Feb. 4 (UPI) — Former NATO head Jens Stoltenberg said he will temporarily leave his position as chair of the Munich Security Conference because he has accepted a position as Norway’s finance minister.
The conference said in a statement on Tuesday that vicechairs Benedikt Franke and Rainer Rudolph will step in to lead the conference in his absence.
“I am deeply honored to have been asked to help my country at this critical stage,” Stoltenberg said in a statement. “Having carefully considered the current challenges we face, I have decided to accept Prime Minister [Gahr] Store’s request to serve as Minister of Finance.
“I will return to the Munich Security Conference and to my other responsibilities when my tenure is over. I will remain engaged with the MSC and its many activities as much as my new office allows in the meantime.”
The conference, set for Feb. 14-16, is one of the world’s leading summits examining international security policy.
The announcement comes as the Trump administration announced that Vice President JD Vance will be attending the conference later this month, making it one of his first foreign stops in his new position.
Store’s center-left Labor Party found itself without a governing partner when the Euroskeptic Center Party left the governing coalition. Stoltenberg’s entry as finance minister is meant to help stabilize the transition.
Stoltenberg served as Norway’s prime minister twice, the second time from 2005-2013 before moving on to lead NATO. He replaces Trygve Slagsvold Vedum, who departed with the exit of the Euroskeptic Center Party.
