Biden has talks with Danish prime minister amid speculation she could be NATO’s first female secretary general
Biden holds talks with Danish prime minister amid speculation she could be NATO’s first female secretary general — vowing to stand by Ukraine ahead of brutal new offensive
- Biden met with Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen in the Oval Office on Monday afternoon
- Their talks focused on Ukraine as the war appears to be entering a new phase
- But they are intensifying speculation that Frederiksen is vying for NATO’s top job
President Joe Biden on Monday thanked the Danish prime minister for her country’s role in the alliance to help Ukraine resist Russia, as speculation grows that Mette Frederiksen is in line to become NATO secretary general.
“There’s a shared commitment to the core values and that’s what gives us our strength — at least that’s what I believe,” Biden said when they met in the Oval Office.
“Together, we are working to protect those values - including standing up for the people of Ukraine against the ruthless aggression of the Russians.”
It was the first of two meetings this week with key allies, allies with NATO aspirations.
On Thursday it will be the turn of British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, whose defense minister is another contender to lead the Western alliance when Jens Stoltenberg steps down in October.
President Joe Biden on Monday thanked Danish Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen for her country’s support for Ukraine when they met in the Oval Office on Monday afternoon
When she left the White House, she said she was only interested in the premiership when reporters asked her about speculation that she was jockeying to run NATO.
The position of secretary-general requires the unanimous consent of the members, which means that the support of the US president is crucial.
White House officials went to great lengths to point out that the NATO issue was not on Monday’s agenda.
But Frederiksen would make history as the first woman general secretary if she won.
For its part, the Danish prime minister would not be interested in questions about her future.
“I’ve said before that I’m not a candidate for any job other than the one I have now, and that hasn’t changed after my meeting with the US president.” she told reporters as she left the White House.
Ahead of the meeting, officials said talks would focus heavily on the war in Ukraine, including recent efforts to train and equip Ukrainian troops with F-16 fighter jets.
The talks come at a crucial time in the 15-month war. In recent days, Ukraine seems to have stepped up its attacks in a long-awaited counter-offensive.
The meeting comes at a critical time in Ukraine’s 15-month war as Kiev apparently ramps up its attacks on Russian troops amid reports of a counter-offensive
The commander, driver and gunner of an armored personnel carrier (YPR-765) of the 57th Motorized Brigade of the Ukrainian Armed Forces near Bakhmut in Donetsk Oblast
The British Prime Minister will visit the White House later this week. He can be seen here drinking tea with Biden when the president visited Northern Ireland in April
The two sides exchanged claims on Monday over who was gaining ground as fighting intensified in eastern Ukraine in the region of southern Donetsk.
White House national security spokesman John Kirby declined to answer questions about whether it amounted to a counteroffensive
“I am not going to speak on behalf of the Ukrainian army. That’s up to them to talk to,” he said.
“I think you heard them say they’re conducting offensive operations earlier today, but I won’t go any further.”
Nor would he say whether NATO was discussed in the Oval Office.
“That’s not the purpose of the trip, not the purpose of the conversation,” he told reporters.