For NATO, a first: 5 female defence ministers

The latest woman to join the ministerial ranks was Italy’s Roberta Pinotti, who was sworn in Saturday as her country’s first female defence minister. The 52-year-old served as an undersecretary for defence in the just-ended government of Enrico Letta. First elected to Parliament in 2001, she is now a senator. She began her political career two decades ago as a lower-ranking official in what was then Italy’s Communist Party.

Pinotti joined Albania’s Mimi Kodheli, Germany’s Ursula von der Leyen, Norway’s Ine Marie Eriksen Soreide and Jeanine Hennis-Plasshaert of the Netherlands. A NATO official said the five constituted the largest number of women defense ministers to serve at one time since the 28-nation alliance was founded in 1949.

Before getting down to business with US Defence Secretary Chuck Hagel and their other male colleagues Wednesday afternoon, the women posed together for news photographers. At first, there were just four of them — until Soreide of Norway realized the Albanian minister was missing. Kodheli was quickly called over, and the picture snapping resumed.