NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte met with President Trump on Wednesday amid tensions over the alliance.
Steve Inskeep, host:
The head of NATO visited the White House today – a timely visit for Mark Rutte. The president has criticized NATO allies for their reluctance or refusal to support the war. Terry Schultz reports that Rutte has become accustomed to controlling the Trump administration.
TERRY SCHULTZ: The last time NATO chief Mark Rutte met so closely with Donald Trump, the president insisted that he was going to take over the Danish island of Greenland, possibly by military force. Denmark was prepared to take up arms – literally – if necessary, sending troops to Greenland to fight against American forces. Then, in a private meeting, Rutte convinced Trump that they should negotiate with Denmark rather than invade. Now Rutte’s task is to convince Trump that he should not leave NATO, as he has repeatedly threatened over European disapproval of his war on Iran.
MARTIN QUEENS: This is certainly a very dangerous moment for NATO.
SCHULTZ: Martin Quness of the German Marshall Fund think tank expects Rutte to continue his practice of excessively flattering Trump and try to focus on the president’s victories, such as forcing other NATO governments to dramatically increase defense spending.
QUEENS: Rutte is committed to ensuring that the US does not effectively withdraw from European security. And I believe he will continue to say whatever he deems necessary to convince Donald Trump that it is not in the American interest to criticize NATO or even undermine the credibility of Article 5.
SCHULTZ: Article 5, the pledge of solidarity and collective defense for all, one for all, is one of the aspects of NATO membership that Trump often takes issue with. And this is what Linas Kozla, director of the Center for Geopolitics and Security Studies in Vilnius, Lithuania, is most worried about.
Linas Kozala: We cannot allow ourselves to see the US withdraw from NATO, formally or informally. This would be particularly detrimental to the security of the east coast countries. We are unsafe.
SCHULTZ: Kozla even suggested that opponents of Trump’s war on Iran should perhaps downplay the controversy in favor of the ultimate goal – keeping NATO together. European NATO members will be watching Rutte closely, hoping he can maintain the credibility of Article 5 and prevent discussion of Article 13 of NATO’s founding treaty. That paves the way for how a country can leave the alliance.
For NPR News, I’m Terry Schultz in Brussels.
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