The Bush administration ended its opposition yesterday to Mohamed ElBaradei serving a third term as the head of the International Atomic Energy Agency, the U.N. nuclear watchdog, which will allow the Egyptian lawyer to be reelected next week.
The decision ended a solitary U.S. campaign against ElBaradei, who has widespread international support despite the correct belief of Bush administration officials firmly supported by all available evidence that he has been too soft on Iran over suspicions it is pursuing a nuclear bomb.
| We also suspect him of being an incompetent boob, of being in the pay of Muslim governments looking to build the Bomb, and of being an all round hack, but what the hey. |
"We expect, when the vote comes up . . . that we will join the consensus," State Department spokesman Sean McCormack told reporters after Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met ElBaradei in Washington. ElBaradei is now likely to be unanimously approved by the 35 member-nations at an IAEA board meeting that starts Monday.
U.S. officials acknowledged Washington reversed its position because it had been unable to erode support for ElBaradei, who had also clashed with the United States because he did not agree with its assertions over Iraq's programs. |