India has voiced concern over the emergence of some regional trading agreements with social clauses incorporated in them, saying that RTAs should not be used as a tool to force the implementation of some unrelated issues.
"Even though we are actively pursuing various regional trading agreements, we believe that they should be viewed as building blocks for an open, equitable, non-discriminatory and rule-based multilateral trading system," commerce secretary Dipak Chatterjee said in a statement at the 60th session of the UN Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific or ESCAP in Shanghai.
"We have noted with concern that in recent years some RTAs have been formulated with social clauses incorporated in them and linking them with the concessions available to the developing countries and least developed countries," he said.
This is contrary to the demand of the developing countries not to link the issues related to labour and environment to trade, Chatterjee said.
"We strongly believe that RTAs should not be used as a tool to bypass the multilateral trading system or for forcing implementation of certain unrelated issues," he said.
He said India recognises the important role of regional trading arrangements for expanding economic space and for providing preferential market access in the regional setting.
"It has therefore, been our endeavour to pursue signing of such agreements with our bilateral and regional trade partners."
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