Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF)

The United States is coming up with a new initiative termed as the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) which has been presented at a virtual meet in Tokyo.

This initiative mainly comprises of all the Quad countries and also seven out of ten ASEAN countries and New Zealand.
The grouping has gained significance as the countries put together put upto 40 percent of the global GDP.
India has signaled that it is willing to work with the grouping which will be a significant forum in the region.

The administrators from the United States have confirmed that Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity would not be a free trade agreement.
And also there is nothing about reducing the tariffs or increasing/decreasing the market access.
So, it is projected that Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity would not be a counter initiative to the RCEP.
This will be challenging for India as three years back it had walked out of the RCEP.
This initiative is looked as a tussle between USA and China as Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos the countries which are close to China have stayed out of this US led initiative.

Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity is viewed as an initiative to boost the manufacturing sector of the United States.
India along with other South East Asian nations can engage with the grouping to enhance its trade.

Source The Hindu

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