July 26 (SeeNews) - The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has appointed Romanian diplomat Cornel Feruta as interim director general, it said.
"As a consequence of the recent passing away of Director General Yukiya Amano, and in order to ensure the orderly and smooth functioning of the Agency, the Board of Governors has decided to designate Mr Cornel Feruta as acting Director General, until a Director General assumes office," IAEA said in a statement on Thursday.
Feruta, a former director general for political affairs in the Romanian foreign ministry, and for a short period a chief of staff to Romania's prime minister, previously held the position of assistant director-general and chief coordinator at the IAEA, which he joined in September 2013.
Yukiya Amano died at the age of 72 on July 22. His mandate had to expire in 2021.