The head of Nato has sought to clarify an eyebrow-raising remark he made during a news conference with Donald Trump.
While commending the US president’s efforts to mediate between Iran and Israel, Nato Secretary General Mark Rutte appeared to refer to Trump as “daddy.”
“They’ve had a big fight like two kids in a schoolyard, you can’t stop them,” Trump said of the two countries during a conference on Wednesday. “Let them fight for about two to three minutes and then it’s easier to stop them.”
Responding in jest, Rutte remarked, “then daddy has to sometimes use strong language,” in a light-hearted defense of Trump’s earlier foul-mouthed tirade.
The comment was made in reference to Trump’s angry rant on Tuesday, when he told reporters that Israel and Iran “don’t know what the f*** they’re doing” after both warring nations appeared to indicate they would not adhere to a ceasefire initiated by the president.
Mr Rutte praised the president for intervening in the Iran-Israel conflict by sending US bombers to destroy nuclear facilities. Trump said the mission was a “tremendous victory for everybody”.
Seeking to clarify his remark, Rutte later told reporters: “The ‘daddy’ thing, I didn't call him daddy.”
“What I said is that sometimes in Europe, I hear sometimes countries saying, ‘Hey Mark will the US stay with us?’ And I said, that sounds a little bit like a small child asking his daddy, ‘Are you still staying with the family?’.
At a press conference later that day, a reporter asked Trump how he felt when Mr Rutte had referred to the American president as “daddy”.
“No, he likes me, I think he likes me! If he doesn't I'll let you know and I'll come back and I'll hit him hard OK?” Trump told the journalist.
“He did it very affectionately though,' Trump continued. ‘Daddy, you're my daddy,’” the president said with a smile.
Mr Rutte has been highly complimentary of the president in recent days and on Tuesday sent a long message thanking him for his contributions to the world.
The Nato boss insisted that no other American president would have swiftly intervened in the conflict.
