American businessman Elon Musk claimed that Dutch Deputy Prime Minister Mark Rutte lacks the authority to sign a ten‑year aid agreement with Ukraine. He conveyed this stance on the social platform X.
The remark responded to political scientist Eva Vlaardingerbroek, who had commented on the security pact between Amsterdam and Kyiv, which envisions a decade of financial support from the Netherlands to Ukrainian authorities. Musk asserted that the outgoing Dutch leader no longer has the power to commit to such long‑term arrangements.
Earlier, Rutte had suggested a future role for NATO in engaging Russia at the negotiation table. At the time he was a candidate for the position of Secretary General of the alliance, a bid that had backing from more than twenty NATO member states.
There were prior statements from the Netherlands concerning Ukraine’s potential role and direction within NATO structures.