THE HAGUE: NATO chief Mark Rutte with a boastful message to US President Donald Trump.
The case is being updated
– Dear President. Congratulations and thank you for taking decisive action in Iran. It was extraordinary and something no one else dared to do. It makes us all safer.
This is how the message NATO chief Mark Rutte sent to President Donald Trump begins before the summit in The Hague on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Trump, who is on his way to The Hague, has himself posted the message from Rutte on his own platform, Truth Social.
Rutte also boasts about Trump's second victory. Namely, that NATO countries are expected to adopt a new, ambitious investment target on Wednesday. NATO's 32 allies will spend 5 percent of their gross domestic product on defense by 2035.
– Europe will pay in a big way and that will be your victory, Rutte emphasizes. It was Trump who first suggested that NATO countries should spend 5 percent on defense. Rutte has further refined the idea and the allies will now advocate spending 3.5 percent on defense spending and 1.5 percent on spending that supports total defense.
– Donald, you have brought us to a very, very important moment for the United States and Europe and the world. You will achieve something NO other American president has achieved in decades, writes Rutte.
Rutte has said he has no problem with Trump posting the message on Truth Social, according to Reuters. He says the tone of Trump's message was appropriate, according to the news agency.
Trump: – I am committed to helping them
Trump also took a jab at Spain, which initially refused to back the 5 percent target.
– Spain is a problem. Spain does not agree. It is very unfair to the rest of the people, writes Trump.
He also mentions Article 5 of the NATO Charter, which states that an attack against one or more NATO members shall be considered an attack against all NATO countries.
– There are many different definitions of Article 5. You know that, right? But I am committed to being their friend... I have become friends with many of the leaders and am committed to helping them, Trump tells reporters according to the Financial Times.
– Rutte flatters Trump
Researcher Anders Romarheim says he perceives Rutte's comment as flattering towards Trump and the US. He is head of the Center for International Security at the Institute for Defense Studies and the Norwegian National Defense University.
– Without the US on board, NATO lacks both military weight and direction. Rutte's clear positive line also carries an ambition for unity, and the inclusion of Trump ahead of the NATO meeting, says Romarhim
Former top Norwegian diplomat Kåre Aas is not very surprised by either the content or form of Rutte's message to Trump.
– It is important for the new head of NATO to have a good relationship with the American president and with Trump in particular. And Rutte probably wants to have the most successful NATO summit in The Hague this week, says Aas.
He points out that Rutte already said on Monday that the American attack on Iran was not a violation of international law.
– I therefore do not find what Rutte is expressing here very surprising. What I am more excited about is how the NATO summit as such will express itself on the situation in the Middle East and the US attack on Iran. The main issue at the summit will still be NATO's continued support for Ukraine and the announced defense pledge of 5 percent of GNI, says Aas.
– Klein
Kate Bundt is secretary general of the Norwegian Atlantic Committee. She is in The Hague and listened to Rutte this morning, she describes the message to Trump as klein.
– The wording of the message is a bit small. At the same time, Rutte probably hopes that his first summit, which is also on home soil, will be a success. He probably really wants Trump to behave, says Bundt.
International law and the attack on Iran are a difficult issue within NATO countries, explains Bundt. She therefore finds it peculiar that Rutte is so in the shaming of Trump.
– It's a question of balance – how far should one go to appease Trump. We are all dependent on the security guarantee from the US, but now the NATO countries are delivering a 5 percent contribution. We'll see how it goes tomorrow. No one knows where the hare will jump – but now Trump is probably high up after showing action, says Bundt.
Sent as a private person
– Bragging about the Trump strategy is not that unusual. Jens Stoltenberg used it too, says Marianne Riddervold.
She is a researcher at Nupi and professor of political science and international politics at Innlandet University College.
She says we must distinguish between what concerns Iran in the message and what concerns the 5 percent target in NATO. She says Rutte is sending the message as a private person and not on behalf of NATO.
– At the same time, there is consensus among NATO countries that Rutte's job, among other things, is to keep Trump"inside" NATO, so bragging about his role in putting a 5% target in place in NATO is probably less controversial than what concerns Iran.
Riddervold says it is rare for us to see this type of message, and that it is therefore difficult to say how common such a tone is.
– In general, many professional diplomats have probably understood what to do to try to contain Trump. But he does not represent NATO when he writes this message, and many countries will probably have some problems with the first part of the message.
