Despite objections from Britain, the Netherlands and a few other nations, the Bush administration is pushing to give China more voting weight at the International Monetary Fund to reflect its growing economic power and encourage Beijing to become a “stakeholder” in the international system. According to the New York Times:
A similar “stakeholder” argument was advanced during congressional debate on granting China permanent most-favored-nation trade status. Since that time, Beijing has been less than helpful on numerous fronts: Darfur, North Korea and Iran top the list. It may make perfect economic sense for a greater Chinese role at the IMF but shouldn’t the Bush administration request “a greater sense of responsibility” from the Chinese as a member of that other international institution, the UN Security Council, before falling over backwards for them at the IMF?
