“So a satisfactory [grade], but not a very generous one,” he said.
Rutte is leaving Dutch politics to become NATO’s secretary-general and will take over from Jens Stoltenberg by early October.
Rutte said U.S. President Joe Biden asked him to enter the race to lead the military alliance in early 2023 after Rutte visited the White House.
“A few days later [Biden] called and said current NATO chief Jens Stoltenberg is leaving, we think you should do it,” Rutte said. “Then I had to say no because I had just had a new cabinet.”
But the collapse of his coalition government in July 2023 over a migration policy dispute led Rutte to “think again,” he said.
Despite his self-confessed shortcomings, Rutte talked up his leadership qualities as he prepares to take NATO’s helm.
“I have shown that I am able to bring people together and ensure that they do not argue all day long,” he said. “And for a job like that, you also need to have a not-too-big ego.”