Mark Rutte is a Dutch politician, currently serving as the 14th secretary general of NATO since October 2024. He was the Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 2010 to 2024 and leader of the People's Party for Freedom and Democracy (VVD) from 2006 to 2023. Rutte holds the distinction of being the longest-serving prime minister in Dutch history, with nearly 14 years in office.
Petronella Hermanna Dilling, Mark Rutte's father's first wife, died in July 1945 while interned in a prisoner-of-war camp during World War II.
In 1974, American historian Robert Caro published his biography of Robert Moses, The Power Broker, which Rutte admires.
In 1979, Mark Rutte began attending the Maerlant Lyceum.
In 1985, Mark Rutte specialized in the arts at the Maerlant Lyceum.
Izaäk Rutte, Mark Rutte's father, died in April 1988.
In 1988, Mark Rutte joined the board of the Youth Organisation Freedom and Democracy.
In 1991, Mark Rutte served as chair of the Youth Organisation Freedom and Democracy.
In 1992, Mark Rutte obtained an MA degree in history from Leiden University.
In 1993, Mark Rutte became a member of the national board of the VVD.
In 1997, Mark Rutte became the staff manager of Van den Bergh Nederland, a subsidiary of Unilever.
In 1997, Mark Rutte continued to serve as a member of the national board of the VVD.
The First Kok cabinet, which lasted from 1994 to 1998, was the first cabinet to complete a full four-year term without collapsing or losing a vote of no confidence since Rutte's second cabinet.
In 2000, Mark Rutte became a member of the Corporate Human Resources Group.
On 22 July 2002, Mark Rutte became State Secretary at the Social Affairs and Employment Ministry.
In 2002, Mark Rutte became the human resource manager for IgloMora Groep, another subsidiary of Unilever.
In 2002, Mark Rutte entered national politics as a member of Jan Peter Balkenende's cabinets after working for Unilever.
From 30 January to 27 May 2003, Mark Rutte briefly served as a member of the House of Representatives.
In 2003, Mark Rutte supported the US-led invasion of Iraq.
In 2003, while State Secretary, Mark Rutte advised municipalities to check Somali residents for social assistance fraud, leading to a court ruling against discriminatory investigations.
In June 2004, Mark Rutte became State Secretary for Higher Education and Science, within the Education, Culture and Science Ministry.
In June 2004, Mark Rutte continued his role as State Secretary at the Social Affairs and Employment Ministry until 17 June 2004.
On 31 May 2006, Mark Rutte was announced as the next lijsttrekker (lead candidate) of the VVD, after being elected by 51.5% of party members.
In June 2006, Mark Rutte resigned from his position in government to return to the House of Representatives, subsequently becoming the parliamentary leader of the VVD.
In 2006, Rutte won the VVD leadership election.
In 2006, the VVD campaign with Rutte as leader did not get off to a good start, receiving criticism from within his own party.
On 13 September 2007, after repeated criticisms of VVD policy, Mark Rutte expelled Rita Verdonk from the party's parliamentary faction.
On 8 October 2010, Mark Rutte was appointed as formateur, securing support for a VVD and CDA coalition. On 14 October, he presented his first cabinet to Parliament and was sworn in as Prime Minister of the Netherlands.
In 2010, following a victory in the general election and lengthy coalition negotiations, Mark Rutte became the prime minister of the Netherlands, marking the first self-described liberal to hold the position in 92 years.
In the 2010 general election, the VVD won 31 seats, becoming the largest party in the House of Representatives for the first time ever with Mark Rutte as the lead candidate.
In March 2012, Mark Rutte began talks with coalition partners on a budget cutting 16 billion euros in government spending to comply with European Union requirements.
In April 2012, budget negotiations led to the early collapse of Mark Rutte's government.
On 5 November 2012, after the VVD negotiated a coalition agreement with the Labour Party following the 2012 general election, Mark Rutte returned as prime minister of the Second Rutte cabinet.
In 2014, The Hague hosted a Group of Seven special meeting after the Malaysia Airlines Flight 17 was shot down in Ukraine, which had 193 Dutch nationals aboard.
In April 2016, Mark Rutte was appointed by the United Nations Secretary-General and the President of the World Bank Group to the High-Level Panel on Water.
In November 2016, the Dutch House of Representatives, with the support of the VVD, approved a ban on the Islamic burqa in some public spaces.
On 26 October 2017, Mark Rutte presented his third cabinet and was sworn in as prime minister for a third term after negotiating a grand coalition.
