Mark Rutte: The ideal candidate to preserve NATO unity
What can we expect from Mark Rutte as NATO's Secretary General? Lars Brummel, postdoctoral researcher at the Institute of Public Administration, explains in The Conversation that Rutte is a good candidate to counter threats to NATO's cohesion.
Brummel explains that one of the potential challenges for NATO will be the US elections. However, Rutte is also seen as a Trump whisperer: 'he is widely seen as one of the few political leaders that is capable to deal with the former (and possible future) US president. For example, at the 2018 Nato summit, Rutte successfully engaged with Trump to ease tensions over defence spending, demonstrating his ability to manage the former president’s unpredictable style.'
According to Brummel Rutte gained a lot of experience in crisis management at the helm of Dutch politics, particularly within the EU in which he presented a strong voice: 'During the Eurozone crisis in the 2010s, he strongly advocated for austerity measures and economic reforms in hard hit southern Europe, which gained him a reputation as a a tough and sometimes hardline negotiator.'
Read the full article on the website of The Conversation.