The Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) special negotiation round was held in
New Delhi, India, from February 8–11, 2023. The discussion focused on IPEF Pillars III (Clean Economy), II (Supply Chains), and IV (Fair Economy).
A total of 300 government representatives from the following countries participated in the discussions: India, the United States, Australia, Brunei, Fiji, Indonesia, Japan, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.
At a brief opening ceremony on February 8, 2023, during which Chief Negotiators from the IPEF member countries joined the Indian Commerce Secretary in lighting the customary lamps, the Special Round was officially launched. The Commerce Secretary spoke at the event and reaffirmed India’s commitment to playing a vital role in the Indo-Pacific region and helping to create a more stable and prosperous future. All of the participants were asked to concentrate on the bigger goals, which included accelerating sustainable development, developing resilient supply chains, and establishing more favourable environments for boosting trade and investment connections.
Shri Piyush Goyal, Union Minister of Commerce and Industry, hosted a reception for the guests of the IPEF member countries on February 10, 2023. Chief Negotiators and their representatives, Ambassadors, and senior government representatives from IPEF partner nations all attended the meal. The Minister urged members to establish original and creative strategies to forge convergences and produce concrete results, citing the Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi, during the IPEF’s May 2022 inauguration. He asked participants to concentrate their efforts on the early harvest of deliverables that might be advantageous to all. He discussed his thoughts on a few of the common concrete benefits anticipated from this programme, such as capacity building, technical help, sharing knowledge and best practices, investments, creative projects, etc.
In-depth text-based talks on the three pillars were held in New Delhi to build on the debates that occurred during the last round in Brisbane, Australia, in December 2022. The IPEF Partners engaged in a fruitful discussion and feedback exchange and decided to keep working hard in the coming months to advance each of the three pillars. The IPEF Partners reaffirmed their dedication to working together to swiftly reach contracts that offer tangible advantages to advance a shared vision for economic competitiveness and development in their respective economies.
The Chief Negotiator of India, Shri Rajesh Agarwal, Additional Secretary, Department of Commerce, reaffirmed India’s belief that IPEF will deepen economic engagement and promote inclusive development through enhancement in trade and investment in the region. He solicited opinions and ideas from all relevant stakeholders during the Stakeholders’ session that was held on the sidelines of the Special Round on February 9, 2023. IPEF Partner engagement will continue, and specifics regarding the following round of in-person negotiations will be released as soon as possible.
