Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday returned to New Delhi after concluding his three-day visit to Thailand where he participated in ASEAN- India, East Asia and RCEP summits.
On November 4, PM Modi had participated at the 3rd RCEP Summit in Bangkok. He conveyed India’s decision not to join the Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) agreement based on the current global economic situation as well as on the grounds of fairness and balance, Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.
“India had significant issues of core interest that remained unresolved. PM Modi highlighted that he was guided by the adverse impact it would have on the lives of all Indians, specially the vulnerable sections of the society,” Kumar said.
“India participated in discussions in good faith and negotiated hard, with a clear-eyed view of our interests. In given circumstances, we believe that not joining is right decision. India would continue to strengthen our trade, investment & people-to-people ties with this region,” Kumar added.
During his stay, PM Modi participated in several bilateral meetings including with his Japanese counterpart Shinzo Abe, Vietnam counterpart Nguyen Xuan Phuc, and Australian counterpart Scott Morrison.
