UN nuclear watchdog approves Argentine diplomat Grossi as new chief
CGTN
Rafael Mariano Grossi speaks at a special session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) general conference in Vienna, Austria, December 2, 2019. /Xinhua Photo

Rafael Mariano Grossi speaks at a special session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) general conference in Vienna, Austria, December 2, 2019. /Xinhua Photo

A special session of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) general conference held in Vienna on Monday approved Argentine diplomat Rafael Mariano Grossi as its new director general. 

Grossi, 58, will serve a term of four years starting from December 3, succeeding Yukiya Amano, a Japanese diplomat who had held the position since 2009, and died in July well before the end of his third four-year term. 

The decision, which consists of representatives of the 171 member states, comes just over a month after IAEA's 35-member Board of Governors on October 31 appointed Grossi to the post. 

"The IAEA is a formidable institution with a unique mandate, and I want to ensure that it delivers at its full potential," said Grossi. "Our functions cover highly diverse areas such as medicine, agriculture, energy, climate change, and the non-proliferation of nuclear weapons. The IAEA's activities are important to all Member States and their citizens." 

The newly-appointed director general, who becomes the first head of the IAEA from Latin America, is a career diplomat with over 35 years of professional experience in non-proliferation and disarmament. 

As the IAEA's six head since it was founded in 1957, Grossi ran a tight race against Cornel Feruta of Romania, IAEA's chief coordinator and acting director general for the position. 

Source(s): Xinhua News Agency