G8 leaves US free hand to choose Wolfowitz successor
Afp, Potsdam, Germany
Group of Eight finance ministers yesterday left the United States a free hand in choosing a successor to Paul Wolfowitz as head of the World Bank, apparently to avoid transatlantic friction on the matter. Ministers from Britain, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Russia and the United States signalled during a two-day meeting here that they would not challenge a tradition according to which the United States appoints an American citizen as the bank's president. In return, Europe traditionally names the head of the bank's sister organisation, the International Monetary Fund. France would not "seek to profit from the unfortunate events" at the World Bank "to alter the balance of power that arose from the Bretton Woods agreement", which gave birth to the two institutions in the late 1940s, a G8 source told AFP here. It would not be "appropriate" for France "to get involved in a battle with the US on the matter," the source said. Nevertheless, longer term changes could not be ruled out "within the framework of a necessary reform of the World Bank," the source continued. Earlier during the talks on the shores of Lake Schwielowsee near Potsdam, the German and Japanese finance ministers, Peer Steinbrueck and Koji Omi, said they too would not object to Washington's right to choose Wolfowitz's successor. Steinbrueck, the meeting host, said it was "probably best in this situation to stick to existing procedures." US Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, who was absent in Potsdam, will oversee the process to find a successor. He has not ruled out nominating a non-American, even if that looks unlikely. The ministers paid tribute to Wolfowitz, who resigned this week in a pay scandal at the institution, and cited his work in Africa. "We express our appreciation to World Bank President Paul Wolfowitz for his service to the bank and his commitment to responsible development and poverty reduction, particularly in Africa," they said in a statement. Wolfowitz, widely credited with raising Africa's profile in the bank's lending activities, agreed to leave his post on June 30 in the face of accusations he violated bank rules in arranging a promotion for his girlfriend, a bank employee. Wolfowitz consistently argued that he had acted in good faith.
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