British Defense Secretary Ben Wallace has announced that he has withdrawn from the race for the post of NATO's next secretary general.
This is reported by Sky News.
The TV channel quotes Wallace's words from an interview with The Economist magazine, where he commented on the possibility of leading NATO.
"This will not happen. Maybe they want a prime minister," he said.
According to the TV channel, the British defense minister realized that his hopes of leading NATO were dashed last week when Wallace's candidacy was not supported by US President Joe Biden.
"Biden simply did not want to support Great Britain," said a source in the Ministry of Defense.
As diplomatic sources of the TV channel told, NATO hoped to find a candidate who was the head of state or government - preferably a woman.
Some sources claimed that because of Brexit, some European countries would prefer a candidate from an EU country over the UK.
Media previously reported that NATO allies are leaning towards extending the term of office of current Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg due to difficulties in choosing a successor. Stoltenberg's mandate can be extended for another year.
At the same time, Stoltenberg himself stated that he had "no other plans except to complete his work as secretary general."
It was also noted that Joe Biden allegedly personally persuaded Jens Stoltenberg to stay on as NATO Secretary General during his last trip to Washington.
