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| 2003/09/22 |
Dutch FM named new NATO chief
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06:08:53 �.�
Brussels, Sept 22 - Dutch Foreign Minister Jaap De Hoop Scheffer was named Monday as the new Secretary General of NATO, succeeding George Robertson, officials said.
"Mr. De Hoop Scheffer will assume his functions as Secretary General at a date to be determined," said a NATO statement after the alliance's decision-making North Atlantic council agreed the appointment.
Robertson, who announced in January he would leave at the end of his mandate in December, has stressed that a decision was needed "quickly" because NATO faces a crucial period in its history.
Apart from De Hoop Scheffer, the other major contender who had emerged in the race was Canadian finance minister John Manley.
Born on April 3, 1948, in Amsterdam, De Hoop Scheffer is a seasoned diplomat who headed the offices of four Dutch Foreign Ministers before taking the top job himself in July 2002.
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