Sweden's determination and NATO's progress
After Finland’s smooth entry into the alliance, the remaining story of membership that has preoccupied the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) this year is the story of Sweden. According to NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, officials from Turkey, Sweden, and Finland will meet at the end of June, starting on June 12, to find a way to resolve the issues that have been opposed by Turkey and Hungary, causing the delay in Sweden’s NATO accession process. At the same time, NATO defense ministers are also expected to meet in Brussels (Belgium) on June 15-16.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg speaks to the press in Brussels, Belgium on May 23. Photo: AFP/TTXVN
Earlier, at the NATO foreign ministers' meeting in Oslo (Norway) on June 1, some NATO foreign ministers expressed optimism that after the domestic elections ended, Ankara would drop its opposition to Sweden's application for membership. Sweden, along with Finland, applied to join NATO last year, ending decades of military non-alignment. The two Nordic countries' applications were approved at the NATO Summit in June 2022. However, to officially become a member of NATO, the application must be ratified by all alliance member states.
So far, Sweden has not received a nod of approval from Turkey and Hungary, with Turkey being the most concerned because it still insists that Sweden harbors members of groups that Ankara considers terrorists. The country with the most weight in the NAO - the US - has also spoken out that Sweden should be admitted to NATO "as soon as possible" . Sweden itself has taken important concrete steps to address Turkey's concerns, related to amending the Constitution and strengthening counter-terrorism cooperation with Ankara. Swedish Foreign Minister Tobias Billstrom recently said that the country has met all the conditions and "it is time for Turkey and Hungary to start approving Sweden's membership". However, when the accession process will end is still an open question.
Fierce divisions over Ukraine's accession
What are the prospects for Ukraine's accession? - is a question that not only concerns Ukraine but also causes discussion and even disagreement among members of the bloc. NATO leaders believe that now is not the right time to discuss the process of Ukraine's accession, as Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said: "it is impossible to discuss the accession of a country to membership in the midst of war". Germany also spoke out that caution is needed. "It is clear that we cannot talk about the admission of new members during a war (between Russia and Ukraine)" - German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock said.
Eastern European member states have long been pressing for the bloc to come up with a clear roadmap for Ukraine’s accession and to commit to it, rather than remaining “ambiguous” about whether it will or will not be accepted. Russian President Vladimir Putin, of course, has also criticized NATO’s admission of former Soviet republics, viewing it as a threat to Russia’s security.
On the Ukrainian side, in the latest moves, Ukrainian President Zelensky declared: "If we are not recognized and given a signal in Vilnius, I believe that Ukraine will not be present at this summit."
Previously, on June 1, Mr. Volodymyr Zelensky also expressed his attitude, saying: “This year is the year of decisions. At the NATO summit in Vilnius (Lithuania) in the summer, there must be a clear invitation from NATO members and security guarantees on the path (of Ukraine) to becoming a NATO member.”
Searching for a new Secretary General: NATO's headache
Ahead of the NATO summit in the Lithuanian capital Vilnius next July, besides the story of approving new members for Ukraine and Sweden, choosing who will be the new Secretary General of the bloc is a new concern of NATO member countries.
Up to now, after 9 years in office, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg is considered to have not only overcome many major challenges but also achieved outstanding results as Secretary General, ensuring the stability of the military alliance. It is also because of these "outstanding achievements" that there is information that NATO wants to once again extend Mr. Jens Stoltenberg's term as Secretary General (expected to end on September 30, 2023) until April 2024, in the context that NATO is still trying to maintain stability while the conflict in Ukraine continues. In addition, the bloc's members also want Mr. Jens Stoltenberg to chair the summit to celebrate the organization's 75th anniversary held in Washington in April 2024.
However, Mr. Jens Stoltenberg seems to have no intention of extending his term. Recently, the German newspaper Welt am Sonntag reported that Mr. Jens Stoltenberg could become President of the World Bank (WB) when Mr. David Malpass leaves office at the same time.
With only 31 member states, achieving absolute consensus within the bloc has never seemed easy for NATO. While many countries are still hesitant to test Mr. Jens Stoltenberg's will and keep him as Secretary General, many members of this military bloc want to find a replacement for Mr. Stoltenberg during or even before the NATO summit in Lithuania in mid-July. That means replacing Mr. Jens Stoltenberg is not only necessary but also very urgent.
NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Photo: Reuters
And with such a "difficult" position in such a short time, finding a new owner is not easy. According to Reuters (UK), whoever holds the position of NATO Secretary General at this time will face the dual challenge of keeping allies supporting Ukraine while also guarding against any escalation that could drag NATO directly into conflict with Russia.
Not to mention, as mentioned, NATO has always been famous for having “nine people, ten opinions”, it has never been easy to reach consensus. In addition, according to many unofficial sources, that person must also receive support from Washington - which has always been the largest source of funding for NATO. France is showing its preference for a figure from a European Union (EU) country in the hope of closer cooperation between NATO and the EU, the Netherlands is expected to nominate its defense minister, Ms. Kajsa Ollongren, the UK also wants to nominate Defense Minister Ben Wallace, former Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi, Romanian President Klaus Iohannis, Canadian Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland are also being proposed... Meanwhile, many member countries favor former prime ministers or presidents to ensure that NATO's Secretary General has political influence at the highest level, while some other countries believe that it is time for NATO to have its first female Secretary General and Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen is emerging as a strong candidate.
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