Washington’s response to China’s creation of an Asia Infrastructure Investment Bank has been nothing short of lamentable. Its attempt to stymie the initiative by persuading other western nations to boycott the bank has backfired. Britain rightly decided it was better to try to influence the AIIB from the inside. Other countries, from Germany to South Korea, have followed suit.
The happy and surprised reaction in Beijing shows that the AIIB is about much more than a bank. At stake is nothing less than the future of the global economic system embodied in the Bretton Woods institutions that took shape after 1945. Emerging countries, including China, are woefully under-represented in these bodies. In a world far less dominated by the US and Europe, the postwar financial order is no longer fit for purpose.
If Washington has been caught flat-footed over the AIIB, it has a chance to make amends. Concluding the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a 12-nation “next generation” trade pact, would be a good start. That would show that the US remains committed to Asia and is willing to give better access to its