Nato secretary general Mark Rutte has once again come to the defence of Donald Trump, insisting that the President’s divisive comments about European allies are akin to a “family argument”.
This week, Mr Trump renewed his threats to acquire Greenland and declared a ceasefire agreement with Iran “over”. He attacked Spain for a lack of contributions to Nato and called for a suspension of all bilateral trade.
Rutte, who refused to criticise the US leader throughout, was asked by a Danish reporter if supporting Trump while he lashed out at allies and started trade wars “has any effect on your self-respect”.
He replied: “What I always do is acknowledge when praise is due.”
The Nato chief, who previously sparked headlines for calling Trump “daddy”, said that the dynamic between him and the unpredictable president was similar to a family.
“It’s a bit like in a family, you have families where you never quarrel and then it bursts out completely,” he told the BBC.
“Trump is completely committed to Nato.”
He added: “I am 100 per cent convinced [Trump is committed to Nato]. Because… I know that the United States, this president included, particularly this president, also understands that – take [US Operation] Epic Fury [against Iran], it could not have taken place at this extent without using Europe as a power projection platform.
“Five thousand planes taking off from European bases based on bilateral basing agreements in the first, in the six weeks between end of February and mid-April, till a ceasefire came into force.”
On Wednesday, Rutte defended the US decision to strike Iran in response to attacks on commercial vessels in the Strait of Hormuz.
“When you have a ceasefire and Iran is basically violating the ceasefire, I think it is totally crucial that the US forcefully react,” Rutte told reporters.
The former Dutch prime minister was also seen pointing at Albanian prime minister Edi Rama’s white shoes while apparently laughing in a comment to Trump, which the US leader did not react to.
At last year’s summit, Rutte called Trump “daddy” in reference to his involvement in tensions between Israel and Iran.
“Daddy has to sometimes use strong language to get them to stop,” he interjected.
Earlier this year, he explained that the gaffe had been caused by his “insufficient command of the English language”.
Trump basked in the comment, referring to it again at the Davos conference in Switzerland: “They called me ‘Daddy,’ right? The last time? [A] very smart man said: ‘He’s our Daddy. He’s running it.’”
Rutte said told Politico: “I’m now carrying it, living with it. It’s a fact of life. Now he’s Daddy.”
