MOSCOW, October 2. /TASS/. Russia pins new expectations on NATO’s newly-appointed Secretary-General, Jens Stoltenberg. A born leader, former Norwegian prime minister and chief of the Norwegian Workers’ Party, Stoltenberg in his new capacity of NATO’s chief is capable of taking the initiative to try to defuse tensions in relations between the alliance and Russia, or he may choose to be an advocate of the United States’ hard line policies, polled experts told TASS.
Stoltenberg’s first statements made at a news conference in Brussels on October 1, the day of his inauguration, were traditionally bellicose and matching well the rhetoric of his predecessor, Anders Fogh Rasmussen. Stoltenberg said Russia’s actions in Ukraine were one of the main challenges to NATO. Russia, he said, “maintains its ability to destabilize Ukraine” and “remains in breach of international law.” At the same time he voiced the readiness for cooperation with Russia. "I see no contradiction between a strong NATO and our continued effort to build a constructive relationship with Russia," he declared.