NATO on November 19 said that former North Macedonian Defense Minister Radmila Sekerinska has become the alliance's new deputy secretary-general. Former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte became the alliance's secretary-general on October 1. Officials familiar with the decision about who would be his deputy told RFE/RL that a candidate from Central or Eastern Europe had been sought, preferably a woman. Other candidates, the officials said on condition of anonymity, included former Bulgarian Foreign Minister Mariya Gabriel, former Croatian President Kolinda Grabar-Kititarovic, and former Montenegrin Defense Minister Olivera Injac, currently the mayor of Podgorica. Sekerinska, who was North Macedonia’s defense minister from 2017 to 2022, oversaw her country’s accession to NATO in 2020. She will replace acting Deputy Secretary-General Boris Ruge, who temporarily took over the position earlier this fall following Deputy Secretary-General Mircea Geoana's resignation in order to run in this month's presidential election in Romania.
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