U.S. wants to replace IAEA chief ElBaradei

[Judi Lynn]

Saturday, January 8, 2005 · Last updated 11:31 a.m. PT

U.S. wants to replace IAEA chief ElBaradei

By GEORGE JAHN
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

VIENNA, Austria -- He's running unopposed, but Mohamed ElBaradei may still fail in his bid for a third term leading the U.N. nuclear watchdog agency, tripped by his main opponent, the United States.

Unable to find a candidate willing to oppose the independent-minded Egyptian diplomat, Washington is now quietly lobbying other member states in ElBaradei's International Atomic Energy Agency in a bid to unseat him by June, opening the way for a replacement more to the Bush administration's liking - one harder on Iran and other nations on the U.S. nasty list.

With the agency spearheading international attempts to squelch nuclear proliferation, who controls the IAEA is key for Bush administration officials. They want someone sharing their view of which country represents a nuclear threat and what to do about them.

ElBaradei has challenged those views - particularly over prewar Iraq and Iran, both labeled part of an "axis of evil" with North Korea by President Bush.
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http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/national/apeurope_story.asp?category=1103&slug=Nuclear%20Power%20Struggle