The US president\u2019s snub of the British defense secretary\u2019s candidacy could sour bilateral relations, according to the paper\u2019s sources<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The British government is frustrated by US President Joe Biden\u2019s decision not to endorse the candidacy of UK Defence Secretary Ben Wallace to become the next NATO secretary-general, the Daily Telegraph reported on Thursday, citing sources.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
According to unnamed senior British officials interviewed by the paper, London felt \u201cbadly let down\u201d by Biden\u2019s apparent refusal, suggesting that it could throw a wrench into the \u2018special relationship\u2019 between the two Western states. \u201cWe\u2019re supposed to be their closest ally. And this is what we get. It is what it is\u2026 but it is bad for UK-US relations,\u201d one source said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
He also went on to complain that Washington has done the UK \u201ca bad turn\u201d by favoring a \u201cDanish lady,\u201d an apparent reference to Mette Frederiksen, the prime minister of Denmark, who has been rumored to have good chances of becoming the next NATO chief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
However, according to the report, while Biden initially wanted Frederiksen to succeed Jens Stoltenberg, the current secretary-general of the US-led military bloc, he cooled on her candidacy after she failed to impress him during a recent meeting in Washington.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Wallace, who emerged as a staunch anti-Russia hawk amid the Ukraine conflict, is said to have been a popular choice among numerous NATO members. However, his candidacy was met with opposition from several European leaders, who pushed for the next NATO boss to come from an EU nation, the report says. One Telegraph source accused France and Germany of \u201cscrabbling about\u201d to prevent Wallace from taking the job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Against this backdrop, Washington has reportedly convinced several of its European allies to put off the replacement decision while trying to persuade Stoltenberg, who has held the post for nine years, to agree to stay on for another 12 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Earlier this month, Biden publicly said that the UK defense secretary would make a \u201cvery qualified\u201d leader of the bloc, though he stopped short of throwing his weight behind his candidacy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In an interview with The Economist on Wednesday, Wallace, who had previously spoken in length about his vision for the bloc\u2019s future should he become its next leader, signaled that he now has no plans to contend for this job.<\/p>\n\n\n\n