Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership

  • On November 15, 15 countries solidified their participation in the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). 
  • Even as India opted to stay out after walking out of discussions last year, the new trading bloc has made it clear that the door will remain open for India to return to the negotiating table.
RCEP
  • The initiative to establish RCEP was taken by the member­-states of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in 2011.
  • RCEP members accounted for about 30% of world output and population and 28% of world trade. 
  • RCEP was originally being negotiated between 16 countries — ASEAN members and countries with which they have free trade agreements (FTAs), namely Australia, China, Korea, Japan, New Zealand and India.
  • The purpose of RCEP was to make it easier for products and services of each of these countries to be available across this region. 
  • Negotiations to chart out this deal had been on since 2013, and India was expected to be a signatory until its decision last November. 
INDIA'S CONCERNS
  • On November 4, 2019, India decided to exit discussions over “significant outstanding issues”. 
  • According to a government official, India had been “consistently” raising “fundamental issues” and concerns throughout the negotiations and was prompted to take this stand as they had not been resolved by the deadline to commit to signing the deal. 
  • Its decision was to safeguard the interests of industries like agriculture and dairy and to give an advantage to the country’s services sector. 

SOURCE: IE

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