November 13, 2018
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a mega regional free trade agreement being negotiated by 16 countries
So far six ministerials, seven Inter-Sessional ministerials and 24 rounds of Trade Negotiating Committee at technical level have been held
On sidelines of the RCEP, India’s Commerce Minister held meetings with counterparts from Singapore, China, Japan and New Zealand
Indian Government has accorded special importance to improving diplomatic and trade relations with its extended neighbourhood
India’s Minister for Commerce and Industry, Suresh Prabhu, led the Indian delegation to the 7th RCEP Inter-Sessional Ministerial meeting in Singapore over November 12-13. The meet was held in preparation for the 2nd RCEP Leaders Summit to be held on November 14 in Singapore in which Prime Minister of India will be participating. The Minister for Trade and Industry of Singapore, Chan Chun Sing, was the Chair of the meeting as Singapore is leading Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) this year.
The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) is a mega regional free trade agreement being negotiated by 16 countries, comprising 10 ASEAN countries (Brunei, Cambodia, Indonesia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand and Vietnam) plus six ASEAN FTA partners, namely Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea and New Zealand. So far six ministerials, seven Inter-Sessional ministerials and 24 rounds of the Trade Negotiating Committee at the technical level have been held.
The participating ministers took stock of the state of negotiations across various chapters. Meanwhile, chair of the Trade Negotiating Committee, Pak Iman Pambagyo, made a detailed presentation on the state of play of RCEP negotiations. Negotiations so far have led to successful conclusion of 5 chapters this year alone, taking the total to 7 chapters, including Economic and Technical Cooperation; Small and Medium Enterprises; Customs Procedures and Trade Facilitation; and Government Procurement.
On the sidelines of the RCEP, Commerce Minister held bilateral meetings with his counterparts from Singapore, China, Japan and New Zealand. Mr Prabhu discussed bilateral issues as well as the progress in RCEP negotiations. He also had meetings with Trade Ministers of South Korea, Indonesia, Cambodia, Malaysia, Australia and Philippines. Indian Government has accorded special importance to improving diplomatic and trade relations in its extended neighbourhood and ASEAN has come up as a critical zone.