The “snowball effect” that Australian foreign policy and development experts predicted would happen as a result of the United Kingdom’s decision to sign on as founding member of the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank may have already kicked in.
Shortly after Britain’s surprise announcement, Italy, France and Germany have reportedly agreed to join the $100 billion infrastructure bank proposed by Chinese President Xi Jinping in 2013 to bridge the infrastructure and general development financing gap in the Asia-Pacific region, according to the Financial Times.
The United States is believed to have lobbied hard to keep its allies from joining the China-led infrastructure bank, and this decision from four influential European nations may eliminate any concerns other holdouts may have from supporting the bank.