Mr Wallace enjoyed a 31-point majority over Labour in 2019, suggesting he is not among top Tory figures worried about whether they can hold onto their seats
has announced he is going to quit as Defence Secretary in the next Cabinet reshuffle after four years.He said he was “not standing next time” but ruled out leaving Parliament “prematurely” and forcing Rishi Sunak to deal with another by-election.
He recently emerged as Downing Street’s favoured candidate to take over the post of Nato secretary-general – before it was announced the current chief, Jens Stoltenberg, had been given another year in charge. Some reports indicated that US President Joe Biden had personally vetoed Mr Wallace’s bid despite lobbying from Rishi Sunak.there were a “lot of unresolved issues” in the military alliance and “it’s not going to happen”, downplaying the prospect of a future bid to run the organisation.
His time as Defence Secretary has been dominated by the war in Ukraine and increasing tensions with Russian and China. Earlier this month, Mr Wallace sparked controversy after he suggestedMr Wallace had made the remark after the country’s President Volodymyr Zelensky branded it “absurd” for Nato to insist there were still conditions for his nation to meet before it can gain membership once the war with Russia is over.
Mr Zelensky later said: “I believe that we were always grateful to United Kingdom. I don’t know what he meant and how else we should be grateful.”
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