Joe Biden launches Indo-Pacific Economic framework; 12 countries including India join

US President Joe Biden on Monday launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) in Tokyo, setting the stage for deeper engagement in the fast-growing region of Indo-Pacific.

Addressing the launch event of IPEF in Tokyo's Izumi Garden Gallery, US President Joe Biden said, "Indo-Pacific covers half the world's population, over 60% of global GDP and nations represented here today and those who join this framework in future are signing up to work toward an economic vision that'll deliver for all our people."

The Prime Minister of Japan, Fumio Kishida also addressed the event and stressed that the country is contributing to the Indo-Pacific in cooperation with regional partners. "Japan has been contributing to the stable prosperity of the Indo-Pacific region in cooperation with the US and regional partners. We want to create a stable economic partnership in the Indo-Pacific," Japanese PM Kishida said. The launch event of the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF) had in attendance, US President Joe Biden, Indian PM Narendra Modi, Japanese PM Fumio Kishida and US Secretary of State Antony Blinken.

Indo-Pacific Economic Framework (IPEF)

An initiative by the United States President Joe Biden, the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework or IPEF has been promoted as a "21st-century economic arrangement" that will address prevailing challenges such as creating standards for the digital economy, guaranteeing secure supply chains, and assisting in big clean energy investments. Notably, this initiative by POTUS Biden is seen as a counter-measure to Chinese influence in the Indo-Pacific region. It is pertinent to mention here that along with the US, there are 12 other initial IPEF member countries including India, Japan, Australia, Brunei, Indonesia, the Republic of Korea, Malaysia, New Zealand, the Philippines, Singapore, Thailand, and Vietnam.

Notably, the White House, in its press briefing, also spoke about the IPEF and stated that the member countries of IPEF represent 40% of global GDP. "Together, this very diverse set of economies represent around 40 per cent of global GDP.  And the fact that we have such a range and a significant number of partner countries on the ground floor for the launch reflects the far-reaching ambition of the framework and also indicates that there’s deep interest across the region in it," a statement from a press release from White House read. "But, of course, as we’ve also indicated from the start, this is an open platform. So there are other countries that could conceivably join us as we move forward," the statement read.

"IPEF is a 21st-century economic arrangement designed to tackle 21st-century economic challenges, ranging from setting the rules of the road for the digital economy to ensuring secure and resilient supply chains, to helping make the kinds of major investments necessary in clean energy infrastructure and the clean energy transition, to raising standards for transparency, fair taxation, and anti-corruption," a statement from White House on IPEF read.