Transcript: NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan,” March 22, 2026

The following is the transcript of the interview with NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, broadcast on “Face the Nation with Margaret Brennan” on March 22, 2026.

MARGARET BRENNAN: We now turn to NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte, who joins us this morning from The Hague in the Netherlands. Welcome back to “Face The Nation”.

MARK RUTTE, NATO SECRETARY GENERAL: Margaret, it’s good to be back on the program. Good morning.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Hello. We saw that Iran fired two missiles at Diego Garcia. It is this island in the Indian Ocean which is home to a joint American-British base. It was 4,000 kilometers from Iranian territory, the furthest Iran had ever gone. You just heard Ambassador Waltz say that there might be a difference in how Israel and the United States assess Iran’s launch capability. But Israel says they were intercontinental ballistic missiles capable of hitting Berlin, Paris and Rome. Does NATO share this Israeli assessment?

SECRETARY-GENERAL RUTTE: We cannot confirm that at the moment, so we are looking into this matter. But if it turns out to be true, it further proves that what the president is doing here, removing ballistic missile capability and removing Iran’s nuclear capability, is crucial. And exactly as Ambassador Waltz just said, we saw with North Korea, if we negotiate too long, you risk passing the point where you can still get things done, and North Korea now has nuclear capability. If Iran had nuclear capability, including missile capability, that would pose a direct threat, an existential threat to Israel, to the region, to Europe, to the stability of the world. So it’s crucial that the president does this, and I’ve seen the polls, but I really hope the American people stand with him, because he’s doing this to make the whole world safer.

MARGARET BRENNAN: So, but just to be clear at this time, do you think Iran could bomb Berlin, Paris and Rome? Are they all within direct threat range?

SECRETARY-GENERAL RUTTE: What we know for sure is that they are very close to having this capability, whether that is the case of the British base Diego Garcia, which we are still evaluating. But if it’s true, that means they already have that ability. If that’s not true, we know they’re close to having that capability. And that’s exactly why I feel like in Europe this resonates with most politicians. What the president is doing here is degrading Iran’s ability to be, once again, an exporter of chaos, real chaos in the region and in the world.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, I’m sure the president appreciates your praise, but he’s been very frustrated and he’s made that clear this week to NATO and European allies. He called NATO a paper tiger without the United States. He said they complain about high oil prices while they are forced to pay, but they do not want to help open the Strait of Hormuz. Easy for these cowards. We will remember.

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: I’ve had several conversations this week with the president, and the good news is that, look, the United States had been planning Epic Fury for weeks and for security reasons, they couldn’t share with their European allies and their allies around the world and partner countries what they were doing, because that would have compromised the effect of the first attack.

MARGARET BRENNAN: –Or it would have allowed you to plan

SECRETARY-GENERAL RUTTE: So it makes perfect sense that European countries needed a few weeks to come together. But for now, the good news is that since Thursday, 22 countries, mostly NATO members, but also Japan, Korea, Australia, New Zealand, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates, have come together to answer essentially three questions: What do we need? When do we need it? And where do we need it? These three issues are now being studied to respond to the President’s call to ensure free navigation in the Strait of Hormuz.

MARGARET BRENNAN: To be clear, the president said four to six weeks for this war, which would bring us in early April to the end of combat operations. But he also sends troops. It’s also possible he’ll ask Congress for more money. What is the when part? When did he tell you that your support from these European countries would be necessary because, according to the sources I speak to, they are not willing to send troops into the middle of the fighting.

SECRETARY-GENERAL RUTTE: Obviously I cannot, in a broadcast around the world and with many viewers, discuss with you what is being discussed in secret, but I can assure you that, of course, and the United Kingdom is at the forefront in leading this effort of the 22 countries under the leadership of Prime Minister Starmer. I had a phone call this week with Prime Minister Starmer and President Macron, and again this led to 22 countries signing up to this initiative. And indeed, one of the key questions is not only the question of what and where, but also the question of when. And that’s why military planners are now working together to make sure that we’re ready, to make sure that this street, this Strait of Hormuz, guarantees us free navigation there, which is crucial for the global economy.

MARGARET BRENNAN: The president seemed to say, though, that this would have an impact beyond Iran in terms of impacting his thinking on NATO and his willingness to help Europe. Listen to this.

DONALD TRUMP: I think NATO is making a very stupid mistake. And I’ve said for a long time that, you know, I wonder whether NATO will ever be there for us or not. So it’s a great test because we don’t need them, but they should have been there.

MARGARET BRENNAN: The president continues to present this as some sort of quid pro quo, and he also mentioned Ukraine in the same context, saying, “I’m helping Europe with Ukraine.” Why don’t they help me? Are you concerned that this will harm NATO’s objectives elsewhere?

SECRETARY-GENERAL RUTTE: What I know is that we are still united. It was under the leadership of President Trump that we had the hugely successful summit in The Hague, where we agreed to spend 5% of our GDP on defense, and therefore equalize for the first time since Eisenhower. So it’s been a while, a certain era in history, that we’ve been equalizing what Europeans spend and what Americans spend, not only because it’s right that we all spend the same thing, and that was a wish of Trump 45 and now it’s Trump 47 who has succeeded, but also because we need it, because of the Russian threat and our other adversaries. Then, in Ukraine, it is once again the United States providing crucial intelligence and weapons supply support, working in concert with the Europeans to secure Ukraine’s fight against the Russians, making sure they have what they need. And now with Iran, I’m absolutely convinced, and I understand the president’s frustration that this is taking time, but again, I’m also asking for some understanding, because nations have had to prepare for this, not knowing and for good reason the initial attack on Iran, but now coming together to make sure that we can secure the Strait of Hormuz.

MARGARET BRENNAN: No, but to be clear, I’ve spoken to some NATO members who say this is a defensive alliance, not an offensive one. We have not committed to doing what the president asks us to do. But regarding the point you just raised regarding Russia, the President of the European Council mentioned the American decision to lift sanctions on Russian oil exports. This is very worrying because it has an impact on European security. This is part of President Trump’s actions to try to stop our nation’s skyrocketing oil prices. The Treasury Secretary says that means about $2 billion is now going to Russia, President Zelensky says it’s more like $10 billion. Doesn’t this benefit Vladimir Putin?

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: Well, that’s the thing that the president has to consider in balancing all of these different interests. I know he’s with his team, with Jared Kushner, Steve Witkoff and Marco Rubio. They are constantly working with the Ukrainians to put maximum pressure on the Russians to reach an agreement. I know–

MARGARET BRENNAN: It’s not maximum pressure.

SECRETARY GENERAL RUTTE: –I spoke for an hour and a half with President Zelenskyy in London. He wants to close the deal, and we need to make sure that we convey that to the Russians as well, to make sure that they’re ready to play the game. It’s the president who is putting that pressure on alongside the Europeans. But again, he has to balance all these different interests. So I’m not going to comment on every element of what’s happening here, but his efforts to bring the war in Ukraine to a successful conclusion are crucial. He was the only one who was able to break the mortal lock with Putin in his first phone call in February of last year, and he always, with his team, did what was necessary to put that pressure, of course, on the Ukrainians, and they want to play ball. They show it. They want to end the war and are also on the side of the Russians.

MARGARET BRENNAN: Well, we’ll see if Vladimir Putin wants to play ball. Secretary General, thank you for your time, and we’ll be right back with lots more Face the Nation. Stay with us.