The new Secretary General would have to ensure continuous support for Ukraine while guarding against direct war with Moscow
The United States (U.S.) and the United Kingdom (U.K.) have backed the outgoing Prime Minister of the Netherlands – Mark Rutte, to succeed Jens Stoltenberg as the next Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO).
Stoltenberg’s term ends in October’24. He has been serving as the Secretary General of NATO since 2014. The new Secretary General will take office at a crucial juncture, as he would have to ensure continuous support for Ukraine while guarding against any escalation that would draw the alliance directly into a war with Moscow.
Besides, he may have to deal with the second term of the Former President of the U.S. – Donald Trump, who drew fierce criticism from Western officials earlier this month for calling into question his commitment to defending NATO allies if re-elected
The 57-year-old Rutte has been the longest-serving leader of the Netherlands and has good relationships with various U.K. and U.S. leaders, including the former President of the U.S. – Donald Trump.
Speaking on the occasion, Rutte said, “We have to work with whoever is on the dance floor.”
He urged the European leaders to stop moaning and whining and nagging about Trump and focus instead on what they could do for Ukraine.
The U.K. said that Rutte is a well-respected figure across NATO with serious defence and security credentials and someone who would ensure it remained solid and prepared for any need to defend itself.
NATO leaders are appointed by consensus requiring the support or at the least no opposition from all its 31 members. It is also believed that Rutte has the support of about 20 NATO Members. Hungary and Turkey are the ones who may propose another candidate. However, there have been no official confirmations from both the countries. A German Government coalition source said that Germany is also expected to back Rutte.
Under Rutte’s leadership in the Netherlands, Dutch Defence spending was cut during years of fiscal austerity. It increased its defence spending to 2% of the GDP following the Russian invasion of Ukraine. He has also been a critic of the President of Russia – Vladimir Putin.
The Prime Minister of Estonia – Kaja Kallas and Foreign Minister of Latvia – Krisjanis Karins, have also signalled interest to be the next Secretary General of NATO but not been presented formally as candidates.
Founded in 1949 to counter the Soviet Union during the Cold War, NATO is a political and military alliance between North American and European countries.
