Turkey wants reassurances from Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte before Ankara will approve his bid to be the next NATO chief, the sources said.
"Turkey is keen to ensure that Rutte - or any other candidate - won’t have a bias toward the alliance’s European Union members, and particularly that he won’t bow to pressure from EU member states Greece and Cyprus," Bloomberg writes.
The country’s leadership is favorable toward Rutte’s stepping into the shoes of outgoing Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg in principle, although it remains one of several countries who have yet to privately assent to his candidacy.
Stoltenberg’s term expires in October and a decision to replace him has to be made unanimously by all NATO allies.
