IAEA chief nominations should be submitted by September 5

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said it had fixed the timetable for the election of a new director general following the death of Yukiya Amano two weeks ago.

Member states decided that nominations would be received until September 5, the UN nuclear watchdog said following a special meeting of its board of governors in Vienna.

"The Board expects to appoint a director general in October 2019 and, in any case, envisages that the person appointed will assume office no later than 1 January 2020," the AFP cited the statement as saying.

At another special meeting last week, the IAEA elected Romanian diplomat Cornel Feruta as its acting director general until a permanent successor is elected "in order to ensure the orderly and smooth functioning of the Agency".