VIENNA (Kyodo) Yukiya Amano, Japan's ambassador to the Permanent Mission to the International Organizations in Vienna, was elected the next director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency on Thursday.
Amano, 62, won against South Africa's Abdul Samad Minty after six rounds of voting, making him the first IAEA chief from Asia.
"I am very pleased with this support," Amano told journalists after the final vote, adding that as the next director general he will do his utmost to enhance the welfare of human beings, ensure sustainable development through the peaceful use of nuclear energy and try to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons.