The term 'Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership' often appears in the news in the context of the affairs of a group of countries known as
Answer & explanation
Answer: (b) ASEAN
RCEP is a trade agreement led by ASEAN, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations. Its negotiations were launched in November 2012 by the ten ASEAN members together with ASEAN's six free trade partners: Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea and New Zealand.
- ✓ (b) ASEAN adopted the RCEP framework and drove the talks, on the principle of ASEAN centrality.
- ✗ (a) The G20 is a forum of major economies for financial and economic coordination; it did not negotiate RCEP.
- ✗ (c) The Shanghai Cooperation Organisation deals mainly with regional security and cooperation in Eurasia, not this trade pact.
- ✗ (d) SAARC is a South Asian grouping and was not involved in RCEP.
- • Since then The RCEP Agreement was signed on 15 November 2020 by ASEAN's ten members with Australia, China, Japan, Republic of Korea and New Zealand; India was not among the signatories (ASEAN).
Remember · RCEP = ASEAN plus its six FTA partners (Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea, New Zealand); talks launched November 2012 at Phnom Penh.
Sources
- Joint Declaration on the Launch of Negotiations for the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (ASEAN Secretariat, 20 November 2012) ↗ · reference work “We, the Heads of State/Government of the Member States of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and ASEAN’s free trade agreement(FTA) partners – Australia, China, India, Japan, Korea and New Zealand – gathered on 20 November 2012 in Phnom Penh, Cambodia”
- ASEAN hits historic milestone with signing of RCEP (ASEAN Secretariat, 15 November 2020) ↗ · reference work “It was a momentous day as Leaders of ASEAN Member States, Australia, China, Japan, Republic of Korea and New Zealand witnessed the signing of the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) Agreement.”
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). ·