SEOUL-- South Korea was elected as the next chair of the Board of Governors of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) on Monday for the first time since it joined the U.N. nuclear watchdog in 1957.
The 35-member IAEA board reached the decision by consensus at a meeting held in Vienna, the foreign ministry said in a press release.
Shin Chae-hyun, South Korean ambassador to Austria and the Permanent Mission to the International Organizations in Vienna, will serve as the chair for a one-year term until September 2022.
It marks the first time the country has assumed the chairmanship at the IAEA board, which is in charge of making policy, financial and other recommendations to the IAEA's General Conference, its decision-making body.
The board also approves nuclear safeguard agreements and the publication of the IAEA safety standards.
South Korea is among the 11 countries, including Colombia, the Czech Republic, Finland and Vietnam, that have newly been elected to the board for the 2021-22 period.
The foreign ministry said the election reflects Seoul's active contribution to the IAEA's activities for the peaceful use of nuclear energy as a leading nation in the non-proliferation field.
"The government will work to expand the country's involvement and contribution to key IAEA issues and further solidify the international community's support for North Korean nuclear issues, and peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," the ministry said.
Source: Yonhap News Agency