Rutte was in Turkey on a ‘private trip’, partly to advocate his candidacy for the top job at the alliance. Afterwards, the Prime Minister told reporters that it was a “positive conversation” and that he was “not disappointed.” “But what Turkey will decide is up to Turkey.” He said he expected Turkey to make a choice soon. Besides Rutte, only Romanian President Klaus Iohannis is still in the running for the NATO position.
There is a good chance that the Dutch Prime Minister will be appointed. Of the 32 NATO member states, 28 have already expressed a preference for Rutte. Only Turkey, Hungary, Slovakia and Romania have yet to show their colours. The decision is expected to be made in May or June.
The joint press conference made it clear that counter-terrorism is an important issue for Turkey in a NATO context. Erdogan referred in particular to the Kurdish PKK, which has been listed as a terrorist organization by both the US and the European Union. Counter-terrorism also played a major role in Turkey’s negotiations with Sweden and Finland about their membership of NATO.
The war in Gaza was also discussed during the meeting. At the press conference, Rutte said that Turkey has “an important share” in efforts to improve the situation in both Ukraine and Gaza. Rutte will, he said, not interview Erdogan again, “but given the slowness in the formation, there is a good chance that I will see him as prime minister again.”
About the author
Rob Vreeken is a correspondent in Istanbul for de Volkskrant. He writes about Turkey, Iran, Israel and the Palestinian territories. Previously, he specialized in foreign affairs in human rights and the Middle East.
