It was exactly one year ago, early July 2023, when Mark Rutte thundered them. “I will retire from politics,” he explained after 13 years as Prime Minister of his country. This politician with the longest term in office in the history of the Netherlands of 17 million inhabitants. But what happened to reach this decision? Rutte’s right-wing liberal VVD party considered his asylum policy too lenient. The four-party government coalition collapsed. New elections followed, which the far-right Geert Wilders won.

Mark Rutte could not prevent this shift of the political pendulum to the right. It was probably the biggest defeat of his career. On July 2, he finally resigned as prime minister after serving as caretaker prime minister for almost a year due to the complicated process of forming a government in the Netherlands.

Retirement from politics short duration

Of course, this now belongs to history. Because rather suddenly last October Rutte made it clear that he is now aiming for the post of NATO Secretary General. It was preceded by a discreet campaign with the heads of state and government, whom he had already known for years through various international organizations. As an ardent transatlanticist and supporter of Ukraine, the 57-year-old politician, who studied history, managed to convince first the US and then the vast majority of his allies. Of course, he needed a little more time with his known enemy, Viktor Orbán. Mark Rutte had to promise the right-wing nationalist Hungarian prime minister that Hungary would never continue to participate in Alliance actions for Ukraine outside of NATO territory during his tenure as NATO Secretary General.

Viktor Orbán, who is known to be friendly to Russia, also ruled out arms transfers. The liberal Dutchman and the illiberal Hungarian have often clashed in the context of the EU. In 2021 Mark Rutte told Viktor Orbán to his face that if he doesn’t like the EU, he can leave. At that time, Orbán had passed an anti-LGBTQ+ law in Hungary.

With a bicycle and a piano

Mark Rutte always stood out for his good humor and many apt observations. He always cycled from his humble home in The Hague to his official residence. A talented pianist, he once played the public piano at The Hague Central Station. As NATO Secretary General he should probably take a step back and become more diplomatic. After all, its main task would be to reconcile the conflicting interests among the 32 member states of the alliance and allow it to present a united front to the outside world. The current Secretary General, Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg, has been a master of stoicism. “Stay on your message” is the NATO chief’s recipe for success in his communication tactics.

“Teflon Route”

“A real leader means having the ability to listen and understand different points of view,” Mark Rutte himself once said in a speech. This could certainly be a possible cue for the high position to be taken from October. “He’s a quick crisis manager,” journalist Sheila Sitalsingh says of Rutte. The columnist of the newspaper “Volkskrant” has written a biography of the former prime minister. “Mark Rutte was a prime minister for the people who didn’t let the government bother them, people didn’t just have bad luck in life. without fervor or deep conviction,” writes Sheela Sitalsingh in her book.

For a long time, many Dutch people were satisfied with the stability Mark Rutte provided during the economic crisis and the pandemic, despite alternating coalition majorities in parliament. Some smaller scandals don’t seem to have touched him. “Teflon Route” was the nickname given to him for this very reason.

Good chemistry with Trump

In the event that Donald Trump becomes US president again and targets NATO, Mark Rutte is ready. Surprisingly, he has developed a good relationship with Trump during his first term. The former American president even calls him his friend, although the liberal leader of the Netherlands, a predominantly commercial country, has strongly opposed his economic policy. However, unlike Trump, Mark Rutte as Prime Minister was in favor of giving Ukraine weapons and even provided howitzers and fighter jets from the Dutch military. It is notable that his country’s military was not well-armored financially during Rutte’s 13-year tenure. This year alone, the Netherlands will for the first time achieve the NATO target of 2% of GDP defense investment.

Rutte has for years viewed President Putin with suspicion and disapproval, as Russia is partly responsible for the 2014 downing of airliner MH-17 over eastern Ukraine. The Malaysia Airlines flight was en route from Amsterdam to Kuala Lumpur. Almost 300 people lost their lives, most of them Dutch nationals.

He is not a visionary

In the EU, Mark Rutte was often seen as “Mr No”, says an EU diplomat. Far-reaching reform plans and visions a la Emmanuel Macron, repulsed him. Mark Rutte seems to be getting on well with the rather cold German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. But he also gets on well with Italy’s far-right prime minister, Giorgia Meloni, and is in favor of outsourcing asylum procedures to third countries.

“He’s kind of like the Houdini of politics,” said biographer Sheela Sitalsingh, referring to Harry Houdini, considered the most famous magician of all time. A quality that could be useful in his new position as NATO Secretary General, after he also received an official year at the NATO Summit in

Editor: Irini Anastasopoulou