According to the NATO sources of the conservative British newspaper The Daily Telegraph, the member states hoped to reach an agreement on the successor of the current Secretary General, Jens Stoltenberg, whose term was extended by one year this week, at the alliance’s summit in Vilnius next week, but so far it has not been possible to find a common candidate. .
At the same time, American President Joe Biden is trying to persuade Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission and the former Minister of Defense of Germany, to take up the post of NATO Secretary General, the British newspaper reported, quoting NATO officials.
According to Daily Telegraph sources, Biden and von der Leyen have developed a close working relationship in recent years, which has strengthened transatlantic cooperation on China, the war in Ukraine and climate change.
According to officials speaking to the newspaper, the president of the European Commission is now primarily relying on intelligence information from the United States, after the European services “missed themselves” in assessing the chances of Russian aggression against Ukraine.
According to The Daily Telegraph’s sources, the appointment of Ursula von der Leyen as NATO Secretary General would probably be supported by French President Emmanuel Macron, who – like the American government – opposed the nomination of British Defense Minister Ben Wallace, who was previously considered a candidate for the position.
Cover image: Portfolio
