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Mark Rutte

The latest news on Mark Rutte, Dutch politician and Secretary General of NATO, including global politics and diplomacy news.

Born

14 Feb 1967

Industry

Politics

Job Title

Politician

New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon (left) and Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte attend a summit press briefing in the Netherlands, on Tuesday. The absence of other Indo-Pacific leaders in the region signaled anxiety about waning US commitment to the region, experts say. Photo: EPA

US-China relations

What key Nato summit absences reveal about Indo-Pacific worries

No-shows by regional leaders at this year’s gathering suggest growing anxiety about US commitments in the region, experts say.

28 Jun 2025 - 10:00AM

Diplomacy

My Take | Nato chief calls Trump ‘daddy’ as he makes Beijing the bogeyman

28 Jun 2025 - 7:19AMvideocam

Donald Trump

Nato chief Rutte defends flattery of Trump, who he called ‘daddy’

27 Jun 2025 - 5:42PM

Nato

Nato leaders agree to 5% defence spending goal in annual summit

Alliance to ‘reaffirm’ support for Ukraine, pledged ‘ironclad commitment to collective defence’ under Article 5.

26 Jun 2025 - 6:59PMvideocam

Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte, US President Donald Trump and other leaders pose for a family photo at the Nato summit. Photo: Reuters

Britain

UK to reintroduce nuclear weapon-capable aircraft under Nato

UK to purchase 12 F-35A fighter jets capable of carrying tactical nuclear weapons.

25 Jun 2025 - 1:06PM

Donald Trump

‘Dear Donald’: Trump airs Nato chief’s gushing private message

Mark Rutte exposed as flatterer-in-chief in private message to the US president.

25 Jun 2025 - 12:01PM

Donald Trump

Trump rattles Nato allies as he descends on summit

The US president refused to commit to the alliance’s mutual defence vow, as Washington warns it may shift focus to the threat from China.

25 Jun 2025 - 8:45AM

Nato

Stop worrying about US and carry on, Nato chief tells Europe and Canada

Mark Rutte says the Americans are ‘with us’ and other bloc members need to focus on their military investment plans.

25 Jun 2025 - 1:48AMvideocam

Israel-Iran conflict

Iran approves general plan to suspend cooperation with IAEA

Iran said submitting reports to the UN nuclear watchdog is suspended while the security of nuclear facilities is not guaranteed.

24 Jun 2025 - 4:44AMvideocam

Nato

Beijing’s ‘massive’ build-up raises threat of Taiwan Strait conflict: Nato chief

Its enlarged military presence could draw in Russia and thus European forces into the fray, secretary general warns ahead of summit.

24 Jun 2025 - 2:06AMvideocam

Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte holds a press conference ahead of the alliance’s summit in The Hague, Netherlands, on Monday. Photo: Reuters

Canada

Canada raises defence spending to hit Nato targets amid tariff row: Carney

The new spending comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney tries to reach a deal with the White House to lower or remove tariffs on Canadian goods.

22 Jun 2025 - 8:05PM

Canada’s Prime Minister Mark Carney speaks at a news conference in the Foyer of the House of Commons in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, on Friday. Photo: dpa

Nato

Nato allies must lift military spending to more than 3.5% of GDP, US Senate told

Testimony before the Foreign Relations Committee comes ahead of the summit next week for North Atlantic Treaty Organisation leaders.

19 Jun 2025 - 5:32AMvideocam

US-China relations

Breaking with G7 stance, Trump says he’d welcome China and Russia in bloc

US leader calls Kremlin’s 2014 expulsion ‘a big mistake’ and considering Beijing ‘not a bad idea’ as summit starts in Canada.

17 Jun 2025 - 5:54AM

My Take

My Take | Hey, Nato boss man, keep your hands off the Asia-Pacific region

The West’s unspoken assumption is that Asians cannot be trusted to manage their own affairs, at least when Western interests are involved.

