BRUSSELS (dpa-AFX) – EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has had reports about her allegedly planned move to the top of the western defense alliance NATO rejected. A spokesman for the Commission expressly denied the media reports on Saturday and described them as “unfounded speculation”.
The British newspaper “The Sun” had reported that the former German defense minister was a candidate to succeed NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg. His term of office was last extended because of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, but expires at the end of September. In February, Stoltenberg dismissed reports of a possible further extension of his term. The Norwegian has headed the alliance since the end of 2014.
The coalition’s 30 member states usually agree behind the scenes on who will lead the organization. An American is usually the military commander-in-chief, while the Secretary General comes from the ranks of the other, mostly European, member states./jbz/DP/jha
