Nato unveils new secretary general
Dutch Foreign Minister, Jaap de Hoop Scheffer, is to be the new secretary general of the Nato military alliance, it has been announced.
His appointment is seen to be an attempt to heal the deep divisions between the United States and Europe caused by the war in Iraq.
Mr Scheffer replaces the UK’s George Robertson, who is standing down in December after four years in the post. The 55-year-old Dutchman, a member of the Dutch Christian Democrat party, has pledged to modernise the alliance.
Nato is facing new challenges as it tries to evolve from a Cold War-era defensive group into global security organisation. It will soon expand to include seven former communist states from Eastern Europe.
Foreign Secretary Jack Straw welcomed the appointment saying that he has the ‘highest respect for his professionalism and leadership skills’.
‘It is an exciting and challenging time to become Secretary General. NATO is in the middle of a profound transformation to ensure that it is prepared to deal with the new challenges we face. It is enlarging and taking on new roles, in particular leading the international force in Afghanistan,’ Mr Straw noted.
One of Mr Scheffer first jobs as secretary general will be to oversee Nato’s relationship to the rebuilding of Iraq
