Iran on Tuesday welcomed a decision made by the International Atomic Energy Agency's (IAEA) Board of Governors to reelect Mohamed ElBaradei as chief for a third term, the official IRNA news agency reported.

"The Islamic Republic as a member state of the Non-Aligned Movement and G77 (the Group of 77) welcomes the Board of Governor's decision," Sirus Naseri, Iran's delegate to the IAEA, was quoted as saying in Vienna, Austria.

Naseri said ElBaradei was reelected with consensus of all of the IAEA's 35-nation Board of Governors.

The IAEA Board of Governors on Monday approved ElBaradei's third four-year term, which has to be passed by the IAEA General Assembly in September.

ElBaradei, an Egyptian born in 1942, has won an admirable reputation among most member states of the IAEA since he was appointed to be chief of the agency eight years ago.

ElBaradei's third term was, however, opposed by the United States due to his disobedience to Washington on Tehran and Pyongyang nuclear files. The United States changed its mind after ElBaradei conferred with US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice on June 9.

Source: Xinhua