11 Jun 2025 - 9:00PM

Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte gives a speech at Chatham House, London, Monday June 9, 2025, during his visit to the UK. Photo: AP

China-EU relations

Nato chief says it must build Indo-Pacific ties to meet China’s military challenge

Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte contends that Euro-Atlantic security ‘is all interconnected with what is happening in the Pacific’.

10 Jun 2025 - 6:21AMvideocam

Nato

‘Quantum leap’: Nato chief to urge 400 per cent rise in air defence

‘We see in Ukraine how Russia delivers terror from above, so we will strengthen the shield that protects our skies,’ says Mark Rutte.

9 Jun 2025 - 6:26PMvideocam

Ukraine war

Ukraine invited to Nato summit as peace talks make little headway

Trump ‘open’ to meeting leaders of Ukraine and Russia to push for a ceasefire.

3 Jun 2025 - 11:42AM

Britain

‘Message to Moscow’: UK boosts military spending amid threat from Russia.

‘The threat we face is more serious, more immediate and more unpredictable than at any time since the Cold War,’ PM Keir Starmer said.

3 Jun 2025 - 12:43AMvideocam

Keir Starmer, UK prime minister, speaking in London in March. Photo: via EPA-EFE

Nato

Nato targets 5% defence spending to appease Trump

The transatlantic security alliance is reportedly eyeing the biggest military spending increase since the Cold War.

14 May 2025 - 2:05PMvideocam

Nato

Marco Rubio says US committed to Nato but tells allies to spend more

Trump has demanded Nato more than double its current spending target to five per cent of GDP – more than any, including the US, spend now.

3 Apr 2025 - 7:39PMvideocam

Diplomacy

Opinion | Why are so many countries rethinking their relations with China?

With the pandemic waning and global conflicts reshaping geopolitics, some nations are reassessing their relationship with China. This rethink could threaten China’s global influence and further divide the world into opposing camps like in the Cold War.

21 Mar 2024 - 9:01PMvideocam

The Netherlands

Dutch far-right firebrand Geert Wilders says won’t be PM

The far-right politician, whose anti-Islam, anti-migrant rhetoric swept him to a shock election victory, does not have support of all parties in his coalition.

14 Mar 2024 - 10:56AM

Dutch far-right leader Geert Wilders. Photo: AFP

Semiconductors

Netherlands seeks to prevent ASML expansion abroad, report says

The Dutch government is exploring ways to keep ASML from expanding outside the Netherlands after the chip-machinery maker raised concerns about the country’s business climate.

7 Mar 2024 - 3:07PM

Ukraine war

Zelensky calls for more Western air defence systems to ‘save lives’

‘We need to strengthen the Ukrainian air shield to add more protection for our people from Russian terror.’

2 Mar 2024 - 8:39PMvideocam

Ukraine war

Macron does not rule out Europeans sending troops to Ukraine

French President Emmanuel Macron opened the door to European nations sending troops to Ukraine, although he cautioned that there was no consensus at this stage.

27 Feb 2024 - 11:26AMvideocam

France’s President Emmanuel Macron. Photo: AFP

Nato

US, UK back outgoing Dutch PM Rutte to become Nato chief

Mark Rutte is the only official candidate to replace Jens Stoltenberg as secretary general of Nato, which appoints its leader by consensus, requiring the support from all its members.

22 Feb 2024 - 9:34PM

Nato

Nato to hold biggest war games since Cold War with 90,000 troops

The exercise will span from North America to Nato’s eastern flank, close to the Russian border, and will involve 50 naval vessels, 80 aircraft and over 1,100 combat vehicles.

19 Jan 2024 - 1:31PM

European Union

As Danish monarch abdicates, more queens in store for Europe amid Gen Z rise

Belgium’s Elisabeth, Catharina-Amalia of the Netherlands and Spain’s Leonor are among the monarchs who will be ascending to thrones in the coming years.

14 Jan 2024 - 4:00PM

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