NATO has announced that Dutch Prime Minister Rutte will succeed Secretary-General Stoltenberg, whose term ends in October.

Stoltenberg has served as NATO Secretary-General since 2014, but his term ends on October 1. NATO announced on the 26th that it has decided to appoint Dutch Prime Minister Rutte as his successor.

The NATO Secretary-General is traditionally a European, and serves a four-year term. Rutte will be the 14th Secretary-General and the fourth from the Netherlands.

Rutte became prime minister of the Netherlands in 2010 and is the longest-serving prime minister in history. He has shown a proactive stance in supporting Ukraine, including by deciding to provide F-16 fighter jets.

The selection of the Secretary-General requires the consent of all member states, and many countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, expressed their support for Rutte early on.

Hungarian Prime Minister Orban, who had been reluctant, changed his stance and supported the move on the 18th of this month, saying that Mr. Rutte had promised to maintain Hungary’s agreement not to participate in NATO’s support for Ukraine.

Also on the 20th, his rival, Romanian President Iohannis, withdrew his candidacy.

On the 26th, Secretary General Stoltenberg congratulated Rutte on social media, saying, “He is a strong leader and consensus builder. I am confident that I have entrusted NATO to someone I can trust.”

As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine drags on and there is a possibility that former President Trump, who is seen as skeptical of supporting Ukraine, will be re-elected in the November US presidential election, Rutte will play the role of mediator between member states.

Source: Japanese