A seasoned politician with a laid-back lifestyle, Mark Rutte will need his balancing skills to lead NATO through one of the most difficult periods in its history.
Often photographed cycling to work while munching on an apple, Mr. Rutte on Tuesday became the fourth Dutchman to lead the 32-nation alliance during a period of Russian belligerence and perhaps American indifference.
In his country, this “everyman” arrives by bicycle to meet foreign leaders, does his shopping at the supermarket and drives his Saab himself to go to the king.
The man, who left “La Tourelle”, his office as Prime Minister, by bike in June, is changing his life for the pressure cooker of Brussels.
The Dutch daily NRC summarized the event in a drawing: Mr Rutte, happily crunching an apple on a bicycle with a NATO flag, walks towards a group of heads of state hitting each other with missiles.
Standing 1m93 tall, Mr. Rutte, 57, has many nicknames, including “Mark Teflon” because of his great resistance to scandals.
This quality allowed him to remain prime minister for 14 years, a longevity record in his country, surviving in particular in 2021 the resignation of his government following a scandal over social benefits.
He ended up resigning in July 2023 after infighting within his coalition on the subject of asylum.
“A lot of things went wrong under my watch and I took it personally,” he said in a farewell message to the Dutch in June.
The sudden collapse of his fourth government was followed by a wide election victory for Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders in November 2023.
Outspoken
Mr. Rutte also has the English nickname of “ The Trump Whisperer » (the man who whispers in Trump’s ear) for his ability to reason with the former American president.
He is credited with saving a NATO summit in 2018 by talking with Mr Trump about defense spending.
He also displayed typically Dutch frankness with the former Republican president during a visit to Washington in 2018, where he interrupted him with a resolute “no” when he claimed he would be “positive » not to reach a trade agreement with the EU.
In February, Mr. Rutte was once again outspoken at the Munich Security Conference, saying that Europe needed to work “with everyone on the dance floor.”
“All this whining and whining about Trump, I hear that constantly these last few days, let’s stop,” he said.
On Ukraine, Rutte spearheaded efforts to equip the country with F-16 fighter jets, a move described as “historic” by President Volodymyr Zelensky during a trip to the -Down.
“Ukraine must win this war. For his safety and ours,” declared the man who did not hesitate to describe Russian President Vladimir Putin as “cold, brutal, ruthless” shortly after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Mr Rutte was prime minister when Malaysia Airlines Flight MH17 crashed in Ukraine in 2014, killing all 298 people on board, including 196 Dutch people.
He said the event was “perhaps the most profound and moving” of his 14 years as head of the Netherlands, and “changed [sa] personal vision of the world. This made him all the more determined to support Ukraine, “for its security and ours.”
Initially dreaming of a career as a pianist, he joined the Anglo-Dutch consumer giant Unilever after his studies.
He describes himself as a “man of habit and tradition” and has spent his entire life in The Hague, where he gives lessons on a voluntary basis.
“Mark doesn’t like change, he always wants the same thing,” confirms Marco Rimmelzwaan, his hairdresser.