Politico: Rutte Launched NATO Personnel Reforms To Please Trump

• 19.06.2025, 10:58

Massive changes are coming.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte has initiated a major reorganization of the alliance, involving the reduction of dozens of positions at the headquarters in Brussels. The decision comes amid increasingly loud statements by U.S. President Donald Trump about Washington's possible withdrawal from NATO and calls to improve the organization's efficiency, writes Politico.

Two of the eight international divisions are expected to be eliminated - in particular the Public Diplomacy Division (NATO's press office) and the Executive Management Division (responsible for personnel).

In addition, the positions of assistant secretaries-general who headed the relevant structures will be abolished.

Dozens of employees will lose their jobs, some of whom will probably be transferred to other positions or rehired on a contract basis.

The moves are intended to "optimize the operations" of NATO and increase flexibility in decision-making. Rutte is already being called "Trump's whisperer" for his ability to influence the U.S. president. His task is to convince the U.S. to stay within NATO's structure while remaining cost-effective.

"Rutte is changing the structure of the support staff in line with his priorities: reinvesting in defense and maximizing efficiency," said security researcher Alexander Mattelaer.

Rutte's reforms are expected to become an important argument during the NATO summit in The Hague, where the alliance's future actions in the face of global instability - particularly the war in Ukraine and the conflict in the Middle East - will be discussed.