Hungary and Slovakia have agreed on the candidacy of Mark Rutte for the post of new NATO Secretary General.
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Previously, the Hungarian Prime Minister opposed Rutte’s candidacy for this post. Viktor Orbán made two demands on Rutte. One of them is to assure that Hungary, as part of NATO, will not participate in alliance operations against the Russians in Ukraine. Orban also demanded an apology from Rutte for criticizing his government.
Rutte himself said after talks with Orban that he was “cautiously optimistic” about overcoming Hungarian opposition to his candidacy.
The Prime Minister of the Netherlands offered the Prime Minister of Hungary the opportunity not to participate in NATO activities to support Ukraine if he is appointed Secretary General of the Alliance.
According to the Financial Times, the day before Mark Rutte and Viktor Orban met on the sidelines of the EU leaders’ dinner in Brussels.
The Dutch prime minister has promised that under his leadership of the military alliance, Budapest will have the right to refuse to participate in NATO activities in support of Ukraine, two people familiar with the discussions said.
The alliance is seeking consensus among its 32 members for a new four-year term to succeed Norway’s Stoltenberg as secretary general when he steps down in October 2024.
The US, UK, France, Germany and Türkiye have said they will support Rutte’s candidacy. If reports that Hungary and Slovakia now support him are confirmed, Romania will be the last country whose leadership needs convincing.
Source: Racurs
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