The world community has witnessed the establishment of yet another trade union. When contrasted with other similar organizations, this project looks really impressive as it brings together as many as 15 countries of the Asia-Pacific region. The Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) owes its existence to the United States. The decision to create such a trade union was made as a counterbalance to the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP). "RCEP will soon be ratified by signatory countries and take effect, contributing to the post-COVID pandemic economic recovery," Prime Minister of Vietnam Nguyen Xuan Phuc, who hosted the ceremony as the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) chair, said. The new trade partnership is comprised of 10 ASEAN countries, including China, Japan, South Korea, Australia, and New Zealand. Initially, there were supposed to be 16 members. However, India decided not to join the organizations back in November last year. Nevertheless, ASEAN underlined that it would keep the door open for India even though it had rejected RCEP. Experts argue that RCEP will account for 30% of global GDP and about 30% of the world's population. In addition, the partnership is projected to strengthen China’s position, putting it in a better place to shape the region’s trade rules. Apart from that, this will be the first time that China and Japan have reached a bilateral tariff reduction arrangement.
