WATCH: NATO Chief Praises ‘Daddy’ Trump for Israel-Iran F-Bomb

NATO chief Mark Rutte raised eyebrows and a few chuckles by bizarrely referring to President Donald Trump as “daddy” while applauding the president for cursing out Israel and Iran in an on-air press gaggle on Tuesday.

Trump’s tirade came as he boarded Marine One at the White House, en route to the NATO Summit in Europe, as a post-ceasefire Iranian strike and potential Israeli retaliation threatened his truce – announced just hours before.

“They don’t know what the fuck they’re doing!” he told reporters at the time, before successfully convincing Israel to call off their response attack in a call on Air Force One.

With Rutte sitting beside Trump on Wednesday, as the pair addressed the media after a closed-door meeting, the president reflected on the ceasefire arrangement and his F-bomb.

“They’re not going to be fighting each other. They’ve had it. They’ve got a big fight. Like two kids in a schoolyard, you know, they fight like hell. You can’t stop them. Let them fight for about two, three minutes, then it’s easier to stop them,” Trump said.

“Sometimes, daddy has to use strong words,” Rutte interrupted.

“You have to use a strong language, everyone’s saying you have to use a certain word,” the president mused.

Earlier in the presser, Rutte praised Trump as “a man of strength and peace,” crediting the president’s “strong words” and personal call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for helping avert a larger war.

The “daddy” moment comes just one day after Trump published a fawning private text message from the NATO chief complimenting him for forcing Europe to ramp up its military spending.

Trump is pushing NATO allies to commit to a 5% of GDP on defense, a figure far above the alliance’s long-standing 2% target.

Watch above via Associated Press.