With reference to the ‘Trans-Pacific Partnership’, consider the following statements:
- 1.It is an agreement among all the Pacific Rim countries except China and Russia.
- 2.It is a strategic alliance for the purpose of maritime security only.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Answer & explanation
Answer: (d) Neither 1 nor 2
The Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) was a trade and investment agreement signed on 4 February 2016 by twelve countries. It was not a maritime-security alliance, and it did not cover every Pacific Rim country other than China and Russia, so neither statement is correct.
- ✗ 1. Only twelve countries signed: the United States, Japan, Canada, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Chile, Peru, Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and Vietnam. Many other Pacific Rim economies, such as South Korea, Indonesia, the Philippines and Thailand, were not signatories.
- ✗ 2. The ministers' statement calls it an agreement to set a new standard for trade and investment. It is an economic agreement, not a security alliance.
- • Since then The United States told the other signatories in 2017 that it did not intend to join. The remaining eleven concluded the Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP), which entered into force on 30 December 2018.
Remember · The TPP (signed 4 February 2016) was a 12-country trade and investment pact, not a maritime-security alliance, and it left out many Pacific Rim economies.
Sources
- US Trade Representative (archived): Trans-Pacific Partnership Ministers’ Statement, 4 February 2016 ↗ “We, the Ministers representing Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, United States, and Vietnam, are pleased to announce that we have today signed the Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. … TPP will set a new standard for trade and investment in one of the world’s fastest growing and most dynamic regions.”
- New Zealand Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade: Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP) ↗ · reference work “The US has notified that it does not intend to become a party to the Agreement. … CPTPP entered into force on 30 December 2018.”
Question and answer: UPSC's official GS Paper I (2016, Series A) — paper ↗ · answer key ↗. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 30 Sept 2026 (how we verify). ·