Former Danish Prime Minister Mr. Anders Fogh Rasmussen took over as secretary-general of the NATO alliance on 1 August 2009. NATO is a 28-nation military alliance which is now 60 years old.

Rasmussen listed out his priorities in earnest. They include successful conclusion of the Afghan War; weeding out the irritants in the ties with Russia that are under strain after last year’s Russo-Georgian conflict; and expanding NATO’s partnerships with moderate nations in North Africa and the Middle East.

Challenges

Though his priorities are clear; the NATO boss still has daunting challenges to address—foremost is the war effort in Afghanistan where NATO has about 64,000 soldiers deployed, of which half are Americans. More than 20,000 new US troops are also being deployed. However, some European allies are apparently reluctant to increase their contribution to the international force. So, enhancing higher European participation in Afghanistan will be the major task for the new NATO Chief.

The outgoing NATO Secretary-General Jaap de Hoop Scheffer said that one of the regrets during his term of office is that he did not manage to get more member states to participate in the Afghan mission. He said he would have liked all members to have contributed in equal measure to the operation.

But the difficulties in getting boots on the ground in Afghanistan leads some to say that a worldwide role for NATO is probably not the answer. And at a time when Europe and the United States are in the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, there is increasing pressure to cut defense spending.

Russia

The issue of continuing to repair Russian-NATO relations is significant; without appearing to minimize the Western condemnation of the Russian attack of Georgia just a year ago. The new incumbent also has to define NATO’s post Cold War role in the world, at a time when some alliance members feel it is losing focus.

New Talent in NATO

Fogh Rasmussen is the latest addition to the new team of civilian and military leaders to lead the war effort. They include US Adm. James Stavridis as NATO’s commander, US Gen. Stanley McChrystal as NATO chief in Afghanistan, and Richard Holbrooke, as the US special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan. Fogh Rasmussen’s predecessor Jaap de Hoop Scheffer stepped down on 30th July.