Colombia, Brazil and Argentina have been locked in a heated quarrel over who should be the new chief of the Washington-based Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), the local press reported Saturday.

The election of a new IBD president will take place on July 27 in Washington. Brazilian Joao Sayad, IBD vice president of finance and management, Argentine economist Aldo Ferrer and Peruvian Economy Minister Pedro Pablo Kuczynski are all running for the presidency.

But according to diplomatic sources, the favorite candidate for the post is Colombian Ambassador to the United States Luis Alberto Moreno, who is supported by the United States, Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica, Guatemala and Panama.

The IBD is the world's largest regional development bank with a chief mandate of providing development loans to member states.

The winner will succeed Uruguayan Enrique Iglesias, who will leave the IBD on Sept. 30 to become the new secretary general of the Iberian-American Summit.

Peruvian Kuczynski said Moreno is in the lead because of support from the United States and Mexico.

Kuczynski said he would withdraw his candidacy if he lacks enough support. "I would be delighted to stay in Peru," he said.

The United States, Brazil, Argentina and Mexico are main IDB shareholders.

The United States has 30 percent of the vote while Latin American nations have little more than 50 percent. The rest is held by mainly European countries.

The IDB, established in 1959 by the Organization of American States, now has 47 member countries.

Source: Xinhua