MONITORING US President Joe Biden would like to see the current President of the European Commission (EC) Ursula von der Leyen at the head of the North Atlantic Alliance (NATO). They reportedly have a “strong bond” between them, which has supported transatlantic relations on the issue of China, Ukraine and the climate. A spokesperson for Leyen said she will not be available for the role now or in the future. However, the EC president said she would not be available for a post in NATO until next year.
Twitter.profile Von der Leyenové
Description: Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission
This Tuesday, the current NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg’s term was extended until the fall of 2024. NATO leaders had originally hoped to find a suitable candidate for the secretary position at a summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, but failed to agree.
A source from NATO stated a The Telegraph newspaper reported that the White House is trying to convince German politician von der Leyen to succeed Stoltenberg, fearing that no more suitable candidate will be found within a year. Stoltenberg has been in the post since October 2014 and last week said he would not seek another extension after his departure has already been delayed to ensure the stability of the Alliance amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
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The White House has come to favor von der Leyen as the future NATO Secretary General after rejecting UK Defense Secretary Ben Wallace for the role. Wallace ended his candidacy last month, he did not even have the support of France, which said that this position should be filled by one of the European leaders.
In addition, Joe Biden and von der Leyen are said to have developed a “strong bond” between them over the past few years, which has supported transatlantic relations, such as on China, Ukraine and the climate.
Ursula von der Leyen would likely have the support of French President Emmanuel Macron. German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, a former political rival of the current president of the European Commission, could be opposed.
Von der Leyen previously said she was honored to be shortlisted as a potential successor. However, her spokesperson said that von der Leyen “is not available for this job, either now or in the future”. During private conversations with the US president, Leyen was said to have told Biden that she would not be available to take over any position in NATO until at least next year.
There is no official procedure for the appointment of the Secretary General of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. The member states must discuss the candidates until there is an agreement between the states on one of the candidates. Other possible candidates included Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who met with the US president last month, but was eliminated because NATO would be headed by a person from Scandinavia for the third time in a row.
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author: luk
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2023-07-05 18:07:00
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