[int_19h]

The goal wasn't so much native interop as being the universal VM for different languages. Specifically, they had an explicit requirement that pure CLR bytecode should be a valid compilation target for C++ (among other things - such as what would eventually become F#, hence why CLR also has explicit tailcalls, for example). But, of course, when you have all the necessary abstractions, that also allows for easy interop with the world outside the VM.

It's too bad that this vision was never fully realized - in part, because .NET was not open enough originally, but also because of internal divisions in Microsoft itself. If it did, we could have had the equivalent of both LLVM and WebAssembly much, much earlier.

[pjmlp]

The internal divisions had more a play into this than anything else, Windows could have evolved into something like Android or Inferno, but that isn't something that those on Sinofsky's team would accept.

Also why we got WinRT being like .NET, but with COM and C++, with .NET Native being a complete difference compiler toolchain, as he got hold of the Windows reigns.