Former Prime Minister of Denmark and NATO secretary general
Is currently the Prime Minister of Denmark
1978: Was elected to the Danish Parliament, Folketinget.
1987-1992: Minister for Taxation
1990-1992: Minister for Economic Affairs
1979: Son, Henrik, is born.
1981: Daughter, Maria, is born.
1984: Daughter, Christina, is born.
NATO Secretary General (? - present).
More than forty years of Communist rule in Central and Eastern Europe,resulted in an unhappy and artificial division of Europe. It is this,dark chapter of European history that we now have the opportunity to,close.
Europe should stick to an open economy, to competition and we should,refuse protectionism. It will not save one single job in the long run,to protect non-competitive industries.
NATO allies have been looking at various missile-defence options for,some time. Nato itself is developing protections for our deployed,troops.
But Iran has gone far beyond what is necessary for a purely civilian,programme. It has concealed several nuclear facilities from the,International Atomic Energy Agency, played hide-and-seek with the,international community, and rejected all offers of co-operation from,the U. S.
the EU, and others.
Perhaps we underestimated the challenges in Afghanistan in the past.
The Americans provide still more advanced military assets and equipment;,the Europeans are lagging behind. And eventually it will be difficult,to co-operate even if you had the political will to co-operate because,of the technological gap.
The proliferation of weapons of mass destruction and their means of,delivery is a threat to both the NATO allies and Russia.
Ten years ago U. S. defence investment represented almost half of all,defence expenditure in the whole alliance. Today it is 75%. This,increasing economic gap may also lead to an increasing technology gap,which will almost hamper the inter-operability between our forces.
I think President Karzai realizes exactly how important it is to,strengthen the fight against corruption in the country now, step up,endeavors to stop the drug trade and to deliver better governance. He,said as much in his inaugural address.
The American people ask, and legitimately so, why should we carry the,heavy burden to ensure international peace and stability. You also,profit from it, so you should also take your share in the burden.
Iran also has an extensive missile development programme. Iranian,officials declare that the range of their modified Shahab-3 missiles is,2,000km, putting allied countries such as Turkey, Greece, Romania, and,Bulgaria within reach.
I know very well that Berlin attaches great importance to NATO and,solidarity, in terms of sharing the burden. For this reason, I feel,confident that the German government will take the right decision, one,that serves both German and NATO interests.
