UN Secretary General is to appoint human rights chief Sergio Vieira de Mello his special representative in post-war Iraq.
The new UN special representative already has a proven reputation for nation-building, after running East Timor for two and a half years.
He is the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, a post he retains, and will serve in Iraq for four months.
The UN Security Council asked Mr Annan to appoint a special representative after it lifted 13-year-old economic sanctions against Iraq on Thursday and endorsed wide-ranging powers for the US-led coalition.