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Vote for U.N. nuclear watchdog chief hits deadlock
Thu Mar 26, 2009 4:14pm EDT
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By Mark Heinrich and Sylvia Westall
VIENNA (Reuters) - Efforts to elect a new head of the International Atomic Energy Agency stalled on Thursday when the Japanese frontrunner failed to win a required 2/3 majority in three rounds of voting.
The stalemate underlined a split between industrialized and developing states on the U.N. nuclear watchdog's 35-nation Board of Governors and will spur a search for alternative compromise candidates if further voting on Friday is inconclusive.
A prolonged delay in choosing a successor to high-profile Director-General Mohamed ElBaradei would distract attention from major challenges confronting the IAEA, including reports of covert nuclear activity in Iran and Syria.
"I reckon the chances of deadlock tomorrow are 90 percent," a European diplomat said after the closed-door polling. Another diplomat said: "A stalemate is more likely than not."
Yukiya Amano, Japan's IAEA ambassador favored largely by Western nations, outpolled South African counterpart Abdul Samad Minty, backed mainly by developing countries, by 21-14, 20-15 and 20-15 margins -- but this was 3-4 votes short of victory.
On Friday, the U.N. nuclear watchdog's governors will hold a simple "yes, no or abstain" vote with only Amano on the voting paper. If inconclusive, the process will be repeated for Minty. With abstentions, a candidate could win with less than 24 votes.
If there is still no winner, the race will be thrown open.
Several Latin Americans and a Spaniard, all with multilateral nuclear policy credentials, are among those who may be waiting in the wings. A month would be given for nominations of further candidates -- Amano and Minty could run again if they choose -- followed by another election, probably in May.
ElBaradei leaves office in November but the IAEA wants his successor chosen by June to ensure a smooth transition.
POLARISED
"Today's result shows that a lot of countries have an interest in nominating candidates (more palatable) to the board as a whole," said the European diplomat, who asked for anonymity due to political sensitivities. The second diplomat described the governors as "increasingly polarized on the major issues."
The IAEA's twin tasks are to detect secret nuclear bomb programs and foster international cooperation in peaceful uses of the atom, but developed and developing nations differ over the emphasis to be given to each.
Apart from trying to balance such competing demands and coping on a meager budget, the new IAEA chief will try to revive blocked inquiries into alleged bomb-oriented activity in Iran and Syria, probes that have cast a global spotlight on the IAEA.
The IAEA's anti-proliferation struggle could be helped by a new U.S. diplomatic initiative under President Barack Obama to re-establish contacts with Tehran, Damascus and other U.S. foes.
ElBaradei, an Egyptian, shared the 2005 Nobel peace prize with the IAEA. But he clashed with the Bush administration over its policy toward Saddam Hussein's Iraq and Iran, deeming it was confrontational and undermined access for U.N. inspectors. Continued...
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