NATO HAS FORMALLY appointed Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte as its new chief. 

The alliance made the announcement this morning in a short press release – he will succeed outgoing Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg from 1 October. 

Rutte was tipped to succeed in his candidacy after Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban agreed to not block it last week.

Rutte, who has been a vocal critic of Vladimir Putin and the invasion of Ukraine, was one of two candidates for the top job, the other was Romanian President Klaus Iohannis.

This morning’s statement read: “On Wednesday, the North Atlantic Council decided to appoint Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte as the next Secretary General of NATO, succeeding Jens Stoltenberg.

“Mr Rutte will assume his functions as Secretary General from 1 October 2024, when Mr Stoltenberg’s term expires after ten years at the helm of the Alliance.”

In a tweet Mark Rutte spoke of his delight at getting the top job.

“It is a tremendous honour to be appointed Secretary-General of NATO. The Alliance is and will remain the cornerstone of our collective security. Leading this organisation is a responsibility I do not take lightly.

“I’m grateful to all the Allies for placing their trust in me. I look forward to taking up the position with great vigour in October, as successor to Jens Stoltenberg who has provided NATO with outstanding leadership for the past 10 years, and for whom I have always had great admiration,” he said.

It is a tremendous honour to be appointed Secretary-General of NATO. The Alliance is and will remain the cornerstone of our collective security. Leading this organisation is a responsibility I do not take lightly. I’m grateful to all the Allies for placing their trust in me. I…

— Mark Rutte (@MinPres) June 26, 2024

 Stoltenberg also tweeted and welcomed the appointment. 

“I warmly welcome [the] NATO Allies’ choice of Mark Rutte as my successor. Mark is a true transatlanticist, a strong leader and a consensus-builder. I wish him every success as we continue to strengthen NATO. I know I am leaving NATO in good hands,” he said. 

Stoltenberg, a former Norwegian prime minister, has been NATO’s secretary general since 2014. His tenure has been extended on a number of occasions when the alliance failed to find a successor.

The Norwegian put a stop to that this year when he said he no longer wanted to serve. While there was wide speculation on Stoltenberg’s successor Rutte made the running early as he was supported by the US, UK, Germany and France.

Rutte is a centre-right politician, who was known as a social studies lecturer. He served as prime minister of the Netherlands for 14 years. He is known at home as “Teflon Mark” for his ability to avoid leadership challenges.