2023-07-06 08:51:59
Xinhua News Agency, Warsaw, July 5 (International Observation) The extension of the term of NATO Secretary-General highlights internal divisions
Xinhua News Agency reporter Zhang Zhang Chen Chen
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) issued a statement on the 4th saying that member states agreed to extend the term of the organization’s Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg for another year until October 1, 2024. Previously, NATO had heated discussions on the candidate for the new Secretary-General, and none of the possible candidates might be unanimously approved by member states. Analysts pointed out that Stoltenberg had clearly stated his intention to quit, and it was a last resort to extend his term once more, highlighting the contradictions and differences within NATO that are difficult to reconcile.
successor dystocia
The 64-year-old Stoltenberg, a former prime minister of Norway, has served as NATO secretary-general since October 2014. Dutchman Josef Lens.
The term of the NATO Secretary-General is usually four years. Previously, Stoltenberg’s term had been extended three times, in 2017, 2019 and 2022, and will end on September 30 this year. He himself has repeatedly stated that he will leave office following his term expires, and NATO spokesperson Vana Lengescu also publicly stated in February this year that Stoltenberg has no intention of continuing to serve as Secretary-General.
NATO currently has 31 member states, of which the United States is the leading member, and the other members are mainly from Europe. According to NATO practice, the top military officer is usually held by an American, while the post of Secretary-General is held by a European. The selection of the new Secretary-General is carried out through informal diplomatic consultations among member states, and the candidate needs to be unanimously agreed by all member states.
This year’s NATO summit is scheduled to be held in Vilnius, the capital of Lithuania, from July 11 to 12. The launch of the new secretary-general is considered to be an important topic of the summit. However, in recent months, NATO member states failed to reach a consensus on the candidate for the new secretary-general. As a result, the call to extend Stoltenberg’s tenure continued to grow, and finally became a reality.
The interests of all parties are difficult to balance
Analysts point out that NATO member states cannot reach an agreement on the candidate for the new secretary-general because there are multiple contradictions and differences within NATO and it is difficult to balance interests.
For example, among the candidates for the new Secretary-General, Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is one of the popular candidates that has attracted public attention. At present, the West is pursuing “political correctness” on gender issues. As a woman, she has been recognized by many NATO member states. In the context of the escalating crisis in Ukraine and NATO’s strong support for Ukraine’s fight once morest Russia, Denmark announced an additional US$2.59 billion in military aid to Ukraine at the end of May, which is also considered to be her election campaign.
But Frederiksen also has obvious shortcomings. Joel Hickman, a researcher at the Center for European Policy Analysis, a U.S. think tank, pointed out that Denmark has so far failed to meet NATO’s target of 2% of its gross domestic product (GDP) for military spending, and it is difficult to convince the public. Moreover, since both Stoltenberg and his predecessor Rasmussen are from the Nordics, if the new Secretary-General is appointed by a Nordic, it will inevitably cause dissatisfaction among member states in other European regions.
For another example, Estonian Prime Minister Kaja Karas is also one of the candidates who has received attention. She also has the advantage of being a woman and can represent Eastern Europe. However, many “New European” countries in Eastern Europe, especially the Baltic countries, have a more radical stance towards Russia due to historical reasons, and hope to use NATO forces to confront Russia, but the United States and the “Old European” countries in Western Europe are unwilling to directly confront Russia. So be wary of Callas.
Great Powers Divide
In the process of selecting the Secretary-General of NATO, the United States, Germany, France and the United Kingdom, as the top four economies in the organization, have a decisive impact on the final result, but there are also obvious differences among these major powers.
British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace is another popular candidate for the new Secretary-General, and the amount of British aid to Ukraine is second only to the United States as a bonus item. But he has faced opposition in other European countries. Hickman said that most NATO member states are also members of the European Union, and they would prefer that the NATO secretary-general be from an EU country.
Among them, France is particularly resolute, clearly expressing its opposition to any British candidate becoming the next NATO secretary-general, even at the expense of using the veto power. Analysts pointed out that the United Kingdom is the most loyal ally of the United States in Europe. If a British is appointed as the secretary-general of NATO, it will undoubtedly mean that the United States will have a greater say in NATO. This is something that France, which has strong strategic ambitions, cannot tolerate.
Since the beginning of this year, French President Macron has repeatedly called on Europe to pursue strategic autonomy on different occasions. During his visit to the Netherlands in April, he said that the new crown epidemic and the crisis in Ukraine proved the need for European sovereignty, a concept that means that Europe must be able to “choose its own partners and determine its own destiny”. On May 31, he attended a European think tank event in Slovakia and said that Europe should build its own defense industry instead of relying solely on the protection of the United States. On June 19, he attended a meeting attended by defense ministers and representatives of some European countries at the Paris Air Show, emphasizing that Europe should formulate an independent air defense strategy, develop an independent military system, and not rely too much on the United States.
In addition, some analysts pointed out that the United States, as the leader of NATO, has serious domestic political polarization, and its policies fluctuate greatly with the rotation of political parties. This has also caused France and other European powers to distrust the United States.
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