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Q77 (IAS/2016) International Relations & Global Affairs › International Organisations & Groupings › International trade regimes Official Key

The term Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership' often appears in the news in the context of the affairs of a group of countries known as

Result
Your answer: —  ·  Correct: B
Explanation

The correct answer is option B - ASEAN.

The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) was established by the leaders of 16 participating countries to broaden engagement among parties, building upon ASEAN's existing free trade agreements with six partners namely China, Republic of Korea, Japan, India, as well as Australia and New Zealand.[1] The RCEP was built upon the existing ASEAN+1 FTAs with the spirit to strengthen economic linkages and enhance trade and investment related activities.[1] This clearly demonstrates that RCEP is fundamentally associated with ASEAN and its partner countries, making it an ASEAN-centric initiative. The framework essentially consolidates and expands upon the multiple bilateral FTAs that ASEAN had with various partners into a single comprehensive regional agreement. Therefore, RCEP appears in news in the context of ASEAN affairs, not G20, SCO, or SAARC.

Sources
  1. [1] Indian Economy, Vivek Singh (7th ed. 2023-24) > Chapter 13: International Organizations > Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) > p. 394
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Don’t just practise – reverse-engineer the question. This panel shows where this PYQ came from (books / web), how the examiner broke it into hidden statements, and which nearby micro-concepts you were supposed to learn from it. Treat it like an autopsy of the question: what might have triggered it, which exact lines in the book matter, and what linked ideas you should carry forward to future questions.
Q. The term Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership' often appears in the news in the context of the affairs of a group of countries kno…
At a glance
Origin: From standard books Fairness: High fairness Books / CA: 10/10 · 0/10
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This is a classic 'News-to-Static' transition question. In 2016, RCEP was a hot current affair; today, it is a standard chapter in Economy books. The strategy is simple: for every trade acronym, identify the 'Anchor Organization' (here, ASEAN) immediately.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
Which group of countries is the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) associated with?
Origin: Direct from books Fairness: Straightforward Book-answerable
From standard books
Indian Economy, Vivek Singh (7th ed. 2023-24) > Chapter 13: International Organizations > Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) > p. 394
Presence: 5/5
“Countries in East Asia region have thriving trade and economic relations with each other through free trade agreements. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) has free trade agreements with six partners namely China (ACFTA), Republic of Korea (AKFTA), Japan (AJCEP), India (AIFTA) as well as Australia and New Zealand (AANZFTA). In order to broaden and deepen the engagement among parties and to enhance parties' participation in economic development of the region, the leaders of 16 participating countries established the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP). The RCEP was built upon the existing ASEAN+1 FTAs with the spirit to strengthen economic linkages and to enhance trade and investment related activities as well as to contribute to minimising development gap among the parties.”
Why this source?
  • Explicitly states RCEP was established by leaders of 16 participating countries in the East Asia region.
  • Says RCEP was built upon existing ASEAN+1 free trade agreements, linking it directly to ASEAN and its FTA partners.
  • Mentions the objective to strengthen economic linkages among parties in the region (context for association).
Indian Economy, Vivek Singh (7th ed. 2023-24) > Chapter 13: International Organizations > Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) > p. 395
Presence: 4/5
“The fact is India earlier had lower import duties/tariffs, which Modi govt increased in 2014. If India commits to reduce some percentage tariffs from 2014 then still our tariffs will be relatively higher for the RCEP member countries and we could prevent access to our market)• For India, RCEP may not make much difference as it has FTAs with ASEAN, and Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreements (CEPAs) with Japan & South Korea. India has the option to join the deal in future. But if it will not join the RCEP deal then it will face challenge in market access of these countries.”
Why this source?
  • Discusses India's relations/FTAs with ASEAN, Japan and South Korea in the context of RCEP, implying RCEP involves these East Asian economies.
  • Notes that India could join RCEP in future, reinforcing RCEP's association with ASEAN and major East Asian partners.
Contemporary World Politics, Textbook in political science for Class XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 2: Contemporary Centres of Power > Association of South East Asian Nations (ASEAN) > p. 21
Presence: 3/5
“T h e A S E A N s e c u r i t y community was based on the conviction that outstanding territorial disputes should not escalate into armed confrontation. By 2003, ASEAN had several agreements in place by which member states promised to uphold peace, neutrality, cooperation, non-interference, and respect for national differences and sovereign rights. The ASEAN Regional Forum (ARF), which was established in 1994, is the organisation that carries out coordination of security and foreign policy. A S E A N w a s a n d s t i l l remains principally an economic association.”
Why this source?
  • Describes ASEAN as principally an economic association, supporting the interpretation that RCEP is centred on ASEAN economic cooperation.
  • Provides background on ASEAN's economic role, which RCEP builds upon.
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SIMILAR QUESTIONS

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