Jens Stoltenberg is leaving, but who will be his successor at the head of NATO? Can a woman lead the Western Defense Alliance, as the world at large expects? And how are the elections for the Secretary General of the Alliance going?” DW asks.

NATO’s top diplomatic post will be vacant in October, and current Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg announced last month through his spokesman that he did not intend to renew his contract.

This raises the question of who will become the 14th Secretary General of the Alliance. And also what are the chances of women getting hired for the first time. Almost half of NATO’s 30 member states have quietly put forward their own candidacies.

Jens Stoltenberg heads the Alliance since 2014.

The new secretary-general will have to maintain unity among allies, balance their interests and maintain consensus, regardless of whether the risks to the alliance come from figures like Donald Trump or Vladimir Putin. Diplomatic skills and loyalty to NATO are required, and the Secretary General does not have the authority to make political decisions.

He only officially heads the North Atlantic Council, the highest body of NATO. He also does not perform military duties. He or she will have to represent NATO to other governments and the media.

The candidate had to be the head of state or government, Deutsche Welle (DW) informs. Knowledge of English is mandatory, knowledge of French is also desirable, cites 24chasa.bg and Rador.

What are the selection criteria?

The candidate must be on good terms with Washington. The US remains the defining factor in the organization, although the secretary general is traditionally European. In principle, the United States provides the Supreme Commander for NATO Forces in Europe (SACEUR), the most important post in the military alliance.

The new secretary-general must be approved by consensus of all 30 governments. This means that the regional interests, background, political environment, as well as the military weight and diplomatic importance of the country of origin must be appropriate.

What is the order of application?

There are no formal procedures or selection committee. Diplomats negotiate in secret on behalf of the governments they represent until consensus is reached. There is no official vote. Then the heads of state and government of the Alliance announce the new name at the summit. The next such summit will be held in Vilnius on July 11.

Even so, all 13 designations have had a few variations and exceptions at this point. One of them is the only German general secretary, Manfred Werner (with a mandate from 1988 to 1994), who was never head of government, but “only” defense minister.

This also applies to most others who have held this position. The first general secretary – the British Baron Hastings Ismay – before that was not only the state secretary, but also the general.

Who is running?

A NATO diplomat, who wished to remain anonymous, is betting on a woman from the Baltics because of the existing Russian threat. Possible candidates could be Prime Minister of Estonia Kaia Kallas or Prime Minister of Lithuania Ingrida Simonite.

A woman from one of the countries of the eastern flank would certainly win the support of Poland, whose military weight in NATO is constantly growing. The name of Zuzana Chaputova, the president of Slovakia, a country that shares a common border with Ukraine, is also mentioned.

An interesting candidate in the race is Klaus Iohannis, president of Romania, a country of strategic importance to NATO across the Black Sea. It is also said that Italy has recommended former Prime Minister Mario Draghi as the new head of NATO, and that Great Britain also has ambitions for this post – in this sense, the name of Theresa May is mentioned.

There is also a chance for Canada’s Finance Minister Christy Freeland, who is the granddaughter of Ukrainian emigrants. Her parentage has been hotly debated in the country since Russian propaganda media raised questions about Freeland’s grandfather’s alleged ties to the Nazis during World War II.

Subsequently, Russian diplomats were expelled from Canada. Freeland’s main problem is that she is not European. It is doubtful that European countries and NATO members should abandon their traditional position. However, it is said that the Canadian minister enjoys the support of the United States, the “Washington Post” writes.

Extension of Stoltenberg’s mandate?

There are also rumors on the sidelines of NATO headquarters that the current Secretary General may continue to serve until April 2024, when NATO will be 75 years old. The credibility of these claims seems to be strengthened by the fact that the position that Jens Stoltenberg originally wanted to occupy in Norway – the head of the Central Bank – is already occupied.

These assumptions will continue for some time. In this regard, the German news agency DPA reminds that the names that are first publicly mentioned as possible future leaders of NATO often turn out to be wrong in the end. So surprises are not excluded.

Article by Bernd Rigert, DW (pickup 24chasa.bg and Rador)