NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte called President Donald Trump “daddy” on Wednesday as the pair discussed efforts by the U.S. commander in chief to broker peace between Israel and Iran.
The light-hearted moment happened while Rutte and Trump spoke with reporters during a press conference at The Hague in the Netherlands, where NATO convened for a summit.
NEW: Secretary General of NATO Mark Rutte refers to President Trump as ‘Daddy’ while Trump was talking about Israel & Iran’s peace deal.
Trump: They had a big fight. Like two kids in a schoolyard. Let them fight for about two minutes. Then it’s easier to stop them.
Rutte: And… pic.twitter.com/dpG7C7bakY
— Collin Rugg (@CollinRugg) June 25, 2025
“They had a big fight,” Trump told reporters. “Like two kids in a schoolyard. You know? You can’t stop them. Let them fight for about two-three minutes, then it’s easier to stop them.”
Rutte, a Dutch politician, then referred to Trump dropping an f-bomb on Tuesday as he accused both Israel and Iran of violating a ceasefire between the two countries that he had announced the night before.
“And then daddy has to sometimes use strong language,” the NATO leader said with a laugh. Trump riffed off the comment, replying, “Every once in a while you have to use a certain word.”
Trump later got Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and Secretary of State Marco Rubio to crack up as he responded to a reporter who had mentioned the “daddy” moment.
“He likes me. I think he likes me. If he doesn’t, I’ll let you know. I’ll come back and I’ll hit him hard, okay? He did it very affectionately. ‘Daddy — you’re my daddy,'” Trump quipped.
????President Trump reacts to the NATO Chief calling him “daddy.”
“He likes me…He did it very affectionately…You’re my daddy!” pic.twitter.com/2rW2Sa5jZ7
— Townhall.com (@townhallcom) June 25, 2025
In their joint presser, Rutte also praised Trump for the ceasefire, which came shortly after the United States launched strikes on Iranian facilities to stop Tehran from achieving a nuclear weapon.
“You are a man of strength, but you are also a man of peace. And the fact that you are now also successful in getting this ceasefire done … I really want to commend you for it,” Rutte said.
Under pressure from Trump, NATO allies — except for Spain — have agreed to increase defense spending to 5% of their gross domestic product by 2035, a bump from the previous 2% target.
“A lot of people didn’t even pay the 2%. So I think it’s going to be very big news. NATO is going to become very strong with us,” Trump noted in his appearance with Rutte.