Just days ago, European leaders were scrambling to respond to US President Donald Trump’s increasingly aggressive rhetoric over control of Greenland, bracing for an avalanche of abuse as he arrived to speak at home.
As expected, President Trump spoke at Davos in the Swiss Alps and criticized European officials on a variety of issues. But he also ruled out annexing coveted Danish territory by force, lowering his temperature on an issue that threatens the future of the NATO military alliance.
He then went a step further with talks with NATO chief Mark Rutte, after which he announced that he would reach an agreement on a possible deal on Greenland and would not impose tariffs on European countries that oppose his ambitions to acquire the Arctic island.
It is not yet clear what the framework will include and Rutte’s exact role in the negotiations. But President Trump’s surprising about-face has put the spotlight back on the NATO secretary general, who has emerged as a crucial figure for a beleaguered Europe struggling to communicate with the US president.
At first glance, it seems like an unlikely combination. Mr. Rutte is a mild-mannered technocrat who is the Netherlands’ longest-serving prime minister, a 14-year term that reflects his pragmatism and ability to build consensus on thorny issues. He is also known for his easy-going and relaxed image, riding his bike to work even when riding through the countryside.
Trump, on the other hand, is a former real estate mogul and television personality known for his unconventional behavior and penchant for unilateralism, which has transformed global politics over the past decade.
However, their relationship goes back many years. As the leader of the Netherlands from 2010 to 2024, Rutte made several visits to Washington, D.C., during Trump’s first term, laying the groundwork for a charm offensive that appears to have worked well for Trump and the military alliance he now leads.
The most famous act of diplomacy to appease the 58-year-old Trump occurred at last year’s NATO meeting. “Sometimes Dad has to use strong words,” Rutte joked to the world’s cameras after the US president used an expletive to describe hostilities between Israel and Iran, then compared the deadly conflict to two children fighting to explain the deadly conflict.
The exchange quickly went viral, making headlines and leaving viewers in a state of disbelief. That seems to have stuck with President Trump, who at one point spoke at Davos on Wednesday and said, “They called me ‘Daddy,’ right? Last time. Some very smart people said, ‘He’s our daddy.'”
Rutte has publicly praised Trump on other issues, including the U.S. attack on Iran, Trump’s efforts to end the war between Russia and Ukraine, and even the president’s pressure campaign on European countries to increase defense spending.
This flattery extended to private text messages that President Trump shared multiple times on social media.
“Mr. President, dear Donald. What you have accomplished today in Syria is incredible,” Rutte wrote in a recent message posted on Truth Social late Monday night ahead of Trump’s arrival in Davos. Rutte concluded with a friendly greeting: “I can’t wait to meet you. Mark, it’s you.”
Similarly, before last year’s NATO summit (the scene of the “Daddy” incident), Mr. Rutte texted Mr. Trump, “You will accomplish what no American president in recent decades has accomplished.”
The exchange raised eyebrows on his home continent. Rutte acknowledges this criticism. “I’m unpopular right now because I’m defending Donald Trump, but I truly believe we’ll be better off with him there,” he told the Davos audience Wednesday during a panel discussion on European defense.
Many other leaders have sought to gain diplomatic wins by forging personal relationships with President Trump. Finnish President Alex Stubbe and Japan’s late former Prime Minister Shinzo Abe both developed close friendships with President Trump through golf. French President Emmanuel Macron also had a bromance with President Trump, but that relationship now appears to have soured.
“Mr. Rutte knows that his personal relationship with this administration has a lot to do with it,” Tory Taussig, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council and a former NATO policy adviser at the Pentagon, told CNN last year.
Finland’s president also seemed to agree with this strategy last year. “Diplomacy takes many different forms,” he said, avoiding questions about Rutte’s message about President Trump.
And while this approach may seem vindictive to his critics, it can have real benefits, as recent summits showed.
Last year’s NATO summit ended with member states unanimously agreeing to raise spending to the highest level since the Cold War, which is believed to be due to President Trump’s change in policy.
And this week’s Davos meeting could have averted a potential trade war between Europe and the United States that has spooked stock markets and sparked existential anxiety over the future of NATO.
Details regarding the Greenland framework are scarce. However, Rutte did not propose any “compromise” on Denmark’s sovereignty in his meeting with President Trump, a NATO spokesperson told CNN on Thursday.
And Rutte said in an interview on Fox News that the talks focused on Arctic security. “We basically discussed how we can implement the president’s vision of protecting Greenland, but of course not just Greenland, but this entire Arctic,” he added.
However, Europe and NATO are not out of the woods yet. In his Davos speech, President Trump ruled out using military force to seize Greenland, but reiterated his calls for control of the island.
A NATO spokesperson said negotiations between Greenland, Denmark and the United States were “moving forward.” Meanwhile, European Union (EU) leaders are scheduled to hold an emergency summit on Thursday.
Through it all, the Dutchman at the center has remained tight-lipped, saying only that he had a “very good meeting” with President Trump. When asked for further information, he again deferred to the US president.
“Read the post on Truth Social,” he told journalists.
