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BRUSSELS: Paul Wolfowitz, the controversial US nominee who has already been elected unanimously to run the World Bank, has promised to keep the institution "truly multinational".
Appearing before European Union (EU) governors of the World Bank before his endorsement, Wolfowitz pledged to give the EU a regular say in the running of the world's leading development institution. But he fell short of endorsing a French proposal to have a European as his deputy.
After auditioning Wolfowitz for two hours, Agnes van Ardenne, the Dutch development minister, said: "We have seen that he is very much committed to the mission of the World Bank as a multilateral institution and this removes a lot of our concerns."
Her views were echoed by other EU officials, who also expressed optimism that Wolfowitz, the intellectual architect of the war in Iraq, would be able to distance himself from the administration of George W. Bush once in his new job.
Wolfowitz was later officially elected, following a vote among the 24-member executive board of the World Bank.
Concerning future appointments to the bank, he added: "I intend to look for the best talent from all around the world and I look forward to having a truly multinational senior staff."
Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul, the German development minister, said she had also been encouraged by Wolfowitz's views on whether the bank should offer more grants as opposed to loans.
This longstanding US demand has in the past caused friction with Europeans who want the bank to retain a lending role that gives it financial independence from governments.
She said the US nominee appeared willing to maintain a "good balance" between the two financial instruments.
Wolfowitz told his EU audience that, ideally, he would have wanted an additional year to prepare for his new responsibilities at the World Bank. De Decker added: "Like anybody who is starting a new job, he will have to adapt to that job - I am sure that he will adapt. It seems that he has always put the accent on efficiency and I certainly think he can bring more efficiency to development aid."
'Concerning the appointment of a new deputy to Wolfowitz, a senior French official insisted ... that Paris had not formally proposed anybody for such a job.
Some reports have suggested the French government wants to put forward either Jean-Pierre Jouyet, the head of the Paris Club of creditor nations, or Jean-Pierre Landau, a former director of the International Monetary Fund and the author of a French report on a possible international tax to fund development aid.
"What we really want is not a French nominee but a strong European presence at the bank," the official said.
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