Rutte (Welt am Sonntag): US Withdrawal 'Unfounded Speculation' — Nuclear Umbrella 'Absolute Guarantor'

In an interview published in German weekly Welt am Sonntag on April 18, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte publicly dismissed fears of a US withdrawal from the alliance as 'unfounded speculation,' stating: 'I do not foresee the US withdrawal from NATO.' Rutte emphasized that the US nuclear umbrella 'remains the absolute guarantor of security in Europe' and acknowledged that Trump was 'clearly disappointed' with some NATO allies but argued the underlying relationship remained intact. The interview appeared on the same day Trump posted 'STAY AWAY' and labelled NATO 'absolutely useless' — illustrating the starkly divergent interpretations of the post-Hormuz alliance moment. Rutte's reassuring posture served as a counterpoint to the crisis narrative set by Stoltenberg's April 15 warning that NATO's existence is 'not written in stone.' Rutte also reiterated that European allies had provided concrete support during the Iran war — basing rights, logistics, overflight access — framing Trump's 'useless' label as factually incorrect. The interview's publication in Germany's largest Sunday newspaper, amid Berlin's own historic defense spending transformation, was seen as a deliberate signal to Europe's most important military and economic power.