China has won the United States' blessing for its long-standing effort to become a member of the Inter-American Development Bank, the two countries said on Friday in a joint statement.
"The United States supports China's endeavour to join the IADB," the countries said in a statement summing up the annual meeting of the US-China Joint Economic Committee, which was held on Thursday.
The pledge of support helps pave the way for China to gain membership in one of the premier economic clubs operating in Latin America, where China's fast-growing appetite for raw materials makes it an important player.
In the past, the United States, which wields effective veto power over new IADB entrants, has opposed membership for countries that are recipients of World Bank aid. Membership in the IADB would help China, which asked for membership in 1989, to cement trade ties and allow it to compete for bank development contracts in the region.
Chinese central bank Governor Zhou Xiaochuan was in talks at the Washington-based lender on Friday that could lay the groundwork for movement on the issue at the IADB's annual meeting in Okinawa, Japan, in March. Topics relating to Asia are expected to be a focus at the annual gathering.
Washington holds effective veto power over China's bid because it has a 30 percent share of the bank's votes and new members must by approved by 75 percent.
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