American admiral: The US will see Mette F. as a good candidate

The government’s defense plans this week, together with the multibillion-dollar aid to Ukraine, largely contribute to the fact that the US will see Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen (S) as a good candidate for the post of Secretary General of NATO.

This is the assessment of program director Mark Montgomery at the think tank Foundation for Defense of Democracies (FDD) in Washington DC

– It would be better if they (Denmark, ed.) were at two percent already today, but they are working towards that. And they were immediately ready with support for Ukraine, from the very beginning. So Denmark is seen in the US as a consistent and close ally.

– That’s why the US considers Mette Frederiksen a good candidate, says former navy admiral Mark Montgomery.

Mette Frederiksen will meet with the American president, Joe Biden, in the White House on Monday 5 June.

The visit falls after a number of observers and international defense experts have pointed to the Danish prime minister as one of the hottest names right now to replace Jens Stoltenberg as top political leader in NATO.

The Prime Minister herself has said that she is not looking for a new job and that she is happy to be Prime Minister.

On Tuesday this week, the government presented a proposal for a defense settlement. In this, DKK 143 billion is set aside, which in the course of seven years will bring Denmark up to the NATO target of spending two percent of the gross domestic product (GNP) on defence.

At the same time, and this is probably just as important, according to Montgomery, the government announced a Ukraine fund, which – according to the government – will get Denmark temporarily up to two percent already this year and next year.

Whether that calculation is recognized by NATO is still uncertain.

But the decision makes an impression in the United States.

– The big news, the ten-year plan with the 20 billion dollars, and another billion dollars this year. It shows commitment. It’s huge, says Montgomery.

The defense analyst, who in Nato has a past with military capacity building in Ukraine, can list the Danish donations to Ukraine in detail: Leopard tanks, Harpoon systems and 400 Stinger missiles.

No one can know whether Frederiksen will actually take the job, should the allied countries wish it, but even if the US is powerful in the alliance, according to Montgomery, one must remember that it is a joint decision among the 31 member countries.

But it undoubtedly helps to have support from the US, he adds.

– That President Biden can tell the other heads of state and government that he has spoken to her face to face, that will help. However, I don’t know if the US has settled its position yet.

According to Montgomery, the Danish defense has a big star with the Americans from cooperation on many missions around the world. Common ground against authoritarian regimes and good cooperation on the Arctic are important to the United States. And not least the support for Ukraine.

The prime minister’s visit to Washington takes place just over a month before a NATO summit in Vilnius, Lithuania, where the allies may have to find a replacement for Jens Stoltenberg as secretary general – or perhaps want to extend his contract again.

Among the other candidates mentioned are the Prime Minister of Estonia, Kaja Kallas, and the British Defense Minister, Ben Wallace. The latter has played with open cards and said it will be “a great job”.

/ritzau/