BISHKEK (24.kg news agency) – Kyrgyzstan is accepted as the 37^th founder of the Asian Bank of Infrastructure Investment (AIIB) on the basis of consensus. The following negotiations on establishment of AIIB is scheduled for the end of April 2015.

AIIB is an international financial institution proposed by the government of China. The purpose of the multilateral development bank is to provide finance to infrastructure projects in the Asia region. AIIB is regarded by some as a rival for the IMF, the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which are regarded as dominated by developed countries like the United States or Japan in the case of ADB.

As of 14 April 2015, there are 50 Prospective Founding Members (PFM) and 7 countries applying for PFM. Hong Kong joins the delegation of China in the negotiations. Belgium, Canada, and Ukraine are considering joining the AIIB. Colombia, Japan, and the United States have no immediate intention to participate. North Korea and Taiwan were rejected by China to join as a PFM. Taiwan is applying for ordinary member to join AIIB.

The United States is reported to have used diplomatic pressure to try and prevent key allies, such as Australia, from joining the bank, and expressed disappointment when others, such as Britain, joined. Three other European nations – Germany, France and Italy – soon followed Britain’s decision to join the AIIB. Moreover, Masato Kitera, Tokyo’s envoy in Beijing, stated previously that Japan might join the AIIB.