India is keeping an eye on the trade talks of the 13-member IPEF (Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity) countries. An official said this on Thursday. India is yet to formally join it. IPEF was jointly formed by the US and other partner countries of the Indo-Pacific region in Tokyo on May 23. The 14 IPEF partners account for 40 percent of global GDP and 28 percent of global goods and services trade. The framework has been prepared around four pillars related to trade, supply chain, clean economy,, and fair economy (issues like tax and anti-corruption).

India is involved in 3 segments.

India has joined three segments except the trade part. Member countries are negotiating to sign separate agreements on these subjects. 14 member countries have already signed the agreement on supply chain, clean economy, and fair economy (issues like tax and anti-corruption). The official said, "We are waiting for the final results because there are binding commitments in the trade segment without clear market access provisions. There is going to be dispute settlement in many areas." Asked whether India plans to join this trade segment, he said, "We will wait on this matter for now, we are watching it closely. As it moves forward and countries come together and start finalizing the agreement, maybe we will decide on that."

These are the member countries.

Its members are Australia, Brunei Darussalam, Fiji, India, Indonesia, Japan, South Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, the US and Vietnam. India already has a free trade agreement in goods trade with ASEAN. Its members include seven IPEF countries - Brunei, Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Singapore, Vietnam and Thailand. Apart from this, it has such agreements with Australia, Japan, and South Korea. In such a situation, India may not gain much by joining the trade segment. Negotiations among the thirteen IPEF members are not yet over and there are differences among the participating countries on key issues.