NATO members are expected to agree on Tuesday to extend the mandate of Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg for another year, Reuters reported, citing four diplomats.

The decision has been widely reported in recent weeks, but NATO ambassadors are expected to formally approve the mandate extension during a meeting on Tuesday, the diplomats, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said on Monday.

Stoltenberg has led the North Atlantic Treaty Organization through several crises since 2014, the latest of which was the war in Ukraine. He rallied NATO members to support Kyiv in an effort to prevent the war from escalating into a direct conflict between NATO and Russia.

Extension of Jens Stoltenberg’s mandate supported by NATO members in the absence of consensus on a successor

Stoltenberg, 64, was due to finish his term as secretary-general of the Transatlantic Security Alliance at the end of September, but is now likely to remain in the post for another 12 months.

Stoltenberg’s mandate has already been extended three times and he was due to step down in September after nine years as secretary-general of the military alliance, which has gained even more importance since Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

In February, Stoltenberg said he would not seek an extension to his mandate, but NATO members asked him to accept it after failing to reach consensus on a successor.

Among the candidates were British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace, who has openly stated that he would like the job, and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen, who has publicly insisted that she is not a candidate for the job. In addition, Mette Frederiksen called the idea of ​​Stoltenberg staying “a very good decision.”

German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius said that if there were no signs that the alliance would coalesce around a successor, he said an extension to Stoltenberg’s term would be welcome.

“If we do not agree on a successor candidate, NATO will not be able to do without the Secretary General. Therefore, I am naturally in favor of continuing, especially because I value the cooperation (with Stoltenberg),” he told reporters.

When asked about an extension for Stoltenberg, Finnish Defense Minister Antti Kaikkonen replied: “This option sounds good to my ears.”

In June, Stoltenberg already hinted that if a successor is not found, he will extend his mandate again.

Asked during a visit to Washington in June whether he had been persuaded to stay, Stoltenberg said: “I am responsible for all the decisions this alliance has to make, except one. And this is about my future. This is the decision of 31 allies.”

Also at the end of June, a US official quoted by AP said that members of the Western military alliance had reached a preliminary agreement to ask Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg to stay on for another year.