Put in a difficult situation, Rutte chose not to touch the subject of Greenland. The NATO chief has a “silver bullet” but wanted to keep it for something else
Donald Trump's claims on Greenland, a Danish territory, have put the head of NATO, Mark Rutte, in an extremely uncomfortable position. And, until this moment, he chose to say as little as possible on this subject, notes France Presse.
Its purpose? Keeping the organization whose secretary general is out of this territorial “dispute” between the United States and Denmark, two NATO member countries, which threatens the very existence of the Atlantic Alliance, 77 years after its establishment in 1949.
A US attack on Greenland would mean “the end of everything”, especially NATO, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen warned in early January.
Mark Rutte: “We work behind closed doors”
“The people of Greenland are horrified,” Danish MEP Stine Bosse said this week to the NATO chief in a debate with MEPs in Brussels.
“Please give us an indication of what this alliance can do if two countries within it cannot come to an agreement.”
Mark Rutte remained impassive.
“As Secretary General, it is very clear that I never make statements when there are discussions within the Alliance,” he limited himself to replying. “We work behind closed doors,” he added.
The former Dutch prime minister was elected in 2024 to head NATO for his ability to “manage” Donald Trump, with whom he managed to establish a relationship of trust.
And he never hesitates to thank him for “convincing” European NATO countries to spend much more on their defense. “This is because of President Trump – and I know you will all hate me for saying this – but this is what I believe,” he stressed in the European Parliament.
Former NATO official: “His job is to know when to intervene”
This strategy has not stopped the US president from reiterating his threats against Greenland, which he plans to annex to ensure US security.
Mark Rutte intends to convince him using this very idea. It is not necessary to invade Greenland for the United States to be safe, he stressed.
“Within NATO, we all agree that to protect the Arctic, we must work together, and that's exactly what we're doing,” he stressed.
But what will happen if Donald Trump doesn't change his mind?
Mark Rutte “needs to act quickly but quietly behind the scenes to convince the United States,” Jamie Shea of London think tank Chatam House told AFP.
A “good offices” mission, explains the former Deputy Secretary General of the Alliance, Camille Grand. His job is “to know when he considers it the most opportune moment to enter the discussion,” he said when questioned.
He has “the legitimacy to say: 'We will find a solution, I understand the American concern about this region, and we, at NATO, have proposals'”.
NATO leader has only 'one silver bullet'
In Brussels, the Alliance is considering several options, including a new mission in the Arctic, modeled after what has already been done in the Baltic Sea, to better counter the Russian threat.
Military personnel from several European countries began arriving in Greenland this week to check the conditions for a possible future NATO deployment.
And if it still doesn't work?
Mark Rutte may have to play his last card: to use the trust capital he has acquired with Donald Trump to say “this can't be done”, one diplomat explained.
The problem is that this “silver bullet” can only be used once.
“Rutte knows that if he fails now, he could 'burn out' and lose the trust capital he has built up against Trump,” said another diplomat.
“He wanted to use this last bullet for Ukraine, but he may have to make another one for Greenland,” he added.
