US Features

Bush nominates tough diplomat for World Bank

By Tony Czuczka May 31, 2007, 2:08 GMT

Washington - Former deputy secretary of state Robert Zoellick, tapped by US President George W Bush to head the World Bank, has a reputation as a hard-nosed defender of US economic and strategic interests.

U.S. President George W. Bush (C) introduces former U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Robert Zoellick (L) as his choice to be the next World Bank president, at the White House in Washington, D.C. on 30 May 2007. At the right is U.S. Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson. Zoellick, 53, would succeed Paul Wolfowitz, who is stepping down 30 June after a special bank panel found that he broke bank rules when he arranged a compensation package for his girlfriend, Shaha Riza, a bank employee. EPA/ROGER WOLLENBERG / POOLNow, Zoellick needs other nations' approval to lead the anti- poverty agency for a five-year term and restore morale, after a divisive uproar over Paul Wolfowitz, who will quit as World Bank president on June 30. The World Bank's 24-member board, which represents its 185 member countries, said Wednesday that it 'looks forward to holding discussions with Mr Zoellick' in a selection process that remains open to candidates from other countries. While Wolfowitz was forced out partly over his role in the Iraq war and a reliance on aides with links to the Bush administration, Zoellick - currently a senior executive at Goldman Sachs Group - carries baggage of his own. In 1998, he signed a letter that urged then-president Bill Clinton to oust Saddam Hussein from power in Iraq by military force if necessary, and rejected 'a misguided insistence on unanimity in the UN Security Council.' The other 17 signers included 'neoconservatives' who rose to prominence after Bush won office - Wolfowitz, former US defence secretary Donald Rumsfeld and current UN Ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad. Critics accuse Zoellick, 53, of strong-arm tactics as the chief US trade negotiator during Bush's first term from 2001 to 2005. He helped launch the Doha round of world trade talks in 2001, a month after the September 11 attacks on the US. But he also pushed for separate deals with nations including Morocco, Chile and Central American countries to open their markets to the US. Columbia University trade economist Jagdish Bhagwati and aid groups voiced concern that Zoellick's background might colour his approach to helping the poor. 'He's damaged the poor countries' cause, in my opinion,' Bhagwati said in a telephone interview. 'He's someone who uses American power to advance American interests, as far as trade is concerned.' Zoellick has worked on US relations with China, Latin American debt relief and peace efforts for Darfur. As a US negotiator, he helped guide Germany's 1990 reunification, which may help him win the German vote on the World Bank's board. After Bush introduced him Wednesday as a 'a committed internationalist,' Zoellick pledged to work with World Bank staff and consult with both donor governments and the developing countries that borrow from the bank. 'We need to put yesterday's discord behind us and to focus on the future together,' Zoellick said. Berlin helped lead the charge to oust Wolfowitz, and German Development Minister Heidemarie Wieczorek-Zeul on Wednesday called Zoellick 'a good candidate with great international experience.' Brazil and Mexico also expressed support. 'I certainly respect very much Mr Zoellick,' European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso said in Brussels. Zoellick's immediate task would be to gain confidence among the bank's thousands of staffers and its senior managers, many of whom openly called for Wolfowitz's resignation after he became entangled in a scandal over a pay raise he arranged for his girlfriend. European powers such as Germany accused Wolfowitz, a former Pentagon official and leading planner of the Iraq war, of trying to keep member governments out of the loop on policy decisions. The United States is the World Bank's biggest donor. By tradition, a US citizen heads the bank, and a European leads the International Monetary Fund, a sister agency based across the street in Washington. But in an unusual move on the eve of Zoellick's nomination, the World Bank's board stressed that any country can propose a candidate until June 15 and issued a list of job qualifications, including 'political objectivity and independence.' Bush appears to be gambling on an overriding desire among other key countries to end the World Bank's festering leadership crisis. Still, the US monopoly on the top job is widely viewed as outdated. 'It is necessary that that election process can reflect the new reality of the world,' Brazilian Finance Minister Guido Mantega said Wednesday. © 2007 dpa - Deutsche Presse-Agentur

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LanceMay 31st, 2007 - 04:25:52

This article is so misleading,this person is a total jerk and will do nothing more than push more reconstruction funds for Iraq for Bush.
To bad,so sad that they can not find someone with a decent attitude to run the world bank,so far nothing but Bushs kiss behind folks...
Yeah lets get more world bank funding for Iraq,the rest of the needy world can forget it.
This man has a world renown reputation for flying off the handle at almost nothing,if we don't get an ex liar for the Iraq war,we get someone that loves a war in the board room.

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PeterMay 31st, 2007 - 04:43:37

NO ONE that Bush recommends can be respected or trusted (period).

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WORLD BANKMay 31st, 2007 - 09:10:59

World bank is nothing but an instituition to enslave the less developed nations economically, so this kind of diplomat is necessary. He will suck the blood out of these poor, underdeveloped nations.

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raviMay 31st, 2007 - 11:33:11

How can someone not found to be fit for the U.S Treasury Secretary job be appointed as head of an international organization of World Bank's repute? It seems that people who are rejects (including Mr. Wolfowitz who made an awful mess of Iraq and would have had to leave anyway) are handed out the world bank job as cushy high profile retirement positions.

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SteveMay 31st, 2007 - 14:23:53

World bank is the new Slave Trade Org. They 'fund' developments and then control the the poor countries using their corrupt politicians and debt.

All in the name of dollar!

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Close the 'world bank'May 31st, 2007 - 15:31:13

For once I agree with the idiotic moonbats. I think we should close the whole thing down and keep our money from countries that just default on their loans anyway.

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The Moonbats Are Right (no left)Jun 1st, 2007 - 17:05:12

We should recognize the problem behind the World Bank (and WTO and IMF), that is they are a front for the American megacorporations that are intent on world hegemony. American multi-nationals for whom these entities work (that is why there is always an American leader for the WB) are for profit at all cost, whether it be backing right wing fascist dictatorships (as in S. America in the 80's) or starting wars for oil (as in Iraq).

They are for freedom to dominate the world labor market. They are anti-worker, anti-environment and anti-democratic by nature. It is time to disassemble the WB, the WTO, IMF and 'free trade' agreements. It is time to replace them with socially responsible organizations that serve the masses.

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