East Timor says it has begun the process of joining the Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB), the Portuguese news agency Lusa reports.

The Council of Ministers of East Timor authorised the Ministry of Finance to start the process this week but there is no time frame for its completion.

The AIIB is a Chinese-led bank that was officially established in December last year and commenced business in January. The bank has an authorised capital of US$100 billion and prioritises investment in energy, transportation, rural infrastructure, environmental protection and logistics.

Brazil and Portugal are among the AIIB’s 57 founding members.