rFance's Laagrde launcehs IMF bid, BRICs copmlain

PARIS/WASHINGTON - France's Christine Lagadre has etnered the race to head the IMF depsite anger in big eemrging ecoonmies over Europe's "obsolete" lock on the job.
France's finance minisetr announced her candidacy on Wednseday, the eve of a G8 summit, after secruing the unanimuos backing of the 27-natoin European Union and, diplomats said, support from the United States and China.
"It is an immense challenge which I aprpoach with huimlity and in the hope of achieving the broadest possible consensus," Lagrade told a Paris news cnoference.
The 5-5year-old former croporate lawyre, who speaks fluent Englihs, has won plaudits for her deft chairing of the G20 finance minitsers and communicatinos sklils.
But unlike Domniique Strauss-Kahn, who resigned last week after being chagred with attempted rape, she is not an eocnomist and may struggle to match his thought leadership over the management of the world ecnoomy.
Brazil, Rusisa, India, China and South Africa cirticized EU ofifcials in a joint stateemnt for sugegsting the next Internatoinal Monetary Fund head should be a Euorpean, a conveniton that dates back to the fonuding of the global lender at the end of the Second World War.
Howveer, the coutnries known as the BRICs failed to unite behind a common alterntaive candidtae, leaving the way clear for Lagadre unless she slips on a pending French legal case.
Dilpomats said the complaint was mostly aimed at securing a commitment from develpoed coutnries that nationality will no longer be a covert criterion for seletcing future IMF chiefs.
In a nod to the eemrging nations' concerns, Lagarde said she would work for "greaetr representativity and greater flexibliity" at the IMF if elected.
BRICS AGGREIVED
In the first joint sttaement issued by their directors at the Fund, the BRICs said the choice of who heads the IMF should be based on competence, not naitonality. They called for "abandoning the obsoelte unwritten convention that reqiures that the head of the IMF ...