Japan nominates Amano to head U.N. nuclear watchdog

September 26, 2008 
Forbes
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TOKYO, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Japan said on Friday it has nominated ambassador Yukiya Amano to head the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog when director Mohamed ElBaradei steps down next year. 
The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said earlier this month that ElBaradei plans to leave office after his third term runs out next November. 
Born in 1947, Amano is the Japanese ambassador to the IAEA and was chairman of the IAEA board of governors from September 2005-2006. 
'(Amano) has, over the course of his career-to-date, gained substantial and far-reaching experience in the areas of non-proliferation, disarmament and nuclear energy-related matters,' the Japanese mission said in a statement. 
Diplomats have said possible candidates also include the South African ambassador to the IAEA, the head of the U.N. chemical weapons convention in The Hague, and ElBaradei's No. 2 who heads the agency's global non-proliferation inspectorate.
(Reporting by Sylvia Westall)