Sunak to ask Biden to support Ben Wallace as NATO Secretary General

British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak will use his visit to Washington this week to encourage Joe Biden to support Defense Secretary Ben Wallace's nomination for NATO Secretary General.

This was reported by The Telegraph.

The Prime Minister will spend two days in Washington and meet with the U.S. President at the White House.

They will discuss cooperation in the fields of economy, trade, science and technology, and are expected to sign business investment agreements for billions of dollars in the UK. They will also discuss ways to regulate artificial intelligence.

Ben Wallace is popular in the United States for his central role in building an international coalition in support of Ukraine. He has also brought Britain's defense spending to 2.25% of GDP and is pushing for it to reach 3% by the end of the decade.

Last month, Sunak spent some time on the sidelines of the recent G7 meeting in Hiroshima lobbying for Wallace.

London fears that the French and Germans will unite to prevent Wallace from taking the post, and there are rumors that they will support the first female secretary general to thwart Wallace's victory. Another favorite is Mette Frederiksen, the Danish prime minister who meets with Biden on Monday.

But she leads a country that doesn't even spend 2 percent of GDP on defense, and its armed forces number less than 20,000 troops. "I'm not sure what kind of signal this will send to other countries about the 2 percent target," said a British government source.

Last month, Wallace admitted to German media that he would like to become NATO Secretary General.

Author – Anastasiya Glotova, 05/06/2023