The alliance secretary-general helped bring NATO back from the brink on Greenland. But some in Europe are now asking: At what cost?

General Mark Rutte may have been instrumental in persuading U.S. President Donald Trump to scrap his threat of tariffs as he presses for control over Greenland.

Nato chief and former Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte has backed the continued central role of the United States in European security in an interview with the Financieele Dagblad, saying Nato and Europe cannot do without American support,

Trump’s stunning turn on Greenland has once again shone the spotlight on the NATO secretary general, who has emerged as a pivotal figure for a frazzled Europe struggling to get through to the US president.

NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte tried to reassure President Donald Trump of his doubts that Europe would “come to the rescue” if the U.S. was attacked. Rutte told Trump during a meeting at the World Economic Forum in Davos,

If anyone thinks here, again, that the European Union, or Europe as a whole, can defend itself without the US, keep on dreaming,' the NATO chief said at European Parliament - Anadolu Ajansı

Mark Rutte, secretary general of NATO.

BRUSSELS, Jan 26 (Reuters) - NATO boss Mark Rutte on Monday dismissed calls by some leading European politicians for a separate European army, prompted by doubts over Donald Trump's commitment to the continent's security that were heightened by tensions over Greenland.