The path is clear for outgoing Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte to lead NATO. Romanian President Klaus Iohannis has withdrawn his candidacy to lead the Atlantic Pact, a move that opens up the nomination of Rutte. At the meeting of the Supreme Defense Council of Romania – we read in a note from the Romanian presidency – the president informed the participants of the withdrawal of his candidacy for the post of Secretary General of the Organization and asked the members of the Council to express their opinion on the candidacy of Mark Rutte for the post of NATO Secretary General. They declared themselves in favor of Romania’s support for the candidacy of the Dutch Prime Minister. After the green light from Hungary and Slovakia, there are no more obstacles for Rutte, who should be crowned at the Washington summit on 9-11 July and begin his mandate in the autumn. Iohannis was the last among the leaders of the 32 allies who had not yet given his consent to the nomination of the Dutchman who will thus be Jens Stoltenberg’s successor.
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Meanwhile, Bucharest has announced that it will donate a Patriot missile system to Ukraine. This was announced in a note published on the Romanian presidency website after the meeting of the Supreme Defense Council. “Considering the significant deterioration of the security situation in Ukraine, following Russia’s continuous and massive attacks against civilians and civilian infrastructure, in particular in the energy sector, as well as the regional consequences of this situation, including the security of Romania, in close coordination with the Allies, the Council members decided to donate a Patriot system to Ukraine,” it reads. “I am grateful to Romania and President Klaus Iohannis for making the decision to equip Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense system,” is the tweet from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky, who underlines that “this crucial contribution will strengthen our air shield and will help us better protect our population and critical infrastructure from Russian air terrorism. I appreciate Romania’s strong leadership and principled support for Ukraine.”
