Respondents see no advantage for the Netherlands from Rutte in NATO

ANP Productions | Source: ANP

Today at 08:06

Mark Rutte is well on his way to becoming the new Secretary General of NATO. But that makes little difference to the Netherlands, according to 72 percent of respondents in an opinion survey by the Atlantic Commission, conducted in collaboration with independent research agency Verian.

About a third of respondents think that the outgoing Prime Minister of VVD Household has a good chance of succeeding Norwegian Jens Stoltenberg as head of NATO. However, exactly half think that Rutte has a (very) small chance of winning the international top job.

At least 28 of the alliance’s 32 member states have already backed Rutte, but to be elected there must be unanimity. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is also a candidate. Hungary is the only one to publicly oppose Rutte’s candidacy so far.

The survey also shows that support for NATO remains high. Nine in ten consider NATO important for the security of the Netherlands. However, a large majority (80 percent) is concerned about the future of the alliance if Donald Trump becomes president of the United States again.