Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte is now backed by the United States, the United Kingdom and Germany to succeed Jens Stoltenberg as secretary general of the alliance. The Secretary General of NATO is appointed by consensus of the 31 allies, but this appointment process is completely opaque.
The name of the resigning head of the Dutch government, who is responsible for current affairs, has been circulating insistently for months. The only unknown is that of European appointments after the elections next June, notes our correspondent Pierre Benazet.