LOS ANGELES.–Making idle threats to 72-year-old Russian President Vladimir Putin, 58-year-old NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte proved he’s not fit for the job. Rutte’s job as Secretary-General is to promote diplomacy, tone down the rhetoric and go about his business quietly. Putin is well-aware of NATO’s growing presence in Sweden and Finland and doesn’t need to hear a bureaucrat make idle threats, especially while 78-year-old President Donald Trump attempts to make peace in Ukraine with the Kremlin. Rutte said publicly that any attack on Poland would be met with a “devastating” response, something better left unsaid. Rutte’s lack of common sense shows that he’s not fit to lead the NATO alliance. Trump is trying to quiet down the belligerent rhetoric all too common during 82-year-old former President Joe Biden’s four years in office. What possible reason would Rutte threaten the Kremlin?
Russia’s presence in Ukraine relates directly to Putin’s analysis that the U.S. and NATO are trying to topple his regime as specified by Biden and his former Defense Secretary in 2022 that the aim of the military operation in Ukraine was to degrade the Russian military to the point it can no longer wage war. If that weren’t declaration of war, then what is? So when Rutte talks openly about a “devastating” response from NATO is Putin supposed to be intimidated? NATO’s presence in Europe since the end of WW II has been behind the scenes giving some security to Western European countries concerned about Soviet expansion. When it comes to today’s atmosphere of seeking an elusive peace deal in Ukraine that benefits everyone in Europe, Rutte talks like he’s itching for a fight. Rutte expressed concern that Trump’s peace negotiations could affect European security.
Speaking in Warsaw with Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk, both leaders expressed concern over how much Trump planned to give Putin in any peace deal. Tusk and Rutte expressed fear that ceding territory in Ukraine to Putin could start a chain reaction of Putin moving the Russian military to Poland and the Baltic States. That fear is precisely the fake talking points used by 47-year-old Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky and Biden to sell the Ukraine War to the European Union. Instead of seeking to end the war like Trump, Rutte and others in the EU talk like they’d like to keep the war going indefinitely. EU leaders like European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has called Putin a “clear and present a danger” ramping up the war-like rhetoric? Dealing with Trump’s peace overtures, how’s Putin supposed to interpret EU rhetoric?
When it comes to Rutte, who leads a U.S.-backed military alliance, Trump’s national security team should be concerned that he’s trying to sabotage peace efforts with the Kremlin. Putin’s fight in Ukraine is about holding NATO back from encroaching on Russian national security. “I anyone were to miscalculate and think they can get away with an attack on Poland or on any other ally, the will be met with the full force of this fierce alliance. Our reaction will be devastating. This has to be very clear to Vladimir Vladmirovich Putin and anyone else who wants to attack us,” Rutte said. Trump should demand that Rutte be removed as Secretary-General to serve notice that the U.S. is suspending in cash contribution to NATO. Rutte should be supporting Trump’s peace efforts in Ukraine, not creating a more war-like atmosphere, something Trump wants to end.
Whatever settlement comes out of the Ukraine War, it’s not for Rutte to second guess what the effect would be on Putin’s future military moves. Rutte doesn’t have any facts to support his accusation that Putin seeks to take over Poland or former Soviet satellites in the Baltics. Rutte’s lack of common sense and diplomacy skills shows that he’s not fit for the job. He’s supposed to calm down the belligerent rhetoric currently sweeping through Brussels, making disparaging statements about Putin. Trump has done everything possible to reverse Biden’s belligerent tone with Russia, replacing it with an optimistic attitude of cooperation and peacemaking. Whatever deal Trump cuts to get peace in Ukraine should be welcomed by NATO to reduce the chances of more conflict on the European Continent. Improving U.S.-Russian relations should benefit everyone.
Rutte demonstrated that he’s no fit to represent NATO, a job that involves diplomacy, not making idle threats of more conflict. Without U.S. support, NATO would not have the military resources capable of defending EU countries against any possible threat. But if you listen to Zelensky, he begs for NATO membership, even if it means causing WW III. Rutte shows he’s bought into the current Russian hysteria sweeping Brussels, certainly as expressed by Zelensky, French President Emmanuel Macron and von der Leyen. “Let’s not forget that Russia is and is remaining the most significant and dark threat to our alliance. Let’s not forget that Russia is moving into a wartime economy, and that will have a huge impact on the capacity and capability to build their armed forces,” Rutte said. Trump should take a serious look at removing Rutte before he starts WW III or nuclear war.
About the Author
John M. Curtis writes politically neutral commentary analyzing spin in national and global news. He’s editor of OnlineColumnist.com and author of Dodging The Bullet and Operation Charisma.
