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NATO keeps Jens Stoltenberg as its chief until 2022

Associated Press
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NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, right, and Georgian President Salome Zourabichvili shake hands for the media during their meeting in Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, March 25, 2019. (AP Photo/Shakh Aivazov)

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg and Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze, right, meet with Georgian soldiers during multinational military exercises NATO - Georgia Exercise 2019, at the NATO-Georgia Joint Training and Evaluation Center in Krtsanisi, just outside Tbilisi, Georgia, Monday, March 25, 2019. (AP Photo/Shakh Aivazov)

NATO has extended the mandate of its top civilian official, Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg, for two years, making the former Norwegian premier one of the longest-serving heads of the military alliance.

Stoltenberg said Thursday he is "honored" by the decision made by the 29 allies and "I thank them for putting their trust in me."

He said: "We face the biggest security challenges in a generation and I look forward to continue working with all allies to adapt and modernize NATO."

Stoltenberg, who assumed office in 2014, will now hold the post until Sept. 30, 2022.

Only former Dutch foreign minister Joseph Luns, who spent 13 years in office from 1971, will have served in the post longer if Stoltenberg sees out his term.