WASHINGTON - PRESIDENT Barack Obama has picked a career diplomat to be US ambassador to the UN nuclear watchdog agency amid growing worries about North Korea and Iran's atomic drives the White House said on Friday.

Mr Obama plans to nominate Glyn Davis to be the US envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) headquarters in Vienna, his press office said in a statement.

Mr Davies served until June 2009 as principal deputy assistant secretary of state for East Asian and Pacific Affairs.

He has also held US diplomatic posts focused on human rights, European affairs, the Group of Eight, and served in London and on the US National Security Council staff.

The nomination requires confirmation by the US Senate. -- AFP