OAN Staff Blake Wolf
11:25 AM – Wednesday, June 25, 2025
NATO Secretary-General Mark Rutte referred to President Donald Trump as “Daddy” on Wednesday, in response to the 47th president sharply criticizing Israel and Iran for breaking their fragile ceasefire agreement that Trump had crafted.
Rutte’s comment came alongside President Trump at the NATO alliance summit in The Hague, Netherlands, while the GOP president was discussing the recent ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran.
“They’ve had a big fight, like two kids in a schoolyard. You know, they fight like hell, you can’t stop them. Let them fight for about 2-3 minutes, then it’s easy to stop them,” Trump stated.
Advertisement
Rutte responded in jest, stating: “And then ‘daddy’ has to sometimes use strong language to get (them to) stop.”
“You have to use strong language, every once in a while you have to use a certain word,” Trump quipped back.
Rutte’s comment was in reference to a recent viral statement by Trump, in which the president used strong language to get his point across.
After Israel and Iran broke the ceasefire, Trump told reporters: “We basically have two countries that have been fighting so long and so hard that they don’t know what the f*ck they’re doing.”
Rutte also went on to praise President Trump for authorizing U.S. strikes against Iranian nuclear facilities, as well as the president’s push for NATO allies to collectively increase defense spending.
“We have to keep ourselves safe from our adversaries, but also because it’s fair to equalize with the United States,” Rutte stated. “And when it comes to Iran, the fact that he took this decisive action, very targeted, to make sure that Iran would not be able to get his hands on a nuclear capability – I think he deserves all the praise.”
Meanwhile, a reporter at the NATO summit soon asked President Trump about Rutte’s nickname, to which the U.S. president responded with a smile: “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.’”
Despite the initial ceasefire infractions, as of June 25th at 11:24 a.m. PT, rocket attacks from both sides have since come to a halt.
Stay informed! Receive breaking news blasts directly to your inbox for free. Subscribe here. https://www.oann.com/alerts