Kanda, President of the ADB, Says "To Be Discussed in the Future"
The Yomiuri Shimbun reported on May 4 that the U.S. government has demanded the Asian Development Bank (ADB) end its loans to China.
According to the report, U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Besant last month requested that Masato Kanda, President of the ADB, who was visiting the United States at the time, take concrete measures toward ending China's borrowing from the institution.
The Yomiuri Shimbun analyzed that the U.S. government appears to believe it is inappropriate for China, now a major economic power, to receive ADB loans intended to support developing countries.
This move is interpreted as an effort to pressure China amid ongoing U.S.-China tensions triggered by the tariff war initiated under the Donald Trump administration.
However, President Kanda told a Yomiuri Shimbun reporter in Milan, Italy, on May 2 (local time) while attending the ADB Annual Meeting, "Nothing has been decided yet," adding, "This will be discussed in the future."
He indicated that, in order to end ADB loans to China, it is important to form a consensus not only between the United States and China but also among all shareholder countries.
The ADB is an international financial institution established in 1966 under Japan's leadership to promote development and cooperation among developing countries in the Asia-Pacific region.
Japan holds the highest share of capital at 15.6%, tied with the United States, followed by China (6.4%), India (6.3%), Australia (5.8%), Indonesia (5.4%), Canada (5.2%), and South Korea (5.0%).
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