Danish PM Named New NATO Chief - IslamOnline.net - News
STRASBOURG -- Danish Prime Minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen was named the new NATO chief on Saturday, April 4, after Turkey dropped its veto to his appointment. "I am deeply honored to be appointed as the next secretary-general of NATO," Rasmussen told a press conference, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP). "I will do my utmost to live up to the confidence shown to me by my colleagues." Rasmussen, who has been favored by alliance's big countries to the job, will replace Dutchman Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on Aug. 1. "Everyone is fully convinced that Anders Fogh Rasmussen is the best choice for the alliance," Scheffer said. Scheffer admitted that there had been long discussions on electing the Danish premier as the new NATO chief. "An agreement was found," he added. Turkey has long opposed Rasmussen's nomination to the NATO's top post over his mishandling of the Prophet cartoon crisis. In 2005, Denmark's Jyllands-Posten daily printed cartoons satirizing Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him), sparking furor in the Muslim world. Rasmussen refused to meet the ambassadors of several Muslim countries to discuss the crisis, defending the blasphemous drawings as freedom of expression.
"I am deeply honored to be appointed as the next secretary-general of NATO," Rasmussen told a press conference, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).
"I will do my utmost to live up to the confidence shown to me by my colleagues."
Rasmussen, who has been favored by alliance's big countries to the job, will replace Dutchman Jaap de Hoop Scheffer on Aug. 1.
"Everyone is fully convinced that Anders Fogh Rasmussen is the best choice for the alliance," Scheffer said.
Scheffer admitted that there had been long discussions on electing the Danish premier as the new NATO chief.
"An agreement was found," he added.
Turkey has long opposed Rasmussen's nomination to the NATO's top post over his mishandling of the Prophet cartoon crisis.
In 2005, Denmark's Jyllands-Posten daily printed cartoons satirizing Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessing be upon him), sparking furor in the Muslim world.
Rasmussen refused to meet the ambassadors of several Muslim countries to discuss the crisis, defending the blasphemous drawings as freedom of expression.
I can understand why the amabassadors got roped in and Rasmussen should have been more polite, but he said the correct thing. It's freedom of speech. But hwilstislamic public sentiment can be whipped up like this, politicians should be calming the situation, not playing to the mob. This is Erdogan's mistake. keep to the Fen Causeway
Erdogan should pick his fights. "Any economic unit can emit money. The serious problem is to get it accepted" Hyman Minsky
