Carl Icahn, the US investor whose net worth is estimated at $14 billion, today succeeded in forcing the board of Motorola to yield to all his demands that he hopes will trigger a recovery at the world's third largest mobile phone maker.

Motorola, whose second biggest shareholder is Mr Icahn with a 6.4 per cent stake, today said that it was appointing Keith Meister, the 34 year old who runs one of Mr Icahn's $8 billion investment trusts, as non-executive.

It also said it would later nominate William Hambrecht to the Motorola board at its annual general meeting, believed to be in a month.

The two appointments draw to a close an 18-month fight between Mr Icahn and the Motorola board which has seen the mobile phone company lose its chief executive.

Two weeks ago, Mr Icahn also managed to force the Motorola board to agree to split the company into two separate floated entities - one containing the networks business and the other holding its mobile phone handset-making arm.

Just prior to the demerger announcement, Mr Icahn had said: ''We're not interested unless Meister is on there.''

A spokesman for Motorola would not be drawn today on whether the two new Icahn executives would eventually serve on the mobile phones business board when it splits at some point next year.

However, it is understood that Mr Meister and Mr Hambrecht are not being considered for the vacant role of chief executive of the new group.

Earlier today, Motorola issued a statement saying: "As part of the settlement agreement, all pending litigation between Motorola and Carl Icahn will be dismissed. In addition, Motorola has agreed to seek input from Mr Icahn in connection with significant matters regarding the intended separation of the Mobile Devices business, including the search for a new chief executive to head the Mobile Devices business. In addition Messrs. Hambrecht and Meister may communicate with Mr Icahn, subject to certain confidentiality restrictions, regarding Board activities of Motorola, including with respect to the intended separation of the company into two independent businesses."

Greg Brown, the new chief executive of Motorola whose abilities have been publicly questioned in the past by Mr Icahn, said: "We are pleased to have reached this agreement with Carl Icahn. We look forward to continuing the process we announced on March 26 to create two independent publicly-traded companies and we are pleased to avoid a costly and distracting proxy contest.”

Motorola is the world's third-biggest mobile phone handset maker, behind Nokia and Samsung.

Its market share and stock price have tumbled over the past year after the group failed to produce another handset to match its best-selling Razr phone.

The company sold 12.2 per cent of all mobile phones worldwide in the last quarter of 2007, compared with 40 per cent for Nokia and 14 per cent for Samsung, according to IDC, the technology data specialist.

Mr Icahn has been agitating for change at Motorola for the past 18 months and succeeded in ousting Ed Zander, its chief executive, in January and forcing the board to conduct a strategic review.

Motorola shares rose 2 per cent earlier today to $9.86 each.

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