Two weeks after proposing that Asia must assume a "more proactive role" in correcting weaknesses in the international monetary system, Asian Development Bank (ADB) president Haruhiko Kuroda is now being mentioned as a potential candidate for the top position at the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

Mr Kuroda's name, according to reports on Tuesday, was among a few that surfaced as the Washington-based IMF struggled with the prospect of a succession crisis with its current managing director, Dominique Strauss-Kahn, confronting growing pressure to give up his position.

Mr Strauss-Kahn was arrested in New York Saturday on a charge of sexual assault on a chambermaid at the upscale hotel where he was staying. A New York judge has ordered him jailed without bail.

While a grand jury deliberates on indicting him, he is ordered to stay in a cell at New York's Rikers Island. He is due to appear in court again on Friday, reports said.

The news has been greeted with shock at the IMF, which was in the middle of discussions with finance officials of Europe on a proposed bailout package for financially embattled Greece which could also impact on the stability of the euro zone, according to reports.

DIFFERENT VIEWPOINTS

The increasingly likely departure of the managing director has raised questions about who would be best to continue the IMF's involvement in the rescue programs for Greece and Ireland, the Financial Times said.

"Opinions differ," said the Financial Times, "among IMF-watchers on whether a European or non-European would have more credibility at this point, but there seems general consensus that political heft will be more important than nationality."

After being initially tightlipped, some European officials have come out with comments suggesting that Mr Strauss-Kahn quit.

The IMF chief should now consider resigning owing to the severity of the charges and the likelihood of a long legal battle, the Washington Post quoted the finance ministers of Austria and Spain as saying Tuesday.

Anticipating that Mr Strauss-Kahn would step down, analysts and finance officials have started talking about possible succession scenarios at the IMF.

LAGARDE IS FRONTRUNNER

France's Finance Minister Christine Lagarde is seen as a frontrunner for the position. However, there also reports that Asian nations could wield greater influence, or even act as a "swing vote", in the selection process.

By tradition, the IMF top position goes to a nominee from Europe, while that at the World Bank goes to a US candidate. The World Bank and the IMF were set up in 1945 under the Bretton Woods Agreement among Allied nations with their key tasks being the formulation and implementation of strategies for the recovery of the world economy from the ravages of the Second World War.

Viewed as a move toward an increased role for Asians in the IMF, the election to a deputy managing director position was raised as a possibility on Tuesday for China's top official at the institution, Zhu Min, according to a Wall Street Journal report.

Mr. Zhu, said the report, was considered not experienced enough for the position of managing director and was not expected to rise further than to a deputy managing director.

In Beijing, a spokesperson at the Foreign Ministry told journalists that the IMF leadership selection should be "based on fairness, transparency, and merit."

The ADB's Mr Kuroda, at the May 4-7 annual governors' meeting of the Manila-based multilateral development institution, said that with "an economically strong, export-dependent Asia that is experiencing an inundation of inward investment," the region should now "play a more proactive role" in promoting global monetary and financial stability.

Mr Kuroda's chances of getting the top IMF slot, however, may not be that bright although he could "likely get some support," said the Wall Street Journal report that also mentioned his interest in a third term at the ADB.

SINGAPORE'S THARMAN

Another Asian mentioned as a possible contender for the IMF top slot was Singapore's Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam, who now heads the IMF's policy-making committee.

A respected economist from South Korea, SaKong Il, was also in the list of possible contenders from Asia, along with the deputy chairman of India's Planning Commission, Montek Singh Ahluwalia.

Analysts see the Asians cited as possible nominees for the position as slim, however, for various reasons, including the age of the personalities mentioned (the IMF managing director is required to retire at age 70) and the role played by the economies they represent.

Still, as the Financial Times quotes Jacob Funk Kirkegaard of the Peterson Institute in Washington as saying, "between a European political heavyweight like Lagarde and a non-European heavyweight like Tharman with united emerging market backing, the latter may be a better choice."