The governments of the European Union (EU) on Wednesday gave their endorsement to World Bank president nominee Paul Wolfowitz, currently US deputy defense secretary, whose nomination has stirred controversy following his key role in the Iraq war and his lack of experience.

At a press conference in Brussels, Luxembourg Prime Minister Jean-Claude Juncker, whose country holds the rotating EU presidency, referred to Wolfowitz as "the incoming president of the World Bank."

After chairing a meeting attended by major aid donors and Wolfowitz, Juncker said the Europeans want to "make sure the Millennium Development goals are the basis on which the incoming president of World Bank organizes his work."

Wolfowitz admitted that his nomination was "controversial."

"I hope as people get to know me that they will understand that I really do believe deeply in the mission of the bank," he said.

"It's a ...unifying mission, and frankly that's going to be fun," he said.

He promised to seek a "truly multinational" management team saying the team "needs to reflect the full diversity of donors and recipients."

The EU's executive body, the European Commission (EC), also expressed its satisfaction over the nomination of Wolfowitz.

An EC spokeswoman said EU Commissioner Olli Rehn "was satisfied with everything he heard from Mr. Wolfowitz concerning free trade and also on poverty reduction and development policy."

The EU's backing came on the eve of a World Bank board meeting on Thursday. It is widely believed that Wolfwitz will be officially elected as the head of the Washington-based international institution which lends to poor countries.

The US has traditionally been allowed to fill the World Bank presidency while Europe has controlled the top job at the International Monetary Fund.

Source: Xinhua