UPSC Prelims 2016 · Question 66 of 98

UPSC Prelims 2016 question on Trans Pacific Partnership

With reference to the ‘Trans-Pacific Partnership’, consider the following statements:

1. It is an agreement among all the Pacific Rim countries except China and Russia.

2. It is a strategic alliance for the purpose of maritime security only.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1 only
  2. 2 only
  3. Both 1 and 2
  4. Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer

Answer: D. Neither 1 nor 2

Verdict

The answer is neither 1 nor 2. The Trans-Pacific Partnership had twelve members rather than all Pacific Rim countries, and it was a trade agreement, not a maritime security alliance.

Analysis

Statement 1 is INCORRECT. The Partnership was signed by twelve nations, that is Australia, Brunei, Canada, Chile, Japan, Malaysia, Mexico, New Zealand, Peru, Singapore, the United States and Vietnam, which is far from all Pacific Rim countries minus China and Russia, since Indonesia, South Korea, the Philippines, Thailand and others were outside it. Statement 2 is INCORRECT. It was a trade and economic agreement covering tariffs, services, investment, intellectual property and labour and environment standards, not a security alliance.

Source

The Hindu report on twelve nations signing the Trans-Pacific Partnership.

How to crack it

Statement 1 uses an all except construction and statement 2 uses only, so both are absolutes and both are the natural place to attack. For the first, a single Pacific Rim country outside the agreement destroys it, and several qualify. For the second, read the word Partnership, which is economic vocabulary, since security groupings use words like treaty, pact and alliance. Two independent tests both point to neither 1 nor 2.

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