The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP; /ˈɑËrsÉ›p/ AR-sep) is a free trade agreement between the Asia-Pacific states of Australia, Brunei, Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, South Korea, Thailand and Vietnam. Heads of State and Government from 15 Asia-Pacific countries signed the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement on 15 November 2020, nearly eight years to the day after negotiations on the Trade and Investment Agreement began. Provisions that have already been noted include the omission of investor-state dispute settlement at this stage, as well as how the review process is handled for future company updates. Nor does the agreement contain any chapters on the environment or labour that have become common in trade policy. Up to 15 countries have signed the RCEP agreement, which is billed as the world`s largest trade agreement. RCEP members are the 10 ASEAN bloc countries (Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, Brunei, Vietnam, Laos, Myanmar and Cambodia) and 5 FTA partners – China, Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand. The start of RCEP negotiations was with great fanfare, given the overlap of members between the two agreements, as well as the economic heavyweights who were in one process but not the other. The United States was then in the TPP, while China and India were among the founding members of the RCEP. Australia, Japan and New Zealand have been involved in both, as have some of the ASEAN member states. None of the South American countries involved in the TPP were part of RCEP. A key issue raised in both cases is that the economic forces and challenges – as well as the level of development – of the countries involved in these agreements vary widely. Both agreements have been put at stake as potential pathways for the development of a comprehensive free trade area, known as the Asia-Pacific Free Trade Area (FTAAP), which would encompass the 21 economies that are part of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum.
He also explained that even during negotiations with RCEP member states, India had focused on disruptions to domestic production and producers, rather than what it meant for consumers. “Now this whole discussion has been overshadowed by the border conflict with China. In this case, I would say that politics was an important factor in our decision to stay out of RCEP,” Kathuria added. .
