LONDON, March 7. /TASS/. The appointment of acting Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to the post of NATO Secretary General will be a compromise between Germany, which does not want to aggravate relations with Russia, and the Baltics, which have a tougher stance, The Financial Times columnist Simon Kuper said.

According to him, Western powers are wary of appointing an Eastern European representative to the post of NATO Secretary General because he might be too belligerent toward Russia. Kuper noted that Rutte, who has been leading the Dutch government since 2010, has always been able to find common ground with politicians of different views, which allowed him to form various coalitions to stay in power.

The journalist emphasized that Rutte will also need these skills if he is appointed NATO secretary general, as he will have to deal with "vegetarian Germans" and Eastern European politicians who are proposing to attack Russia right now.

The newspaper Welt am Sonntag earlier informed, citing sources in EU diplomatic circles, that Rutte is the favorite among the contenders for the alliance's secretary general post, and support for him is increasing. The media reported that the UK, Germany, the US and France supported Rutte. Hungarian Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto said on March 5 that Budapest would not support Rutte's candidacy, as he had previously proposed Hungary's exclusion from the EU.