Flatterer-in-chief? NATO's Rutte handling of Donald Trump raises eyebrows

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00:00He's been dubbed the Trump whisperer, but since becoming NATO Secretary General, Mark

00:05Reuter is sounding more like the flatterer in chief.

00:09Speaking alongside the US leader at a NATO summit in The Hague, Reuter playfully excused

00:14Trump's use of strong language on the Israel-Iran conflict.

00:18They're not going to be fighting each other.

00:20They've had it.

00:21They've had a big fight, like two kids in a school yard, you know, they fight like hell.

00:26You can't stop them.

00:27You can't fight for about two, three minutes, then it's easier to stop them.

00:30And then daddy has to sometimes use strong language to get the stuff out there.

00:34It's music to the ears of the leader, who openly loves praise.

00:39Mark Reuter, the NATO chief, who is your friend, he called you daddy earlier.

00:46Do you regard your NATO allies as kind of children?

00:51No, he likes me.

00:51I think he likes me.

00:53If he doesn't, I'll let you know.

00:54I'll come back and I'll hit him hard, OK?

00:56But do you regard…

00:57He did it very affectionately.

00:58Daddy, you're my daddy.

00:59Reuter has since denied calling Trump daddy, but the moment has hung over the summit.

01:05Especially after the US president shared a private message from Reuter, praising him

01:10for making Europe pay in a big way and for his decisive stance on Iran.

01:15Critics call it over-the-top flattery.

01:18Others say Reuter is simply speaking Trump's language, with good reason.

01:22Trump once questioned whether the US should stay in NATO.

01:26On Tuesday, he avoided reaffirming Article 5, the alliance's all-important mutual defense

01:31clause.

01:32With NATO facing unprecedented challenges, Reuter knows he can't afford to lose the support

01:37of its biggest spender.

01:38Here we go.

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