The US ambassador to the Netherlands has called president Donald Trump “the greatest peacemaker of our time” in a wide-ranging interview with the AD.
Joe Popolo has been in the role since last October, when his appointment was approved by the senate. Just a few weeks later he was embroiled in a row over the removal of a panel commemorating the experiences of Black American soldiers who served in the Netherlands during the Second World War from the US military cemetery in Margraten.
Now he is dealing with declining Dutch trust in the US as an ally, sparked by the war in Iran and Trump’s negative comments about Nato and its members’ perceived failings.
In the interview, Popolo describes Trump as an “extremely involved and active president”. Iran, he said, was destabilising the region and the whole world. “That could not continue,” the ambassador told the paper. “Trump now wants to end the conflict as soon as possible and a return to normal.”
With regard to Nato, Popolo said that the president has been clear the organisation cannot be a one-way street. “Once the dust has settled, we will have to sit around the table as adults and find out what about Nato works and what needs to be changed,” he said.
He did say he believes the US should be part of Nato and that he was proud Nato members had agreed to increase their spending on defence to 5% of GDP during last year’s summit in The Hague. The Netherlands has also backed the increase.
The president’s frustration at some Nato members refusing to allow the US to use its military bases in other countries during the war was justified, he said, but he declined to comment on Trump’s threat to attack non-military targets, saying he is “a diplomat, not a soldier”.
Dutch politicians can “absolutely” trust the US, he said. “We work so much together. We are the biggest foreign investor in the Netherlands, the Netherlands is the fourth biggest investor in the US and an important export partner.”
The ambassador also referred to concerns from politicians and privacy campaigners about the reliance of government systems on US technology. “And speaking of trust, the US trusts as much in the chips made by ASML machines as the Netherlands trusts US technology,” he said. “That trust comes from both sides.”
Asked about having to constantly defend Trump, Popolo said he enjoyed it. “We have a very energetic president who focuses on the right issues,” he said. “National security means a lot to him. He is doing a lot to combat poverty. He is the biggest peacemaker of our time.”
