Joseph Marie Antoine Hubert Luns was a Dutch politician of the defunct Catholic People's Party (KVP), now merged into the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA), diplomat, and jurist. He served as Secretary General of NATO from 1 October 1971 until 25 June 1984.
Luns in 1979
United States Secretary of State John Foster Dulles, Director of the Mutual Security Agency Harold Stassen and Minister for United Nations Affairs Joseph Luns at Airport Schiphol on 6 February 1953
Minister of Justice Albert Beerman, Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Luns and Prime Minister of Israel David Ben-Gurion at Ypenburg Airport on 22 June 1960
Retired United Kingdom Field marshal Bernard Montgomery and Minister of Foreign Affairs Joseph Luns during a visit at the University of Amsterdam on 9 November 1960
Secretary General of NATO
The secretary general of NATO is the chief civil servant of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), an intergovernmental military alliance with 32 member states. The officeholder is an international diplomat responsible for coordinating the workings of the alliance, leading NATO's international staff, chairing the meetings of the North Atlantic Council and most major committees of the alliance, with the notable exception of the NATO Military Committee, as well as acting as NATO's spokesperson. The secretary general does not have a military command role; political, military and strategic decisions ultimately rest with the member states. Together with the Chair of the NATO Military Committee and the supreme allied commander, the officeholder is one of the foremost officials of NATO.
Secretary General of NATO
Secretary General Joseph Luns meets with United States Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger on 25 May 1983.
Secretary General Javier Solana and Russian Defense Minister Igor Sergeyev on 1 October 1997.
Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, German Defence Minister Ursula von der Leyen, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter and UK Defence Secretary Michael Fallon in Brussels, October 2015.
