U.S. Gets Little Support in its Opposition to AIIB
When China rolled out the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank last October, the stiff resistance from the U.S. (as well as Japan) took the world by surprise. This opposition notwithstanding, AIIB, has so far picked up 27 regional members and seven non-regional members, including the U.K., Germany, France and Italy. In addition, there was a virtual avalanche of applications before the March deadline for founding membership, which included another 23 countries that are currently under consideration. This overwhelming positive response to the AIIB from countries across the globe was perhaps more than China initially anticipated.
Why did the U.S. opposition not convince even its traditional allies to steer clear? Part of the reason was a serious misreading of global sentiments on this matter.
