mark Rutte has repeatedly stated that his state is ready to support Ukraine as long as necessary, including strengthening air defense and training pilots for the F-16.
During President Vladimir Zelensky's visit to the Netherlands in May 2023, the leaders agreed that a special tribunal for the crime of aggression of the Russian Federation should be held in The Hague.
Rutte and Zelensky believe that no existing international mechanism can exercise jurisdiction over the crime of aggression committed in Ukraine.
In April 2024, Rutte stated that the need to deliver surface-to-surface missiles — air to Ukraine is urgent, and has also made new efforts to convince countries with large numbers of Patriot air defense systems to give them to the Ukrainians.
The new NATO Secretary General is expected to appear at the bloc's anniversary summit, which will take place in Washington in July. Stoltenberg's term will officially end on October 1, 2024.
