Because NATO was unable to agree on a successor, the Secretary General remains in office for another year.
(Photo: Reuters)
Brussels It had become apparent, now it’s official: NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will remain in office for another year. The Norwegian confirmed this on Twitter on Tuesday. Stoltenberg wrote that he felt “honoured” that the alliance partners had extended his term of office until October 1, 2024. “In an increasingly dangerous world, our alliance is more important than ever.”
It is no secret that Stoltenberg would have liked to hand over the business to a successor – or even better: a successor. But the alliance was unable to find a candidate who could reach a consensus.
Danish Prime Minister Mette Fredriksen was seen as the favorite for a while, as she would have been the first woman to head NATO. However, there were reservations in some member states about again selecting a Secretary General from Scandinavia. Stoltenberg’s predecessor was the Dane Andres Fogh Rasmussen.
>> Read here: Duel for the NATO leadership
In addition to Fredriksen, British Defense Minister Ben Wallace also thought he had a chance, but was rejected in France and Germany. Traditionally, the Europeans hold the post of Secretary General, while an American takes over the military leadership of the alliance.
After Brexit, this arrangement means from the German and French perspective that the NATO Secretary General must come from an EU country. With that, the British are eliminated.
More time for Stoltenberg successor
The contract extension with Stoltenberg now gives Allianz more time to arrange the successor. In the midst of the Ukraine war, the alliance could not afford a personnel dispute. At their summit meeting in Vilnius next week, the NATO states want to decide on comprehensive defense plans in order to be able to better protect the alliance area against Russian aggression.
Stoltenberg himself had stated several times in the past few months that he was not actually aiming for another term. It was said from those around him that, given the circumstances, he wanted to continue out of “duty”. The former Norwegian Prime Minister has been in charge of NATO for nine years, and last year he agreed to a temporary extension of the contract.
Stoltenberg is held in high esteem within Allianz. The US government in particular has repeatedly praised the 64-year-old for his leadership since the beginning of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine. President Joe Biden stressed that Stoltenberg was doing an “incredible job”.
More: “We now live in a more dangerous world” – Handelsblatt interview with NATO boss Stoltenberg