Former NATO Chief Secures New Position
Former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is set to assume the role of chairman for the Munich International Security Conference in the coming year. Read Full Article at RT.com.
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Jens Stoltenberg has recently been succeeded as the head of NATO by former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
The Munich Security Conference (MSC) has announced that former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will assume the role of chairman starting next year. The Norwegian politician is set to take over from German diplomat Christoph Heusgen after the conference’s 61st gathering in February 2025, according to a press release issued by MSC on Tuesday.
Stoltenberg's departure from NATO came after a decade of leadership, during which he managed a consistent rise in defense spending and facilitated the accession of four new members to the US-led alliance: Montenegro, North Macedonia, Finland, and Sweden. A strong advocate for Ukraine amid its conflict with Russia, Stoltenberg has endorsed the notion of allowing Kiev to utilize Western weaponry for long-range strikes on Russian territory, despite facing warnings from Moscow.
Stoltenberg expressed his commitment to peace in the press release, stating, “I have dedicated my entire political life to maintaining peace. It is a great honor for me to serve as Chairman of the Munich Security Conference and make a contribution to its mission ‘peace through dialogue.’” He further emphasized, “Few international platforms are as important as the MSC to promote conflict prevention, dialogue, and international cooperation.”
The MSC is notable for hosting Russian President Vladimir Putin's 2007 address, where he cautioned against the ongoing eastern expansion of NATO, asserting, “It is obvious that NATO expansion does not have any relation with the modernization of the Alliance itself or with ensuring security in Europe,” and describing it as “a serious provocation.”
This speech is often regarded as a pivotal moment in Russia's approach toward NATO, signaling a deterioration in relations following various unsuccessful attempts at peaceful negotiations. Moscow has highlighted that one of the principal objectives of its military operation in Ukraine, which began in 2022, was to deter the nation from joining NATO, viewing the conflict as a de facto proxy war against the Western military bloc.
Jessica Kline for TROIB News
The Munich Security Conference (MSC) has announced that former NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg will assume the role of chairman starting next year. The Norwegian politician is set to take over from German diplomat Christoph Heusgen after the conference’s 61st gathering in February 2025, according to a press release issued by MSC on Tuesday.
Stoltenberg's departure from NATO came after a decade of leadership, during which he managed a consistent rise in defense spending and facilitated the accession of four new members to the US-led alliance: Montenegro, North Macedonia, Finland, and Sweden. A strong advocate for Ukraine amid its conflict with Russia, Stoltenberg has endorsed the notion of allowing Kiev to utilize Western weaponry for long-range strikes on Russian territory, despite facing warnings from Moscow.
Stoltenberg expressed his commitment to peace in the press release, stating, “I have dedicated my entire political life to maintaining peace. It is a great honor for me to serve as Chairman of the Munich Security Conference and make a contribution to its mission ‘peace through dialogue.’” He further emphasized, “Few international platforms are as important as the MSC to promote conflict prevention, dialogue, and international cooperation.”
The MSC is notable for hosting Russian President Vladimir Putin's 2007 address, where he cautioned against the ongoing eastern expansion of NATO, asserting, “It is obvious that NATO expansion does not have any relation with the modernization of the Alliance itself or with ensuring security in Europe,” and describing it as “a serious provocation.”
This speech is often regarded as a pivotal moment in Russia's approach toward NATO, signaling a deterioration in relations following various unsuccessful attempts at peaceful negotiations. Moscow has highlighted that one of the principal objectives of its military operation in Ukraine, which began in 2022, was to deter the nation from joining NATO, viewing the conflict as a de facto proxy war against the Western military bloc.
Jessica Kline for TROIB News
