Zero degree meeting in Brussels: Iohannis vs Rutte. What were the reactions of the two rivals to the head of NATO

Zero degree meeting in Brussels where President Klaus Iohannis met on Thursday with rival Mark Rutte first at the Nuclear Energy Summit, followed by the European Council Summit. It is the first meeting between the two since the Romanian president announced his candidacy for the head of NATO, last week.

By the Observator editorial team on 21.03.2024, 17:28

The Dutch prime minister said about his opponent for the headship of NATO that he is “a wonderful man” and a “credible leader for his country” with whom he “almost always worked well” for 10 years. However, Mark Rutte did not want to comment on what chances the head of state would have to become the general secretary of NATO.

The Dutch Prime Minister was asked in Brussels how far he will sit at the table from Klaus Iohannis and how comfortable he will be at the European Council meeting, in the context in which the Romanian president would think he is a better NATO leader than him. At the same time, he was asked if he tried to make signs to President Iohannis under the table or if it was too far.

“I’m certainly not going to do that, because he’s a wonderful man. He’s been president of Romania for 10 years and I’ve worked well almost all the time. He’s a credible leader for his country. As for NATO, as you know, I don’t say anything” , said Mark Rutte,

Asked if President Klaus Iohannis is a credible leader for NATO as well, the Dutch prime minister replied: “I’m not going to say anything about NATO, nothing.” “Apart from what I told a colleague of yours last October,” added Rutte.

Iohannis, about Mark Rutte: I think that geography, history and some themes distinguish us

President Klaus Iohannis declared for his part that he has a slightly different approach regarding the future of the North Atlantic Alliance compared to that of his opponent, Mark Rutte.

“Being an atypical competition, I don’t think it’s my role to say about the other competitor how he will do and what he will do, but I think that our geography, history and, certainly, there are some topics where our approaches, both very constructive, but slightly different in terms of the future of NATO”, declared Klaus Iohannis, when asked what differentiates him from Mark Rutte, in the candidacy for the head of NATO.

Asked if he is in negotiations for a position at the European level, Klaus Iohannis said he is focusing “on the talks for NATO”. Pressed if there would be no talks for other positions later, after the June 9 elections, Iohannis said: “I think I answered you quite bluntly.”

Asked if he received supportive reactions from member countries, Iohannis said: “As I answered another question, it is not usual to make statements after these negotiations. The results are particularly sensitive, each state wants to make certain statements , but they should still be kept within NATO. You see, at NATO there is no public procedure, there is no voting, the result is established by consensus, and then these discussions are quite complex, because the world does not want to be vehicular in the public space the way they reacted. I know the reactions, but to protect those sensitivities I prefer not to say them publicly.”

Iohannis vs. Rutte at the head of NATO

Klaus Iohannis announced on March 12 that he will run for NATO chief and is seeking to attract support from countries that are uncomfortable without a detailed debate on the future secretary general of the alliance.

According to sources cited by the European press, the Romanian president has the support of Hungary and Bulgaria, but he could also receive the support of the other states from the former communist bloc. It could also be supported by Turkey, which is the second military force in the Alliance. However, Mark Rutte is supported by 22 countries, including the great powers that have publicly announced that they are on his side.

According to Deutsche Welle, it is not excluded that the Dutch prime minister loses interest in this position and wishes to become head of the Council of Europe. The journalists from the Frankfurter Allgemaine Zeitung concluded that the Romanian president has no chance to lead NATO, and his appearance in the scheme only complicates things.

Officials in Brussels would have hoped that the rumor of the candidacy would not materialize, and that Klaus Iohannis would give up the idea, especially since last year he had the ambition to replace Ursula von der Leyen and become president of the European Commission.