Brussels, 10/07/2007 (Agence Europe) - The former French finance minister, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, is the European Union candidate for General Director of the International Monetary Fund (IMF). Flying in the face of expectations, the ECOFIN Council agreed, on Tuesday, on the candidate to replace Rodrigo Rato in October (who has resigned). Put forward by Nicolas Sarkozy, the man who failed to win the French Socialist Party's backing to stand in the French presidential elections in May 2007 won the support of the EU27 for the IMF post. At a press conference Portuguese Finance Minister Fernando Teixeira dos Santos welcomed the decision, describing Dominique Strauss-Kahn as being eminently qualified with huge technical experience. French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde said it was a very encouraging decision for Europe, welcoming the EU's determination to come up with a candidate early. She said his calibre, international experience and role in the Eurogroup had enabled him to rally support from his former colleagues, the EU's finance ministers. Other suggestions have been circulating recently, like Marek Belka and Tommaso Padoa-Schioppa. Poland said it was prepared to support the former Polish prime minister but seems to have changed its mind, whereas the current Italian finance minister had let it be known that he was only canvassing for Gordon Brown to take over as head of the IMF's International Monetary and Finance Committee.
Regularly criticised for lack of transparency, the selection process ensures the control of the US and the EU over the Bretton-Woods institutions (the IMF and the World Bank), sharing out the top jobs among themselves (the World Bank is currently headed by US national Robert Zoellick). If this tradition is to be challenged, it has to be for both institutions at the same time, argued Lagarde. At a separate press conference, UK Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling was more reserved, describing Dominique Strauss-Kahn's candidacy as 'credible' but wanting to see other candidates. In an interview with the Guardian newspaper on the same day, he said that the position should be filled through a much more open process, adding that he didn't think that Europe could simply say 'It's our job and we are not prepared to discuss it with anyone.' (ab)