The new face of the IAEA

George Jahn has a worthwhile piece today that looks at the two primary candidates running the upcoming election to become the new head of the IAEA. Japan's Yukiya Amano is described as a "low-key Japanese career diplomat" who "would be expected to depoliticize the agency.  His primary opposition is South Africa's Samad Minty who is a "former anti-apartheid activist" that "promises a more hands-on approach to mediating nuclear crises."  Regardless the winner, the role, or lack thereof, the IAEA takes in a variety of nuclear issues will be important.  In the interim, it will be interesting to watch the global response to the IAEA's call for an 11% increase in their budget despite the global recession.  The IAEA fight for funding has always been a tough one and will certainly could become more important as they may be needed, for example, to monitor the host of countries looking enviously at nuclear power.  Should Minty win, his reference to being a consensus creator could easily be used in efforts to resolve a consensus on Iran.  That being said, any capabilities the IAEA can provide are ultimately tempered by what Iran might allow them do within their sovereignty.