Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Mohamed ElBaradei called on the Board of Governors to agree on a successor of him, as neither of the two candidates Japanese Yukiya Amano and South African Abdul Sabad Minty received the enough two-thirds of votes in the first round of election in May.

According to a report published by Austrian newspaper "Standard" on Thursday, ElBaradei expressed his "great concern" over the fact that his successor had not yet been appointed. A new round of election is expected on July 2.

"I hope we will find the right person soon. The board should reach a consensus," ElBaradei, who has served as IAEA chief for 12years, told the newspaper.

ElBaradei also noted that the new IAEA chief must obtain the trust from both the north and the south, because at present "a great mistrust exists between the two sides."

While the Japanese Amano, who received 20 votes from the 35-member board in Tuesday's test ballots, is supported by the western countries, Minty from South Africa with 11 votes is favored by the developing countries. Spanish Luis Echavarri got the rest four votes on Tuesday.

The election must be completed by mid-September so that the IAEA board can submit the appointment for approval at the IAEA General Conference this September.

Source: Xinhua