Exclusive With New U.N. Atomic Agency Chief Makes Waves

The new head of the United Nations nuclear watchdog chose to give Reuters his first interview on being appointed to his sensitive role. Japan’s Yukiya Amano made the startling comment that he did not see any hard evidence Iran was trying to develop nuclear weapons, a distinctly different tack from his predecessor, Mohamed ElBaradei, who said last month that it was his gut instinct that Tehran was seeking to develop atomic arms. The interview on July 3 was widely cited. Western efforts to halt Iran’s nuclear programme are a major factor for energy markets.