summary
Estonian Prime Minister Kaya Kallas has attracted attention for her hardline anti-Russian stance, and her recent nomination as head of the European Union's foreign and security policy has sparked considerable controversy.
The choice of NATO's new secretary general is also in the spotlight, with Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte becoming the most likely candidate. Want to know what the future holds for them? Let's look down!
Kaya Callas
Estonian Prime Minister Kaya Kallas is known for her tough anti-Russian stance, and since she became Estonian Prime Minister in 2019, she has repeatedly made verbal accusations against Russia, especially when Russia has made moves, and Kaya Kallas is always the first NATO leader to stand up.
Not only that, but Estonia is also one of the few former Soviet republics that has not improved relations with Russia, and relations between the two countries can be said to be out of control.
The European Union nominates Kaya Kalas
Speaking at a joint meeting between NATO and the United States this year, Estonian Prime Minister Kaya Kallas said that Estonia would continue to support all decisions made by NATO and the United States, especially those against Russia.
Shortly thereafter, Kaya Kallas was nominated as the head of the EU's foreign and security policy.
As soon as this news came out, it immediately caused an uproar, and the Russian side was strongly dissatisfied with it, and the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs even said that if Kaya Kallas was really elected, the relations between Russia and Estonia would only get worse.
The West has reacted lukewarmly, as everyone knows Kaya Kalas's position, and this nomination is just a bigger role for her.
Tough stance
But even so, the EU side quickly approved the nomination, perhaps precisely because of Kaya Kallas's performance against Russia.
Because the change from Estonia to the EU did not change her original thinking, and if there was one change in her job, it was to make her hard-line position even harder.
Some commentators believe that the EU's nomination of Kaya Kallas means that the EU will also take a tougher stance on Russia in foreign and security policy in the future, which may be the first change in the past few years since the US withdrew from European affairs and transferred some of the work to the EU.
Mark Rutte
In addition, news about the new secretary general of NATO has also been spreading, according to custom, the current secretary general, Stoltenberg, who was supposed to leave in April next year, officially announced his resignation in March this year, and has been looking for a new person since then, and it seems that the most likely candidate is Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
It is supported by Western countries
This year, all 32 NATO member states have officially approved the appointment of Mark Rutte as NATO secretary general, an appointment that is also supported by major Western countries such as the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany.
It is reported that as the youngest leader of NATO countries, Mark Rutte's work performance in the Netherlands is quite good, and he also has a certain popularity among the people.
So, after a series of consultations, Mark Rutte finally became the first secretary general in the history of NATO in the non-traditional sense, and the first secretary general from the European continent since 1988.
According to the rules, Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte will begin his new duties 30 days after his appointment is officially issued.
This personnel arrangement has also been approved by the Russian side, after all, although Mark Rutte is a member of NATO, his previous words and deeds have not made relations between the two countries worse.
On the other hand, if Kaya Kallas is likely to be elected head of the EU's foreign and security policy, Russia will certainly take corresponding measures, and the relationship between the two countries will only become more strained.
epilogue
Kaya Kallas's hardline stance and Mark Rutte's new Secretary-General status have caused quite a stir on the international stage. Their performance will have a significant impact on the future direction of the EU and NATO. How do you think they will respond to the Russian challenge? Leave a comment to share your thoughts!