VIENNA, April 27: The UN atomic agency has postponed until June a decision on whether to give current chief Mohamed ElBaradei a new term, diplomats said on Wednesday. The International Atomic Energy Agency’s 35-nation board of governors met Wednesday in a special session to discuss the appointment of a new director general when Mr ElBaradei’s current term expires on Nov 30. He is the only candidate to be the next director general.

The chair of the board, Canadian ambassador Ingrid Hall, said that “support for the candidate has increased and that furthermore board members want to see a decision on his reappointment taken by consensus and as soon as possible and no later than the June board (meeting),” according to a copy of her statement.

The postponement is to give the United States, which opposes ElBaradei getting a new term, time to change its position and join the consensus.

The United States officially opposes ElBaradei, 62, serving more than two terms, but it also argues that the former Egyptian diplomat is not tough enough on Iran, which Washington charges is hiding a covert nuclear weapons program, diplomats said.

ElBaradei also provoked the ire of Washington for using his position as IAEA chief to question US intelligence that Iraq had weapons of mass destruction.

Washington may however be ready to yield on ElBaradei, a US official said as it is struggling to find an alternative candidate who is prepared to challenge the widely respected IAEA chief.

—AFP