(Bloomberg) -- Departing NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is set to replace German diplomat Christoph Heusgen as chairman of the Munich Security Conference early next year, according to people familiar with the plans.
Heusgen, 69, who previously worked as a foreign policy adviser to former German Chancellor Angela Merkel, will remain with the organization but in a new role, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing confidential information. Spokespeople for NATO and the MSC declined to comment on the appointment, which was earlier reported by Politico.
Heusgen has been head of the MSC since 2022 and a frequent critic of Olaf Scholz over the German chancellor’s Ukraine policies, accusing him of dragging his feet over military aid for the government in Kyiv.
Stoltenberg, a former Norwegian prime minister, will conclude his tenure at the North Atlantic Treaty Organization in October and hand over leadership of the military alliance to former Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte.
The Munich Security Conference is an annual forum in the Bavarian capital for political leaders, military officials and defense industry executives. The 61st edition is scheduled for Feb. 14-16.
“I hope very much that my successor will keep the global perspective of the conference,” Heusgen was quoted as saying Friday by Germany’s Tagesspiegel newspaper, without naming Stoltenberg.
--With assistance from Andrea Palasciano.
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