In 2017, after the general election, the VVD remained the largest party, though it lost seats. Rutte was later appointed to lead his third cabinet.
In March 2018, the Dutch Intelligence and Security Services Act referendum was held, which resulted in a rejection.
In 2019, at the provincial elections, Rutte's VVD suffered a blow following the victory of right-wing populist newcomer Forum for Democracy (FvD).
Hermina Cornelia Dilling, Mark Rutte's mother, died in May 2020.
During the negotiations for the COVID-19 recovery fund in the European Union in 2020, Rutte was considered the unofficial leader of the Frugal Four, demanding loans instead of grants and more conditions on them. He also suggested that the EU could be dissolved and re-formed without Poland and Hungary.
On 15 January 2021, the third Rutte cabinet collectively resigned after the publication of research centered around the childcare subsidies scandal in the Netherlands. Rutte offered his resignation to King Willem-Alexander.
On 15 December 2021, after the Dutch general election and the longest formation process in Dutch history, Rutte presented a coalition agreement with D66, CDA and CU, the same combination as his previous government.
In 2021, despite Rutte's cabinet resigning in response to the Dutch childcare benefits scandal, the VVD won the general election.
In October 2022, Rutte said that alleged war crimes and human rights violations committed during the Armenian-Azerbaijani war in Nagorno-Karabakh should be investigated.
In 2022, after a record-length formation period, Mark Rutte began his fourth term as prime minister.
In January 2023, the U.S., Japan, and the Netherlands reached an agreement to limit certain advanced chip exports to China.
In March 2023 the Dutch government placed restrictions on chip exports in order to protect national security, affecting ASML.
On 7 July 2023, Mark Rutte's government resigned after failing to reach an agreement on migration policy.
On 7 July 2023, after failing to reach an agreement on immigration policy, the parties in Rutte's coalition unanimously decided that they could not continue working together, and Rutte offered the resignation of his government. Three days later, Rutte announced his departure both as political leader of the VVD and from national politics in general.
In October 2023, Rutte announced his candidacy for Secretary General of NATO.
On 7 October 2023, while serving as outgoing prime minister, Rutte condemned the Hamas attack on Israel and expressed his support to Israel and its right to self-defense. He was the first foreign leader to speak with Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu on that day. Later that month he visited Israel to express solidarity.
Due to the resignation of the cabinet, general elections were held early on 22 November 2023, with the VVD now under the leadership of Dilan Yeşilgöz.
In January 2024, the Dutch government placed further restrictions on the shipment of some advanced chip-making equipment to China.
In February 2024 a court in the Netherlands ordered the Dutch government to stop exporting parts for F-35 fighter jets to Israel.
In February 2024, Rutte visited Saudi Arabia and spoke with the Saudi crown prince Mohammed bin Salman. He then traveled to Paris to attend an emergency summit concerning the situation in Ukraine, where he announced that the Netherlands would provide €100 million for the purchase of artillery ammunition for Ukraine.
In February 2024, Rutte's bid to be Secretary General of NATO received public support from the governments of the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and France.
On 27 March 2024, Chinese president Xi Jinping told Rutte that "no force can stop the pace of China’s scientific and technological progress".
On 14 April 2024, Rutte condemned the Iranian strikes against Israel and reiterated the necessity for sanctions against Iran. Rutte stated that Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) should be added to the EU's terrorism blacklist.
On 26 June 2024 Rutte's only opponent, Romanian president Klaus Iohannis, dropped out a week before his official appointment as Secretary General of NATO.
In July 2024, the Schoof cabinet was sworn in, replacing Rutte IV which had been functioning as a caretaker government since July 2023.
In October 2024, Mark Rutte assumed the position of the 14th Secretary General of NATO.
In October 2024, Rutte said that more than 600,000 Russian soldiers had been killed or wounded during the war with Ukraine.
On 1 October 2024, Rutte succeeded Jens Stoltenberg as Secretary General of NATO during a ceremonial handover at the NATO Headquarters in Brussels. Rutte announced his candidacy for the position in October 2023.
Before moving to Brussels in 2024 following his appointment as Secretary General of NATO, Rutte lived in an apartment in Benoordenhout, a neighbourhood of The Hague, for several decades.
In March 2025, following the new Trump administration's announcement that it does not support NATO membership for Ukraine, Rutte stated that Ukraine had never been promised NATO membership as part of a peace agreement and that Europe and the US should eventually normalise relations with Russia after a peace agreement.
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