BY VOA CHINESE
A Canadian public relations manager of a development bank established in China on Wednesday （ June 14 ） announced his resignation in a statement and accused the bank of being led by “ Communist Party agent ”, and stated that Becoming a member of the bank is not in the interest of Canada.
Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank （Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank）（AIIB） confirmed in an email that Bob Picard（Bob Pickard） resigned as Director General of Global Communications And refuted his criticism that his statement was unfounded.
The Asian Investment Bank is regarded by some as a Chinese competitor of the World Bank and the Asian Development Bank （ Asian Development Bank）. The Asian Investment Bank was established in 2016 to provide funding for railways and other infrastructure. It has 106 member government members, including most Asian countries and Australia, Canada, Russia, France and the United Kingdom. Japan and the United States are not member states.
Picard, who has been working in the Asian Investment Bank for 15 months, stated in a statement on Twitter that his resignation is his only option as a “ patriotic Canadian ”. He complained that the bank was dominated by “ Communist agent ”, and they “ were like the internal KGB or Gestapo or Stasi”—<TAG1>. The three names refer to the Soviet Union, Nazi Germany and the secret police of East Germany in the communist era.
The Beijing-based bank “ has one of the most toxic cultures imaginable, ” Picard wrote. “I don’t think that the membership of the AIIB is in the interest of our country. ”
When Picard resigned, the ruling Communist leader Xi Jinping was strengthening control of the Chinese government and promoting the alignment of private companies with the party’s development plan.
“ Mr. Picard’s recent public comments and description of the bank are unfounded and disappointing. ” AIIB said in an email. The email also said that during his tenure, the AIIB “ supported him and empowered him ”.
“ We are proud of our multilateral mission and having a diverse international team representing 65 different nationalities. ” AIIB said.
The governor of the Asian Investment Bank, Jin Liqun, is Chinese. The vice president includes an Englishman, a Russian, an Indian and a German.
Picard said he was “ worried about my safety ”, so he did not issue his resignation announcement until he arrived in Japan.
Picard did not disclose any details. He did not immediately reply to the email sent to the address on his personal website.
The governments of the United States and other countries have warned their citizens that the risk of arbitrary detention or being prevented from leaving China increases.
The AIIB and China’s billion-dollar “ initiative along the way is two separate projects. The purpose of ” along the way “ is to build ports, railways and other Trade-related infrastructure.
According to the bank’s 2022 financial statements, the Asian Investment Bank has $47.4 billion in assets.
（ This article is based on the Associated Press report. ）
