The Dutch dinner with Trump: 'agree to disagree' in 'good atmosphere'
The dinner at the White House began shortly after seven o’clock in the evening local time and lasted longer than expected. For more than two and a half hours — perhaps closer to three — the Dutch delegation spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump and his closest advisers. When Prime Minister Rob Jetten returned to his hotel around half past ten, one conclusion stood out: the sharp words he once used to describe Trump played no role at all that evening.
That is notable. In the Netherlands, Jetten’s earlier remarks had resurfaced prominently ahead of the visit. As an opposition politician and later as party leader, he openly called Trump a danger to democracy and a criminal. Those comments were widely discussed when Jetten prepared for his first visit to Washington as prime minister-designate. The question was whether that history would follow him to the most famous dinner table in the world.
