AlHijjah 07, 1435, October 01, 2014, SPA -- Former Norwegian prime minister Jens Stoltenberg takes over as NATO's 13th secretary general on Wednesday, dpa reported. The 55-year-old is the second Scandinavian NATO chief in a row, succeeding former Danish prime minister Anders Fogh Rasmussen. The transition comes as the alliance prepares to launch a new mission in Afghanistan and faces tensions with Russia over the Ukraine crisis.