Three major nations absent as China launches World Bank rival in Asia
Australia, Indonesia and South Korea skipped the launch of a China-backed Asian infrastructure bank on Friday as the United States said it had concerns about the new rival to Western-dominated multilateral lenders.
China’s $50 billion Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) is seen as a challenge to the World Bank and Asian Development Bank, both multilateral lenders that count Washington and its allies as their biggest financial backers.
Japan, China’s main rival in Asia and which dominates the $164 billion Asian Development Bank along with the United States, was also not present, but it was not expected to be.
However, State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said: “Secretary Kerry has made clear directly to the Chinese as well as to other partners that we welcome the idea of an infrastructure bank for Asia but we strongly urge that it meet international standards of governance and transparency.We have concerns about the ambiguous nature of the AIIB proposal as it currently stands, that we have also expressed publicly.”
Source: Reuters-Three major nations absent as China launches World Bank rival in Asia
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